English Majors?

[JazmenFlowers]

Originally Posted by Jyqm

That's awful

I agree with everything you said and am jealous of your experiences.

[cliffdweller]

Originally Posted by Jyqm

If you didn't have your own opinion or argument to make about a text, your paper was more or less worthless. Which is of course more or less the crux of any academic writing; there's no point in it otherwise.

No the crux of academic writing, in the end, turns out to be so much mental masturbation. Wait till you get to grad school sonny boy

What theory or method of reading can I haphazardly invent, defend, and make people believe is worthwhile even though it's not? Therein lies your academic career if you so choose one.

Sorry for the weariness, I guess I'm just a cynical recovering academic. But make no mistake, I'm still considering continuing on to get a Ph.D

[Jyqm]

Originally Posted by cliffdweller

No the crux of academic writing, in the end, turns out to be so much mental masturbation. Wait till you get to grad school sonny boy

What theory or method of reading can I haphazardly invent, defend, and make people believe is worthwhile even though it's not?

Well, yes, of course. But still, it has to be your own bull**** idea!

[David]

To cure yourself of the urge to adopt the cant of the contemporary critical thicket, read the New Criterion.

It's still possible to write your thesis or dissertation & mostly (or even completely) avoid the pomo avenues, but it's extremely difficult. You need gumption, fortitude, she-cat fight & a LOT of luck.

[paleshadow]

Originally Posted by JazmenFlowers

me. I have a BA in English and a minor in Spanish.

1. How was your experience?
- loved it, but you must learn to regurgitate hundreds of years of popular beliefs about what a poem "means" or what the author was thinking. I know it sucks and it's stupid, but you're not likely to be able to use a lot of your own opinions
2. Was it hard?
- it wasn't hard if you like to read and write; that's basically all it is
3. What were the exams like?
- 90% of the time they were all essay questions exploring certain themes, etc.
4. What did you eventually end up doing as a career?
- ended up as a paralegal and my degree really helps me. I went to graduate school because I wanted to teach college but dropped out b/c I was tired of being told how to read something and what to get out of it. I'm not sure I want to be a paralegal forever, but right now, it pays really well, I enjoy it and am really good at it.
5. Do you regret majoring in it?
- not usually; sometimes I wish I had majored in nursing or medicine, but I can't stand blood or bodily fluids so there's no way I could have done that

I'll be glad to help you any way I can, just let me know.

I have a B.A. in English with a concentration in creative writing. Basically I agree with everything Jason said above. I always loved English classes, and they were some of the few classes I always did really well in. That's pretty much the reason I chose it as my major in college.
I never wanted to teach though, so my job has nothing to do with my degree. At this point my degree has done nothing to further my career. If I had it to do over again I think I would minor in English and major in information technology.
I work for IBM and I've looked into doing technical writing, but unfortunately the jobs offered usually require a technical degree with strong writing skills, as opposed to a English degree with technical experience.

I guess if I had any advice I would always suggest that you should try to major in something you enjoy, but really think about what you want to do after college. Consider things like the type of lifestyle you'll want, where you might want to live.
Teaching can be very rewarding, but it can also be thankless in a lot of ways. If you haven't already, see if you can talk to a H.S. English teacher and maybe sit in on a class or two.

I'd also recommend the book "Great Jobs for English Majors", by Julie DeGalan and Stephen Lambert. It will give you some ideas besides teaching that you may not have ever thought about.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

[paleshadow]

Originally Posted by JazmenFlowers

tell me about it. that's the main reason I dropped out of grad school. I was fed up with it. I got in many arguments in class in college and finally gave up just to complete the program. I had a couple of profs who encouraged creative thinking, but the majority wanted to explore the same opinions of Paradise Lost or A Red Wheelbarrow that have been considered for years. it sucked.

not to mention the chair hated men. seriously...gay, straight, indifferent...didn't matter - she hated men. I fixed that bitch good tho - more on that tomorrow.

Hi Jason. After reading this quote I wanted to bring something up. I completely understand what you are saying. I had a short story professor once who already had her ideas about every author and story set in stone. Someone would raise their hand and express a thought and she would say "That's interesting, but it's wrong". Now, maybe it was wrong, but to me it seemed like she was really killing any thoughts or conversations that might stem from peoples ideas. Having said that, I just wanted to say that perhaps you should reconsider going into teaching. You know, if you think about it, you could maybe be the one professor to someone who isn't like that? I think that alone would be worth sticking it out.

[Sorcerer386]

Originally Posted by AliceLover

Did anybody here major in English?

I am a junior in High School and I really want to major in English. What I really want to do is teach English at a High school level. Maybe even a middle school level (Secondary Education). I like to read and write. I write for the school newspaper, doing mostly movie reviews.

This is actually what I'm going back to school for.

So for any of you who did major in English I have some questions:

1. How was your experience?
2. Was it hard?
3. What were the exams like?
4. What did you eventually end up doing as a career?
5. Do you regret majoring in it?

Just a few things there..but I am curious!

I actually minored in English, majored in Communications. I'm going for a masters in teacher in English and Speech. But, within the English dept. here's what I would say.

1. My experience was pretty good. The only real complaint I had was that, when writing papers, since professors grade more subjectively on papers, it's hard to tell in the beginning what they want. The best example I have is between two classes, Intro to Critical Reading and Intro to Shakespeare. My CR professor said it's always best to begin a paper with your own words and never begin one with a quote. Then, my Shakespeare professor told us it's best to begin with a quote in our papers. Also, professors tend to hang on to certain rules of grammar that others let go. For example, it took me until my first year in college to find out that you shouldn't use "this" or "that" to refer to an entire thought. EX: The sky is full of clouds today. This means that it will likely rain. Using "this" is wrong because it's used as a pronoun, and a pronoun can only refer back to one thing, not an entire thought (or something like that). This professor actually gave me a C on a paper because I had made this mistake so many times. I have more but I'll let it go there...

2. It wasn't too terribly hard. Besides what I said above, it was easy...except of course when the professor assigns something that isn't very interesting. Try making it through Nostromo some day...UGH!

3. Again, as everyone said, depends on the professor. Most of the upper level ones will just give you papers or essays. Even most of my "midterm exams" were take home essay questions.

4. Read my signature . But, like I said, I AM going back for education.

5. I don't regret it, although to be quite honest, math would have fit much better into my strengths. It was funny because I took my Praxis I exam and got a perfect score on the math section. BUT, if I had a job where I did math the rest of my life, I'd be miserable. Even though English is actually more challenging to me, I like it MUCH more than math or science.

[David]

Originally Posted by Sorcerer386

Also, professors tend to hang on to certain rules of grammar that others let go. For example, it took me until my first year in college to find out that you shouldn't use "this" or "that" to refer to an entire thought. EX: The sky is full of clouds today. This means that it will likely rain. Using "this" is wrong because it's used as a pronoun, and a pronoun can only refer back to one thing, not an entire thought (or something like that). This professor actually gave me a C on a paper because I had made this mistake so many times.

How many times? Five or ten times in a normal-sized paper is no big deal, & you should have challenged your foolish professor in that case. Ninety times in a paper is, however, excessive.

There's nothing wrong grammatically with that construction: it's standard idiom in English. Bryan Garner, in "The Oxford Dictionary of American Usage & Style," refers to this construction as a pointing-word construction (or deictic-term construction). The reference to the preceding noun or idea should be clear, however. In your "rain" example, the reference is clear enough. You'd have to be a bozo not to see that "this" refers to the abundance of clouds.

It's a question of style more than of correct vs. incorrect grammar. Here's a bad example Garner cites, because the reference is unclear:

"The most important activity is the editing of a college newspaper. This has grown with the college."

WHAT has grown? Editing? The newspaper?

Go ahead & use your pointing words, but make sure whatever it is they're pointing to is clearly implied if not stated outright.

[Sorcerer386]

Originally Posted by David

How many times? Five or ten times in a normal-sized paper is no big deal, & you should have challenged your foolish professor in that case. Ninety times in a paper is, however, excessive.

There's nothing wrong grammatically with that construction: it's standard idiom in English. Bryan Garner, in "The Oxford Dictionary of American Usage & Style," refers to this construction as a pointing-word construction (or deictic-term construction). The reference to the preceding noun or idea should be clear, however. In your "rain" example, the reference is clear enough. You'd have to be a bozo not to see that "this" refers to the abundance of clouds.

It's a question of style more than of correct vs. incorrect grammar. Here's a bad example Garner cites, because the reference is unclear:

"The most important activity is the editing of a college newspaper. This has grown with the college."

WHAT has grown? Editing? The newspaper?

Go ahead & use your pointing words, but make sure whatever it is they're pointing to is clearly implied if not stated outright.

Hey David...the example you show is actually a much better one than mine. I had come up with mine on the spot. I forget how many times I made the mistake, but the fact is, obviously if I have made the mistake an excessive amount of times, I didn't KNOW that it was bad grammar, and therefore shouldn't have had points taken off EVERY SINGLE time I did it, at least not in my opinion. I agree a sizable chunk should have been taken off, maybe half a letter grade, but basically, besides a few other errors, I got a C JUST BECAUSE I had incorrectly used "this" so many times...again, because I didn't KNOW it was a rule.

[AliceLover]

Originally Posted by GypsySorcerer

I got a BA in English and public relations.

1. How was your experience?
-I enjoyed most of my English classes. At my college, you had to choose one of four concentrations - literature, creative writing, secondary ed, or technical writing. I chose literature. Many of the classes overlapped, but some were specific to the concentration. I can give you specifics on what classes I took.
2. Was it hard?
-As Jason said, liking reading and writing is key. That is pretty much all you do. I would not call it an easy major, however.
3. What were the exams like?
-Mostly essay, and most classes required at least one major paper and then a few shorter papers.
4. What did you eventually end up doing as a career?
-I went to grad school and got an MA in communication. I'm an adjunct at a college now, but in communication. I will probably stay in academics.
5. Do you regret majoring in it?
-At times I wished I would have graduated college trained for a specific profession -- accounting, nursing, whatever. But I am just not cut out for it. I will say that it would be highly difficult to get a job with that degree if you don't want to go into education. Editing and publishing jobs are hard to come by, and the degree isn't specialized enough for most other professions.

If you want to know anything else, just ask.

Krista, I find that really interesting. The 4 subcategories. Secondary Education is what I actually want to do. With my English Major I do want to teach..so it looks like this is the right choice.

Thanks for all the opinions guys!

[HenleyFan]

I'm a little late with this, but wanted to jump in. I majored in English and History with an emphasis in Secondary Education. I currently teach 6th grade World Cultures. I did teach 7th and 8th grade English for a while.

As many people have said, your experiences about whether you like it or think it is hard will depend on your school and your professors. One thing to keep in mind, though, is that your course work will be different if you are going right for your teaching certification. You'll take more survey courses and then you'll have the How to teach reading and How to teach writing courses which I thought were a lot of fun.

I would also suggest that if you are thinking about Middle school that you make sure the certification you are going for is 6-12. I know a lot of people who are locked into jobs they would like to transfer out of because their certification is k-6, 6-8 or 7-12. 6-12 is the best cover.

I would also suggest getting certification in something else that complements English...like History or Speech or Drama. The reason for this is that the federal No Child Left Behind joke laws and testing put A LOT of stress on English teachers. There are more hoops to jump through and more bull**** to deal with for no apparent reason. You might want to have something to switch back and forth from. Additionally, English teachers seem to have twice as much work as other teachers...more papers to read and grade and more practice testing for NCLB. I like that I can teach English, but really enjoy the less pressure History assignment I have for now.

That's all I can think of.

Lisa

Originally Posted by AliceLover

Did anybody here major in English?

I am a junior in High School and I really want to major in English. What I really want to do is teach English at a High school level. Maybe even a middle school level (Secondary Education). I like to read and write. I write for the school newspaper, doing mostly movie reviews.

So for any of you who did major in English I have some questions:

1. How was your experience?
2. Was it hard?
3. What were the exams like?
4. What did you eventually end up doing as a career?
5. Do you regret majoring in it?

Just a few things there..but I am curious!

[AliceLover]

Originally Posted by HenleyFan

I'm a little late with this, but wanted to jump in. I majored in English and History with an emphasis in Secondary Education. I currently teach 6th grade World Cultures. I did teach 7th and 8th grade English for a while.

As many people have said, your experiences about whether you like it or think it is hard will depend on your school and your professors. One thing to keep in mind, though, is that your course work will be different if you are going right for your teaching certification. You'll take more survey courses and then you'll have the How to teach reading and How to teach writing courses which I thought were a lot of fun.

I would also suggest that if you are thinking about Middle school that you make sure the certification you are going for is 6-12. I know a lot of people who are locked into jobs they would like to transfer out of because their certification is k-6, 6-8 or 7-12. 6-12 is the best cover.

I would also suggest getting certification in something else that complements English...like History or Speech or Drama. The reason for this is that the federal No Child Left Behind joke laws and testing put A LOT of stress on English teachers. There are more hoops to jump through and more bull**** to deal with for no apparent reason. You might want to have something to switch back and forth from. Additionally, English teachers seem to have twice as much work as other teachers...more papers to read and grade and more practice testing for NCLB. I like that I can teach English, but really enjoy the less pressure History assignment I have for now.

That's all I can think of.

Lisa

Hey Lisa, that was all really helpful. I might take your advice on the backup plan. I am in an honors history class (US) this year and I am doing fairly well. I actually really do enjoy it. Maybe I could major in that too...

The 6-12 span sounds great. It offers a lot of oppurtunity. I definitely don't want to do the K-6..I can't deal with that age. Don't college professors make a boat load of money? Im sure its very hard to become one but thats what ive heard about them.

[Sorcerer386]

Originally Posted by AliceLover

Don't college professors make a boat load of money?

Uhh...not to my knowledge. Perhaps tenured professors make a good bit of money, as they do other work for the university like research, theses, etc. But I don't think I've had one professor who was rather wealthy. Comfortable, maybe...but I don't think any of them really make a "boat load" of money.

EDIT: I just realized this question was addressed to Lisa...sorry about that.

[AliceLover]

Originally Posted by Sorcerer386

Uhh...not to my knowledge. Perhaps tenured professors make a good bit of money, as they do other work for the university like research, theses, etc. But I don't think I've had one professor who was rather wealthy. Comfortable, maybe...but I don't think any of them really make a "boat load" of money.

EDIT: I just realized this question was addressed to Lisa...sorry about that.

Thats fine. I know im never going to be rich and im fine with that. Teaching is the Job I want to do. I don't want to have a job that I don't like. As long as its fun for me I don't care.