English Major?

[WinterSolstice]

Hello everyone, I'm a freshman enrolled in college, still undeclared, and looking for majors. I've always enjoyed English, but I'm unsure about the degree's uses. Any BA/MA/PhD holders in English have any advice for me? It would be greatly appreciated. Thanks :smallsmile:

[thubby]

from what i hear of it, having a degree in anything is a good way to get your foot in the door for most careers.
an english degree doesn't have many careers dedicated to it beyond teaching.

[Tirian]

I had a friend who created a self-defined major in technical writing which was predominately English with an additional concentration in computer programming, graphic design, and cognitive psychology. That made her pretty hot property for being able to write software manuals, and she later went off and published her own line of tech books.

I think that's how it works. If you want to write for a living, then what do you want to write? Do you want to be a journalist, a legal editor, a television scriptwriter, a tech writer, or what? If you can answer that question, then not only do you know where your English major will take you, but you know what sorts of electives you should take to make you more effective and attractive to the people who do the hiring in your desired field.

[ghost_warlock]

I have a dual B.A. in English (creative writing) and Studio Art as well as a B.A. in Sociology (with a minor in biology).

My advice would be this: learn about everything you can, everything that interests you. If you want to write for a living, the best advice I can give you for that is to read ravenously.

Keep in mind, however, that many of lessons you should learn form college will not be from the coursework. College is also about life experience, learning how to be professional and working on your social skills and relationships (romantic and otherwise).

Also, don't be afraid to experiment with your identity; who you see yourself as and the persona you're trying to project for others. Be yourself, but don't be afraid to take some liberties and inquiries into exactly who that person is.

[RTGoodman]

I don't have a degree in English (my BA is in History), but my minor was Medieval & Renaissance Studies and included as many English classes as anything else, and I'm probably going to grad school in a related field. I hope that's good enough for you.

Anyway, first off, don't pick your major solely on what you think you're going to do for the rest of your life. You may think now that you want to edit books for a living, but maybe several years down the road you may end up WRITING books, working as an administrative assistant, or do something WILDLY different from what your degree is.

Second, don't worry about the specifics for uses. This is sort of like the above in that you don't necessarily have to have a specific degree for a lot of jobs someone in your shoes might want. A BA in English could lead to teaching (here or in a foreign land), technical writing, creative writing, editing, journalism, secretarial positions, management positions, or all sorts of places. Remember, an English degree is a liberal arts degree, and the key things you get from that are a solid background in various fields (I had several classes in foreign languages, English, history, archaeology, Spanish literature, and so on) AND a focus on critical thinking, communications skills, and all sorts of other valuable skills.

Third, if you're thinking about English as a possible major, you need to think long and hard about whether or not (1) you're already a good writing, including good spelling, grammar, and all sorts of stuff like that; or (2) you're willing to work HARD to get better at all of the above things. As a liberal arts major, that's most of what you'll be doing - almost ALL your classes will involve SOME sort of writing, and the crap you might be used to (you in the impersonal sense, not you specifically) were used to before might not be up to par.

My advice is to take a couple of English classes, see how you like them, and see if they're the kind of thing you'd be willing and able to spend the rest of your undergraduate career doing. If so, go for it, and you can always change majors later if you need to. If it's not right for you, you've gotten a little bit of work on your reading/writing skills, picked up a few elective credits, and have broadened your horizons at least a little (hopefully).

[potatocubed]

I've said it before and I'll say it again: unless you're doing something obviously practical, like chemistry or engineering, your degree has next to no bearing on what you end up doing with your life. My degree is in philosophy and politics, for example, which means about the only thing I'm qualified to do is rule the world. What I've actually done is data entry, warehouse work, PR, graphic design (badly, I'll admit) and now I'm an editor and occasional writer.

So, my advice is this: choose a subject that you enjoy and don't worry about the employment options until you need to.

In fact, you're in a good position since by the time you finish your degree the economy'll probably be coming back up from the pit it's in and the job market will be more buoyant.

[afroakuma]

My degree is in philosophy and politics, for example, which means about the only thing I'm qualified to do is rule the world.

Now that is an awesome quote.

[Mauve Shirt]

Degrees really do have no bearing on what you end up doing. My father majored in English, and his job is classified (but he's the boss of something or other). If you enjoy English courses, go for it. My take on it, what matters is getting the degree, and not what it's in. So take stuff you like, get the grades required to get the piece of paper that will get you a job, any job. Unless you're specializing, but it doesn't sound like you are.
I'm majoring in German. I am in all likelihood not going to work with it.

[Catskin]

From my experience Potatocubed and Mauve are right.

I'll add that an English degree will look and feel good and be attractive to a lot of industries after college. Like high end sales (like insurance, pharmaceuticals, or realty), or if you go back to school for an advanced degree in Political Sci., an MBA, JD, MLS, MSW, MFA, or whatever, an English degree will be attractive to schools and future employers.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

I agree with everything the other posters are saying, just thought I'd play devil's advocate. It's true that you should study what interests you, and many jobs don't care what your major is as long as you have a degree.

However, don't choose a major just because you think it's interesting. My sister loves music and considered being a music major, but decided that she could still take music classes and continue her music development extracurricularly without majoring in it. Instead she became a Registered Nurse, and now no matter how bad the economy tanks she'll still have a job. Now, she also liked nursing, don't get me wrong. You still need to enjoy what you're doing.

So just because you enjoy writing doesn't necessarily mean you should be an English or Journalism major, any more than if you enjoy shooting guns and jumping out of planes does that necessarily mean you should join the military - you can still do that stuff on your own if you want to.

Another thing to consider is whether or not you think you would be willing to go to graduate school. If yes, than your undergraduate major doesn't matter as much, as long as you take the prerequisite courses.

[TheMessage]

I'm currently working on a double major in English/Philosophy, with a minor in Education, and looking to be a professor. Certainly not the big bucks, but it has its perks.

[purple gelatinous cube o' Doom]

Unless you want to go into academia or teach, there's really not much else you can do with a degree in English. (and yes, I have a friend who has a PhD in English, so I know a little something)

[MeklorIlavator]

Well, my mom is an English major, so I asked her about options, so here's what she said:

editor (editors take other people's raw product and turn them into newspaper and magazine articles or books, advertising materials, reports, web site material: basically anything that is read. A major part of this is being able to interpret others' work and anticipate the readers' needs and make the two fit together

If you want to emphasize creativity, there is advertising and marketing.

If you want to work with kids, then teach

Many english majors go to work as analysts (government: CIA, GAO,); the emphasis here is being able to interpret materials, pulling out important bits and reporting on them.

Writer: since most people dread writing, there is a huge demand for people who can cheerfully sit down day after day and do it, especially in the business and marketing fields

Please pass on that I have been an employed English major for 25 years now, with no unemployment

[Archpaladin Zousha]

As an English Major with an Emphasis in Literature, I heartily recommend the book I'm an English Major-Now What? (http://www.amazon.com/Im-English-Major-Now-What/dp/1582973628/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1231638615&sr=1-1) by Tim Lemire. It has a lot of useful information on what being an English major is all about, and great advice on potential career paths. Not all English majors become teachers. The book was actually required reading for my Sophomore Colloquium class last year.