Welcome to the Department of English careers page.

“What are you going to do with an English major?” Unless you’re planning to be a teacher, you’ve probably heard that question many times.

In fact, English majors can do just about anything with their major. Our alums work in teaching, human resources, writing/editing/publishing, web/social media content, public relations/marketing, librarianship, arts management, and the law. Alums have even gone to medical school and become doctors. TCNJ’s English graduates work for a range of businesses, for non-profits, and in government, and they enjoy productive, profitable, and satisfying careers.

And that’s not surprising, because majoring in the humanities is a good choice. Medical and law school applicants from humanities majors are accepted and matriculate at higher than average rates. Respondents to the 2018 American Community Survey indicated that humanities graduates have similar employment rates as graduates from other areas, such as math, the sciences, and engineering, and graduates with bachelor’s degrees in the humanities earn salaries comparable to a number of other majors, including business management and public policy. In a 2018 survey, more than two thirds of employers said that they want the skills that studying the humanities cultivates. In 2016, The Wall Street Journal reported that, over the course of their career, students who earn a bachelor’s degree in the humanities do as well as – or better than – majors in other fields, including business management and accounting. As of 2018, nearly 60% of humanities majors had jobs that involve managing or supervising other people, and 84.5% were satisfied with their job. (Data provided by the National Humanities Alliance.)

If you’re concerned about how to answer the question of what you’re going to do with your English major, just explore the alumni career profiles here and consider taking LIT 199, the career planning course that the TCNJ English Department offers annually. You’ll learn that you don’t have to fear the future – or work in fast food – as an English major. In fact, your future is bright.