The Future of Arts & Higher Education:
The Future of Arts & Higher Education: Anchored in Faith, Creativity, and Market Relevance
“Will my student get a job?”
By a large margin, this is the question that I field most often from parents of prospective students in the visual and performing arts. A recent report finds a 7.2% unemployment rate among graduates in Commercial Art and Graphic Design—numbers that, as a parent myself, would give me pause if I were considering my child’s path. But working as an educator in this space for the past decade, I can say confidently: that number doesn’t tell the full story. As the Associate Dean at Anderson University’s South Carolina School of the Arts, I see every day how quality arts education prepares students not only for today’s creative economy, but for a lifetime of meaningful work and contribution rooted in faith and being.
The Real Context: No Degree Is Recession-Proof
Unemployment pressures are not unique to the arts. In today’s economy, engineering, business, and even healthcare graduates face volatility. The truth is, no degree is “safe.” What lasts are the qualities that withstand economic cycles—adaptability, creativity, and character. That’s what makes graduates resilient, employable, and able to flourish in a changing world.
Why the Arts Still Matter
The arts train us to imagine, to interpret, and to connect. They cultivate judgment, emotional intelligence, and creative problem-solving: the things that tech (yes, even AI) cannot replicate or replace. Employers know this. From tech startups to nonprofit leadership, they’re looking for graduates who can think critically, communicate meaningfully, and bring imagination into complex challenges. They want innovative solutions that are distinctly human. They are looking for solutions that don’t bring everything to the middle, but offer customized and distinct experiences.
Algorithms can optimize. AI can analyze. But it takes people — artists, makers, designers, ‘creatives’ — to craft meaning, tell stories, and carry culture in any meaningful way. As technology accelerates, these distinctly human capacities don’t diminish in value; they grow. We aren’t training a generation of influencers and trend-followers, we are working to build excellence through the God-given giftings of our students in order that they may forge forward into their calling. For many, some of the jobs they will have don’t even exist yet.
Anderson’s Mission: Faith and Learning Together
At AU, we in the SCSA take this further. We believe education should form the whole person, guiding students to integrate faith and learning. We want graduates who are not only highly skilled, but also well-rounded citizens and believers. We want artists, designers, performers who serve ethically, think deeply, and contribute with conviction.
Our programs in the visual and performing arts combine technical mastery with real-world experience. Take my area: Photography. Students work with clients, explore cutting-edge technology, and collaborate across disciplines. Just as importantly, they do this in a community shaped by mentorship, resilience, and character.
What the Numbers Miss
As a photography professor, I see every day how traditional statistics fall short. Yes, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 4% growth in photography jobs through 2033 (on par with the growth of the rest of the market), and the U.S. market valuation for photographic services is expected to more than double by 2034. But even those numbers miss the explosion of new career paths and opportunities. 68% of full-time professional photographers are self-employed.
Content creation, social media strategy, drone imaging (18-20% of the market!), and hybrid roles that blend photography, video, and design are thriving. My students aren’t just “photographers” in the old sense—they’re visual storytellers, brand strategists, and creative entrepreneurs. Some build careers directly in the field, while others leverage their visual literacy in marketing, communications, and beyond. These are durable skills that outlast trends and categories.
Our graduates don’t simply enter the market—they help shape it. In Photo alone, we have real estate photographers, graduate Art students, wedding photographers, commercial food photographers, filmmakers, and a host of other career professionals. They are business owners who carry creativity, adaptability, and ethical grounding into every arena. And that is exactly what tomorrow’s world will demand.
Unemployment statistics will always rise and fall. But the answer isn’t to avoid the arts in favor of ‘safe’ jobs: it’s to pursue an education that prepares students for uncertainty with both craft and character. That is the education we’re committed to at Anderson University.
And that’s why I remain confident: not just in the enduring value of the arts, but in the future of the students we’re privileged to guide.
As I say to my students regularly, “Onward!”