Comments on: Becoming a Marketable English Major

By: Kathrine

Kathrine — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 08:06:50 +0000

Hey! I recently started college and I’m really confused with what I want to be.
Last week I did an interview with one of my co-workers and my teacher, who graded my paper, said that I have a gift in writing and encourages me to take journalism.

However, I came in to college wanting to be a Secondary Education Teacher focusing on English Language Arts.

So, my question is — Is it possible to get a B.Ed AND Minor in English? HELP >_<

By: Emily

Emily — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 20:28:04 +0000

I was an English major who double majored in geology. 14 years later, this was a very good decision – but here is some advice to help somebody survive the process of double majoring.

* Get started freshman year on being an English major and at least choosing a substantial minor that you can expand into a major. I decided to double-major junior year, but I already had a lot of coursework done from taking Geology as a minor.
* If you are double-majoring in a science, lab time will add to the time you spend in class and the work you have to do. After making my junior year decision, I spent my summer between junior and senior year working and filling in on requirements for my science major.
* There was no “semester abroad.”
* Second semester Senior year is going to be really busy, especially if BOTH your majors require a thesis. I was taking four courses, two with labs; luckily, I only had one thesis to work on at the same time.

By: Queercents » Blog Archive » Queercents Weekly Roundup: Takes the Metro

Queercents » Blog Archive » Queercents Weekly Roundup: Takes the Metro — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 19:13:37 +0000

[...] Truly! I reiterate the part about doubling (I also took Communications) and getting internships. (Read it at Finance for a Freelance [...]

By: Anitra

Anitra — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 17:45:28 +0000

As someone who got a B.S. in Computer Science, I think most of your points are true for ANY major in college. Everyone needs to know how to write & speak clearly, and everyone should have some diversity to their education and some real-world experience.

I went to a technically-oriented university, so I know plenty of people with degrees in engineering or the sciences who didn’t realize that their major(s) wouldn’t necessarily give them an “in” to the work they’d find interesting.

By: wealthy_1

wealthy_1 — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 22:46:03 +0000

I was an English major, too. Although, I’ve never worked in publishing, I’ve never had an issue landing a job that I wanted.

A liberal arts degree shows that you’re well-rounded and most likely have excellent communication skills.

By: jr

jr — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 23:04:05 +0000

I majored in English literature and have no regrets. My job experience was actually more important in getting my first job. However, my ability to think, communicate and write helped me in terms of promotion. I did grantwriting and fundraising for many years. Now I work in marketing (and love it). There are a lot of options if you work hard.

By: plonkee

plonkee — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 21:01:58 +0000

I think that being flexible about what you might be interested in doing for a living, and how you can sell your degree is the most helpful thing.

For what it’s worth, most people I know with English degrees work in marketing, in a variety of industries.

By: Jessica

Jessica — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 19:49:42 +0000

That’s liberal arts majors, apparently I used up my s ration in my previous comment

By: Jessica

Jessica — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 19:48:41 +0000

High ranking business execs probably also went to prestigious schools where they meet other important (upper class) people to network with and get on the fast track to high ranking exec. They could have majored in field hockey and probably done just fine, because it’s about who you know.

Also, what Mrs M’s professor said about English majors could be said about most of the other liberal art major.

By: Mrs Micah's Mom

Mrs Micah's Mom — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 16:08:13 +0000

I used to teach linguistics at the University of British Columbia. One day, I met a former student and asked what she was doing. She said that she was working in a bank, not having been able to find a job relevant to linguistics. I said we had not expected her to be able to work in linguistics with just a B.A., but that showing she could stick with something and follow things through was important. She agreed and added, “You know, all those arguments and counter-arguments and counter-counter-arguments–that’s when I realized that if something is believed in science it’s because someone made an argument for it.” That’s the sort of thing you hope a student will learn. And that sort of realization is why I think liberal arts are so important even if the facts you learn aren’t directly useful on the job. As Funny About Money says, it ‘hones the mind.’