hi, im a first year student in college and i decided on majoring english.

in today's society, what is the flexibility of finding a job that relates to english?
are they needed in general?

and of course, the question i have to ask.. is it hard? haha

for those who have majored in english, could you tell me what u had to go through?

and for those people who have heard things relating to majoring english, you can tell me too plzz

thanks.. i just want to know as much as i can about this to make sure this major is right for me.

I'm an English major right now at the UW.. I have to say, it is a pretty laid back major. But, it can be very stressful and difficult just like any other major. In terms of coursework and workload, the classes you take will revolve highly around reading, analytical/critical thinking and intensive writing. So just be prepared to read things and then to write papers about them. As an English Major, you'll be taught to weigh values, to critically examine ideas and concepts to further understand them, and to argue and formulate your own ideas and opinions based on information given to you.

In terms of a career, I have steadily seen and heard, that the English Major is the most versatile major in terms of finding a job. You can get a job literally everywhere. If you type in "Jobs for English Majors" or something along that criterion in Google, you'll see what I'm talking about. Some English Majors become teachers (somewhat rare though), some write for publications (fun), some go on to work for banks, advertising companies, etc. Basically anything that involves some form of critical thinking, reading, writing, communicating, you can get a job for. Again, the jobs out there for English majors is insane, I was surprised at how many jobs English Majors were landing. I also read recently in I think it was CNN or something like that, that many English majors enter the business field. Sounds promising! Hope this helps.

^ yeah that does sound promising..

just wondering, are you going as far as to getting your PHD? what are your thoughts on that?

and do you know how many years that will take on average?

Yeah, I'm thinking about majoring in English at UW too.
I think it's a hard major because of the overwhelming reading load and a ton of analyzing, but I heard that you can do almost anything with an English major.


Edward -
Can I ask you a question? Is English major hard to get into at UW? It's marked as competitive in the UW planner, but everyone I've talked to says it's easy? Like all you need is a certain gpa?
I'm asking because I'm freaking out that I won't get in, lol. My gpa is really bad right now because I majorly slacked off my freshman year, but I'm trying to get it up this year. I'm thinking I can get it up to at least a 2.9-3.1.
=///

im an english major as well, although at a diff school, but being an english major really doesnt have anything to do with what you want to with your professional life. it really depends on what you get your master's in in grad school. i've talked to a ton of professors about this and they agree. some of them even say that quite a few ppl go into law school and/or business school, you can essentially do anything with an english major...

No WAY.. I'm not going as far as a Ph.d, not only will I be a bad professor but it takes on average 6+ years to get your Ph.d.. so if you have the time (and money) to pursue a Ph.d, more power to you! I actually plan to attend Law School, if not, getting my Masters in English.


Well there are a few pre-reqs you need to take, first is (of course) English 131 and then they recently added English 197 and English 202 as a pre-req last year. It really isn't hard to get into, I got accepted into the department early in my Sophomore year, my GPA at the time was a 3.5 or so. I don't think there is a required GPA, but you should try to raise your GPA because the English Major IS a competitive major to be accepted into since they do examine your GPA as well as your GPA for English coursework.



VERY TRUE

Most of my friends (theater, music, architecture, nursing, education majors) are a LOT busier than me, but they don't understand how I can casually write a 6 page paper in an hour. They get so stressed out if they have to write a 3 page paper every month or so, but writing 25 page papers is pretty normal for me.

-ginger

thats not neccessarily true, in order to get a ph.d in english, you have to, i believe for three years write a dissertation, and they actually pay the student to go to school. on average you have to teach two classes per semester while you're studying or writing your ph.d/dissertation. you get about ten grand a year for every year you study for your ph.d, however you have to find your own apt, or etc. so essentially getting a ph.d in english is not expensive, however, like i said before, they pay you but you have to be willing to teach several classes per semester. and since im studying to be a teacher, it doesnt matter whether or not i get a ph.d in english, cause i plan to be an E.S.L. teacher, and to get a ph.d in english only matters for those who want to teach college...

I agree with everything that's been said about getting a job. Very often, the job you get has nothing to do with your major. This is especially true if you major in one of the liberal arts (like English).



Getting a PhD in English is almost certainly going to take you six years and probably more. They do "pay you" in the sense that you get a stipend, but you'll be a college graduate making basically no money every year. Some people don't get fellowships or even TAships, which means they actually pay tuition, something that seems insane to me unless you have rich parents (which, of course, most people in this position do). A lot of people never even finish their dissertation. Even if you do, getting a tenure-track position is virtually impossible.

Actually, as a graduating senior, I've noticed that most of my fellow majors are looking into jobs that are related to English. Most are planning to teach (either here or abroad - but mostly abroad because deep down, we're all just a bunch of hippies seeking the exotic), write for magazines/newspapers/other publications, and a few going into grant writing. A very selected minority plan on attending graduate school right after graduation.

Seriously, though. Take it one step at a time. Most of the time, you're going to discover that your original plan isn't the one you'll follow.

And yes, being an English major is going to be hard. There's going to be a ton of reading, and you'll probably have to read some books you don't like. And there will also be an endless amount of papers. Depending on your school, you may or may not have to use secondary sources (literary criticism) in your papers. And most of the people in your class will be pretentious assholes who quote obscure texts and retort every questionable glance with, "You don't know ___ (fill in obscure author here)?! He/She is only the father/mother of post-modernism/modernism/romanticism/contemporary English/American literature!"

But you get to meet a lot of strange and interesting motley of people, and some of your professors will be absolutely wonderful.

I want to major in English too!
But I still have a year to go until I am a freshmen year in college.
I am so concerned with the critical thinking aspect of reading, I usually
enjoy reading for its plot. Critical thinking is a new concept for me, although,
my teacher says I can write great essays and I think "outside of the box"
I feel that she is just flattering me =/.
I want to know how I can improve my critical thinking skills.
I'm reading a plethora of books and essays to enhance my skills
but I don't know... >.<

I don't want to be Debbie Downer on this thread, but I began as an English major at UGA... they have a pretty good program.
It's not that hard... most upper level classes have about 2-5 major papers in a semester (depending on what kind of class, what kind of professor)
If you know how to pace your time, it's really, really not that hard. You MUST read given readings though, seriously. It won't be like in high school, where you just skim over stuff, or read sparknotes and hope to get away with it. I mean, you might be able to get away with it, but if you can't catch up by the end of the semester, you'll be officially screwed.

As far as the job market, there really isn't anything you can do with a bachelor's in English (which is why I switched my major)... but to be honest, nobody with a bachelor's in ANYthing can get a decent job these days. You should think of going to grad school.
English majors can do A LOT of different jobs, (editing, freelance, publishing, etc) but it doesn't really confine you to anything, like other people were saying.

Even pre-med students can be English majors... it just matters what you do with it when you further your education.

Anyone have personal experience on job search with an English major?

A while ago, I realized that hearing things on the TV, from your prof, or reading it in a magazine does not do the inquiring mind justice when trying to answer the question regarding job search with an English major.

My studies include an emphasis on accounting and you always hear people say accounting always has jobs. My experiences say otherwise. So I was wondering if anyone had some personal experience with job hunting + english major.

Note: If someone answered, forgive me if I did not read it. I thought I read each post before mine, but I am sooooooo sleepy right now, haha.

CHECK!
we can do papers in one sitting!
talk about crash papers!






to enhance, critical thinking skills,
try to scan through Theories in Human Communication books/texts.
one such is Stephen Littlejohn's.

concentrate on "isms" like:
constructivism, post-structuralism, pluralism, etc.

and one more thing:
social sciences are very vital in critical thinking.
most arguments revolve around social issues
so equip yourself with socio-cultural and socio-political concepts.

also, try to read books/texts in elementary philosophy.


*sigh*
that's how it went for me.

Oh! Question for English majors!
I'm good at math, but I hate it. I love to read and write, but I suck at critical thinking and grammar. I'm working on it. But will this slow me down. Should I switch to a different major?

I'm an English major, and to be honest, it sucks when trying to find a job. I plan on going to law school (so an English major is fine), but I'm trying to find a job first and take a year off...... yyyeah. I guess areas like PR or editing wouldn't mind English majors, but even so, it is somewhat limiting (as consulting firms aren't exactly looking for English majors). PR and editing also do not make much money, and they do like seeing a lot of experience before hiring someone full-time.

So my advice to you is if you DON'T plan on going to grad/professional school, then major in something else... or double major it... or even make English your minor.

It's a great, enriching major, and I do love it, but in terms of job prospects, it's not as great as people say it is (at least in my experience).