2 answers
Eve
Student
Dalton, Massachusetts
1
Question
Asked
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Can I be successful with an English major?
What are my job options with an English major? Will they make me a lot of money, and is there a high success rate?
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2 answers
T.J. Worthy
Mentor
202
Answers
Ypsilanti, Michigan
Updated
T.J.’s Answer
Hello Eve!
Yes, you can find success. It simply depends on what your definition of success looks like.
I feel some people get nervous about Humanities majors, compared to STEM majors.
Humanities paths aren't exactly as "linear" as STEM in the sense that: "These are the steps to get a job as a [Insert Title]."
To become a engineer, there's clear steps of A, B, C. Engineers become engineers (unless, y'know ... they transfer into sales). It's highly specialized!
Humanities is more broad, which means you have multiple paths open to you. You can work in various fields: sports, media, technology, science, etc! But, the trade off is because it's broad, you may feel lost about where to go.
So... My point is:
It is best to get specific about what you want to do with your degree.
You don't need to figure your whole life out...But pick at least 1-3 jobs that you 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 you would like to do, and aim to develop skills for those paths.
With the various fields I mentioned, here are some examples:
✶Technical Writing - the process of writing manuals, instructions, and specific content for professionals in different industries.
Become a technical writer in: Computer software/hardware, Engineering, Medicine, Biology, Chemistry, and more.
✶ Journalism - writing for the news. News can cover important topics (Politics, City Events), entertainment (Music, TV, Movies, Games), or sports (Basketball, Football, Baseball, etc).
✶ Public Relations/PR Writing - the process of writing for businesses or organizations, to communicate with the general public. Common titles are PR Professional or Communications Officer.
✶ Copy Writing the process of writing for advertisement or marketing. Become a copywriter for: Advertisement agency, In-house copywriting agency, Digital marketing agency, or for book publishers.
✶ Screenwriting - for movies/television. Become a Screenwriter in: one genre (Action, Adventure, Dark Comedy), or do multiple genres.
✶ Fiction or Nonfiction Writing - the process of writing for books. Common titles are Authors, Proofreaders, or Editors.
The types of writing I mentioned above involves not only a strong understanding of English, but knowledge in another discipline.
You can prepare yourself better for any of these fields by:
✦ Taking on a minor. | Example: if you want to become a technical writer for robotics, minoring in computer science can help you understand how to write for CS workers.
✦ Getting internship experience. | Aim for finding work experiences in the area you choose. Example: if it's sports journalism, see if you can work either for your college newspaper to report college teams, and local/town paper.
✦ Networking. | This is 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 key!
Talk to people who match the jobs you're interested in. Build connections with them. The more people you know, the more people you have that can possibly help you get a job.
Whew! That was a lot, but I wanted to get the point across that you can be successful :)
Many of these fields can make good money and people have found not only success but fulfillment from writing for others.
Sending you encouragement as you enter English :)
Yes, you can find success. It simply depends on what your definition of success looks like.
I feel some people get nervous about Humanities majors, compared to STEM majors.
Humanities paths aren't exactly as "linear" as STEM in the sense that: "These are the steps to get a job as a [Insert Title]."
To become a engineer, there's clear steps of A, B, C. Engineers become engineers (unless, y'know ... they transfer into sales). It's highly specialized!
Humanities is more broad, which means you have multiple paths open to you. You can work in various fields: sports, media, technology, science, etc! But, the trade off is because it's broad, you may feel lost about where to go.
So... My point is:
It is best to get specific about what you want to do with your degree.
You don't need to figure your whole life out...But pick at least 1-3 jobs that you 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 you would like to do, and aim to develop skills for those paths.
With the various fields I mentioned, here are some examples:
✶Technical Writing - the process of writing manuals, instructions, and specific content for professionals in different industries.
Become a technical writer in: Computer software/hardware, Engineering, Medicine, Biology, Chemistry, and more.
✶ Journalism - writing for the news. News can cover important topics (Politics, City Events), entertainment (Music, TV, Movies, Games), or sports (Basketball, Football, Baseball, etc).
✶ Public Relations/PR Writing - the process of writing for businesses or organizations, to communicate with the general public. Common titles are PR Professional or Communications Officer.
✶ Copy Writing the process of writing for advertisement or marketing. Become a copywriter for: Advertisement agency, In-house copywriting agency, Digital marketing agency, or for book publishers.
✶ Screenwriting - for movies/television. Become a Screenwriter in: one genre (Action, Adventure, Dark Comedy), or do multiple genres.
✶ Fiction or Nonfiction Writing - the process of writing for books. Common titles are Authors, Proofreaders, or Editors.
The types of writing I mentioned above involves not only a strong understanding of English, but knowledge in another discipline.
You can prepare yourself better for any of these fields by:
✦ Taking on a minor. | Example: if you want to become a technical writer for robotics, minoring in computer science can help you understand how to write for CS workers.
✦ Getting internship experience. | Aim for finding work experiences in the area you choose. Example: if it's sports journalism, see if you can work either for your college newspaper to report college teams, and local/town paper.
✦ Networking. | This is 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 key!
Talk to people who match the jobs you're interested in. Build connections with them. The more people you know, the more people you have that can possibly help you get a job.
Whew! That was a lot, but I wanted to get the point across that you can be successful :)
Many of these fields can make good money and people have found not only success but fulfillment from writing for others.
Sending you encouragement as you enter English :)
Joseph Ford
170
Answers
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Updated
Joseph’s Answer
Most definitely. English or Math are the one majors that can take you anywhere. My daughter majored in English/Journalism spent 2 yrs in China as ESL teacher. Now she is working for Google as a Content Moderator. You can do anything with those majors. Good luck