What Can You Do with an English Major?
By Cassidy Magowan
The most common question that I get asked when I tell people I’m an English major is: So, are you going to be a teacher? The second most common question is what are you going to do after you graduate? Teaching is an honorable profession and I do not want to put down the importance of teachers, but those two questions infuriate me. As my answer is always no to the first one, the follow up is always what are you going to do?
The fury was displace by delight at a recent English department advising event entitled, What Can You Do with an English Major? The three panelists had graduated from Salem State University, and it was a great experience to see what's possible from people who were once in your shoes. The panelists were Amanda Mark, research director for the Massachusetts House Committee on Redistricting; Matt Burton, human and environmental rights lawyer; and Elizabeth Paz, Special Program Coordinator and ESL teacher at North Shore Community College.
After introductions were made, the panelists took questions from the audience. One person asked what was the biggest take away from having an English degree. Paz responded by saying that it had a “rewarding direct impact” and that “to communicate how you want to communicate, through education, is possible.” Considering the career she has, I believe that her English degree made a monumental impact on her daily life. Burton replied, “It taught me about advocacy and storytelling. I have the job I have today because of the skills I learned.”
When pondering a question about what they wish they had learned during their time at Salem State, Burton remarked that “Salem State pays attention to multimedia writing and creates a versatile mind.” It was such a simple statement and made me think about all the classes I have taken; all of my teachers made an effort to be multimodal, especially since about half my time here was online, due to the pandemic.
There are so many different classes within the English department to take that focus on different skills: Scriptwriting, Poetry, Mindful Writing, Professional Writing, blog posts, essays, video essays; I could go on, but the next question asked at the panel deserves attention.
"What do you wish you were told as an undergrad?" It wasn't a student who asked, but it was the most important one asked during the panel. No music was playing, but I could almost hear a melodic soft piano, almost like the backtrack to an emotional scene of the panelists responding.
“No one has it completely figured out… you shouldn’t be expected to have it completely figured out. You have to do things that terrify you. That’s a apart of life,” Paz said.
“I wish I had been more comfortable with the anxiety of not knowing. Not to think of your career as your identity-- I’m a human first. There’s a lot of opportunities to get involved in professional life. I think it’s important to say yes,” Burton added.
Mark was quiet for most of the panel but still contributed here and there. It was hard for her to jump into the conversation, because by the time she was ready, one of the others had jumped in to say something similar to what she was going to say.
The biggest take away is that there are more options than being a teacher with an English major.
Edited by Joy Pan