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The degree I’m looking at is an English major. It says in the description that I can get a teaching license with that degree, but I’m curious if not going specifically for education will limit my career choices.

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Emily’s Answer

Hi Mary P! I had the same issue - I loved English, but had no intentions of becoming a teacher.

I did major in English, and eventually ended up as a technical writer and web designer. Think of any time you've seen written instructions - maybe a textbook, or a DIY book, or instructions that came with a piece of furniture. And companies need to have people to write their policies and procedures, their memos, information on their websites, etc. Someone is writing all of those - that could be you.

It's amazing how many people don't like to write, and how happy they are to have someone who really loves it. Almost any field becomes open to you, because everyone needs writers...even if they don't know it.

So I don't think it limits you at all. I think it's one of the more flexible majors, depending on what parts of it you enjoy. Not many will pay you to analyze literary merits of a book, but they may very well pay you to analyze words and write your own.

Good luck!
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Gloria’s Answer

Hi Mary,

In my mind, you are not limiting your choices at all. I think that it is quite the opposite. A good and wide command of the English language can be quite beneficial to a variety of career choices. Here is a link to an article that I feel could help you: https://www.glassdoor.com/blog/jobs-for-english-majors/

I am what would be considered a technical writer, but it is also known as an Instructional Designer. I am an Instructional Designer. I would say that many of these roles would require you to be very passionate about writing. You would need to be comfortable with spending a lot of time working on your own. In my role, writing training courses, I actually do have a lot of interaction with people, although it can come in spurts. I actually enjoy the ability to have time to work on my own.

Gloria
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B’s Answer

When I was an English major, almost everybody I told responded "Oh, so you're going to teach English?" and I almost took that for granted myself. I even got a certificate to teach ESL after I graduated, before it dawned on me that I could edit magazines and children's books for a living.

Study what you're interested in --> when you find out what you're good at, pursue it --> when you have a job you're good at, find the thing that you love most about it --> make that thing your expertise.
Profit.
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Hung’s Answer

Not at all. You can write Technical documents, Training documents, or work in any Law firm to help Attorneys in writing Legal documents.
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Jennifer’s Answer

You could really do anything with an English degree. What matters more is your internships. Marketing is a field where you need to have a good command of the English language since communication is key. Same in all aspcects of the business world. Another idea is you could work for an education company helping to create English programs that go into classrooms.
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Mary’s Answer

Hi! You're in luck, there are so many things you can do with an English degree! Employers really value workers who are able to write well, speak well, understand instructions and think for themselves. All of those things you will be able to do with an English degree. What will really open the door for you is searching for careers about words beyond just teaching. For example: Copywriting, copyediting, content strategy, technical writing, etc. Do a google search for some of these careers and learn more about them. Pretty much every company in every field will need SOMEONE who is "good at words" to help them craft messaging for their products, their website, their printed materials, etc. That could be you! And to be blunt, these jobs can pay a lot better than an English teacher salary, too.
Good luck!

Mary recommends the following next steps:

Research jobs like technical writing and copyediting
Look for an internship in one of those jobs while you're in college
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Leah’s Answer

Hi Mary,
This question really resonates with me, because I was an English major in college (over 30 years ago). Everyone (friends, relatives, etc) asked me the same question "what are you going to do with an English degree".
I felt very torn because with everyone asking me this question I started wondering what I would do, but then I also really wanted to stay with my major- because I LOVED IT!
Times are a little different now, where some jobs ask for specific degrees, however, I still think you will have plenty of options to find a great career. I do recommend that you try to find internships so that you get experience and a taste for different career options. I also recommend you select your elective classes wisely, and try to mix in a few classes from other areas (such as business or computers ). But I don't recommend switching majors if this is what you enjoy and what you have a passion for.

Leah recommends the following next steps:

Get internships
Take elective classes in business or another field
Be open to all different types of jobs and career options- there are a lot of great choices available for English majors (we are well rounded and have many great skills)!
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