Employee relations is an essential part of any business in order to ensure a healthy and safe work environment. The human resources department is essential to keeping those relations going smoothly and is responsible for hiring, keeping employee-employer relationship positive and even firing those employees who do not meet the standards of the business. If you genuinely enjoy working with other people and have strong communication skills, you might want to consider pursuing a human resources major.
Education
A human resources degree is most often earned at the bachelor’s level. In this major, you’ll study people and the workplace to make sure that the needs of people in the workplace are met. The courses you’ll take in this major include staffing, organizational behavior, employee and labor relations, compensation and benefits, legal issues and performance management. In high school, it helps to take courses like calculus, statistics, economics, English, psychology and computer applications.
Questions to ask
It’s important that you get the attention you deserve at the school you decide on — how many professors are in the department? Does the program have a positive reputation in the HR field? Experience is necessary with this major – will the school help you find internships? Where have recent students interned? Will the school help you in your job search?
Salary
According to the 2012 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median pay for human resources specialists was $55,640 a year. After five or more years of experience, you can become a human resources manager and have the chance to make up to $99,720 a year.
Want to explore more careers? Visit NextStepU.com to get career info and advice on majors from all fields.
