Careers

About 80 percent of English majors ultimately attend graduate or professional school. About 30 percent go on directly, with a 90 percent acceptance rate.

Recent Schools include:

  • Brown University
  • Duke University
  • Boston College
  • University of Edinburgh
  • UCLA
  • Carnegie Mellon University
  • University of Pennsylvania
  • Stanford University
  • New York University
  • Columbia University
  • University of Pittsburgh
  • University of Maryland
  • Emerson College
  • University of Michigan
  • University of Leeds, UK

About 70 percent of English majors seek employment directly following graduation. Recent Employers include:

  • Springboard Media
  • Squirrel Hill Magazine
  • Teach for America
  • Times Publishing Co.
  • AmeriCorps
  • Vision Global Solutions
  • Island Press
  • Tribune Chronicle
  • Culpepper Citizen

What to do with an English Major

Career Opportunity Areas

  • Writing/Editing
  • Education
  • Publishing
  • Advertising
  • Public Relations
  • Business
  • Law

General Information and Strategies

  • A bachelor’s degree in English is sufficient for many entry level positions in business and industry.
  • A major in English is also good preparation for continued graduate or professional training in areas such as English, law, political science/government, public administration, communications, and religious studies (i.e., seminary).
  • Because English can lead to many different career paths, it is important to identify an area of interest and be planful about gaining the right skills, experience, and credentials to enter that field.
  • Be prepared to be proactive, determined, assertive, and confident in order to secure freelance writing opportunities. Writers typically experience many rejections for each piece that is accepted for publication. Save samples of written work to be used for a portfolio. Cultivate other career opportunities in order to supplement a freelance writing income.
  • Obtain additional areas of expertise such as journalism, broadcasting, technical writing, or politics for specialized positions.
  • For careers in advertising or public relations be prepared to begin in an entry-level position.
  • Appropriate teacher certification is required for public school teaching. A graduate degree is required for teaching at the college or university level.
  • Conduct informational interviews or shadow professionals in careers of interest to learn more about their jobs.
  • Join relevant professional associations. Attend their conferences and read their journals.

Useful Links

https://www.onlinephdprograms.org/English/

For more information from ACCEL, click here.