English Majors Unite!

I did pretty well in my English exams at 16, and was considering taking my studies further, but was put off when I realised that being English gave you no advantage whatsoever when it came to studying English. I felt cheated, somehow...

So, to all the English majors out there,

What has majoring in English gained you access to? What kinds of jobs could you get, what doors open?

I'm in the midst of college pandemonium and looking for some information on what to choose as a major. I've got it narrowed down (I think) to:

-History
-Animal Studies (not sure which field of studies I would look into yet)

However, I think I would find an English major pretty interesting, considering my love of the subject.

Thank you kindly, y'all :wink:

I don't use my English knowledge for anything except writing on A2K!

I think it helps to take a few courses just to improve your writing and speaking skills. People do judge you on how well you can articulate and being able to express yourself (written on a resume and verbally at an interview) are definitely assets.


As for jobs....teaching?

And I was in writing, not literature. There are those two different areas. Literature is obviously the study of books, poetry, prose....never found that as exciting as creative writing classes.

I would have majored in English if I had had the chance. At the time I
wanted to be a high school English teacher. I did that for three years, but
don't any more.

I believe English is a tool that aids in almost any career. (I am now a
software engineer who can actually write comprehensible specs.) That
said, unless you aspire to be a writer or academician, there aren't a lot of
careers proceeding directly from a degree in English.

OFten, your college major isn't going to determine your job qualifications--I mean there are some obvious exceptions. But really, employers want people who can write sentences, and many fields are open to you. I had roommate who was a philosophy major, and he now makes tons of money with a medical insurance company.

I say, if the English major interests you enough to make college more interesting, that's all you should worry about. Otherwise you might find yourself doing some really stupid and annoying **** for nothing.

Double major--English and Social Studies and I still think that grammar is boring. Masters in Ed. Psych.

Sanctuary - a degree in English can also be put to use in any number of ways in editing and publishing. If you like to read - that strikes me as a good fit.

Also, undergraduate degrees in English (or any other liberal arts/humanities subject area) are increasingly being looked at more favorably when one is applying to various professional graduate degree programs such as medicine, law, dentistry, and veterinary sciences (I saw you said you're interested in studying animals). Formerly, admissions committees for such programs were more interested in students who excelled in the sciences - now the thinking is that a person who has a liberal arts degree, especially in English, is more well-rounded (and maybe better able to interact with people) as well as probably being more adept at written and spoken communication.

I don't teach English, but I majored in it because Education courses were deadly boring to me, and as I always loved to read and write, I thought, "what better way to spend four years?" I feel I got a good foundational education and most importantly, I enjoyed myself. I went back and did a one year Master's of Education program to obtain my teaching credential. Much less painful than four years of "Math for Elementary Ed" and other courses of that ilk.

Good luck. You strike me as someone who will be successful at whatever you choose to do.

Well, my written word is so/so; I can write in complete sentences and use proper punctuation. My spelling is often defeated by my pseudo-photographic memory trying to budge in with my phonetic memory, resulting in some odd letter choices. However, I am Assistant Editor of my school paper, and have always flown through my English courses. I do enjoy it thoroughly, although there's always room for improvement.

My verbal abilities, however, are depleted. Severely. I love the internet because I can easily articulate what I am thinking, there is not a time limit or sets of eyes glaring at you in search of an educated response. When I attempt to speak in person however, I stumble and stutter, my dyslexia kicks in when trying to read aloud and I come off as a complete dingbat. This is something that has always challenged me and held me back from doing a lot of things that would further my education or experiences in life; I know I make much less of a good impression when I am made to interview or recite something than is possible for me. I know that I am intelligent, and when given the ability to write my thoughts down I am perfectly content. Speaking aloud though...well, that's a much different issue.

How does an English major (or any courses related to English, really) help one verbally?

Are there any courses in high school that could help me achieve better speech and in-person presentation? I am in dire need.

..

As far as what I want to do in life... I have no clue. Deep inside of me, my dream would be traveling to third-world countries and providing help for less fortunate people in perhaps Cambodia, Africa, etc. But I know that in reality, I will doubtfully ever be able to afford such trips, and would not be able to hold down a strong relationship/family life either.

So I knock that dream down and replace it with merely studying other cultures; I wouldn't mind a course that has to do with History as well as social-studying like Anthropology and Archaeology. Is there such a Major possible, one that combines the mixture of the three and provides the opportunity to work in that field?

Aidan - thank you!

I apologize for getting this thread a bit off-topic - perhaps I should just make a 'college major' thread in general. Or one titled 'AHH!!!!!!!' :wink:

Nah, this is all interesting, Sanctuary.

I absolutely loved being an English major and would do it over again just for the pure fun of it. I do think it was also extremely useful, though. Good writing skills are something you can use in pretty much any arena. Being able to write well was tremendously useful to me as the director of my agency, from all the reports I made to grant-writing (all good grants proposals are really just selling a compelling story).

And now I just found work as an editor, though more of a content-type than grammar-type.

(And, I just finished my first attempt at erotica! Oh my. A contest with a 500 word limit, very tough. I'll let you know if I win the $500, though.)

I think you express yourself quite well via the written word.

Why don't you let US be the judges???

Majored in English, then, not knowing what else to do, got an M.A. in English.

Finally wised up and began the circuitous path to a wonderful life of underemployment...

Sanctuary - I'm also a much more fluent writer than speaker, and always have been. I've found that teaching has really improved my ability to orally present ideas and information coherently. At first, I was almost afraid to be a teacher for that very reason, although I'd always related to and got so much affirmation from my teachers that that's just what I always wanted to be. Day after day of getting up before people and having to verbally communicate has really honed those skills. It also massively increased my confidence.

In the highschool I worked in in the states we had a Public Speaking course and of course a Debate team. I know it might be a struggle at first, but you strike me as someone who has the intelligence and perseverence to just put your head down and do what you need to do to reach your goal.

As far as traveling and working - there are always opportunities for teachers overseas. Especially if you taught English or English as a second language - you could pretty much pick your job and the country you want to live in. There's an incredible demand for English teachers all over the world.

Not trying to twist your arm or anything but good teachers are hard to find, and given all the bad publicity education in general gets, it's just going to get harder. I've loved it - I can't picture doing anything else.

What is an English major? Is it something to do with the American education system? And if it is, is there not some kind of a paradox here?

hahahahahahahahahaha