Flexible Career Choices | Department of English

Flexible Career Choices

Gain valuable career skills!

As an English major, you will gain valuable skills that you can use in any career field.

English majors not only learn how to read and write better—they also gain numerous marketable job skills.  Our students hone their public speaking and time management skills, learn how to collaborate, research, and problem solve, and gain cultural awareness. Learn skills that are applicable to thousands of jobs!

You can do anything with an English Degree!


#IWasAnEnglishMajor

In response to an essay in the Atlantic, there’s been a gust of activity on social media–especially Twitter–promoting the English major and its value. In particular, the hashtag #Iwasanenglishmajor has produced thousands of responses from former majors, most along the lines of “#IwasanEnglishMajor and now I’m VP of media sales,” “#IwasanEnglishMajor and became an editor at Elle, Glamour, and Essence magazine,” “#IwasanEnglishMajor and now I’m a composer and concert violinist.”
Below are some tweets that we believe are extremely valuable to any English major.

Hear from some of our Alumni:

Allen Brown

Allen Brown (BA ’85)

Director of Grants and Projects

“I’ve found that the analytical ability instilled in me as an English major, as well as the skills that English literature studies cultivated in me for highly detailed work, have served me well in my career. There are not enough qualified grant writers for all the openings in the labor market.”


Carlos Rountree (BA ’04)

Human Resources Associate

“Being that training is my focus, my English degree is in constant use from building sound rhetoric to preparing memos for dissemination to crafting scenarios for training participants. “


Candace Byrd (BA ’22)

Realtor

“I’ve used my great analysis skills that I developed at UNCG to help make sure all of my clients fully understand and feel comfortable with the home buying and selling process and catch any information that may possible complicate the process.”


Chris Boyette (BA ’10)

CNN National News Editor

“I rely on my English degree from UNCG every day, but it goes beyond grammar, diction and syntax. As I tell news stories, help reporters shape stories and decide what stories we cover, I draw on my education in the fundamentals of storytelling and what it means for a narrative to be interesting, characters compelling and ideas clearly presented.”


Nita Tyndall (BA ’16)

Author

“Nita Tyndall (’16) is a graduate of UNCG’s English program and currently a YA writer.”


Mikayla Brown (BA ’22)

High School English Teacher

“I could not be more thankful for UNCG and for the many amazing professors I have had for encouraging and supporting me through my four years here as a student.”


Scott Blackburn (BA ’13)

Author

“It was during my time as an English major at UNCG when I truly discovered my love of literature, and this later grew into my love for writing.”


Victoria Cox (BA ’22)

Tourism Marketing Coordinator

“A brief blurb about what I would be doing in this role is: maintaining a digital library database, County tourism websites, and social media accounts.”


Leah Carper (BA ’06)

NC State Teacher of the Year

“Thank you, UNCG for giving me the foundation I needed to be an effective teacher.”


Addison Hutchins (BA ’18)

Digital Communications Specialist

“As a digital communications specialist, I use my English degree in my work every day!”


Ma’Kayla Hunter (BA ’20)

Executive Director

“Without my English background, I would not have the conversational, leadership, or writing skills to fulfill my current role.”