ENGLISH MAJOR

Across literature, film, and other storytelling mediums, you’ll explore the capacity of words to challenge conventional thinking, influence social change, rewrite cultural myths, shape concepts of identity and communicate both ordinary and extraordinary life experiences.

As an English major, you’ll examine how culture shapes not only words, but also writers and their audiences. You’ll develop an understanding of the creative process, from a written piece’s conception, through its execution, to its interpretation by an audience. And you’ll interact with fellow students and dedicated professors in classes that are small in size but rich in insights.

Specifically, you’ll learn to:

• Demonstrate an understanding of how meaning is constructed in different kinds of texts, through oral and written analysis of textual features or through the creation of texts.
• Identify and articulate in papers, presentations, exams and other projects the connection between individual literary works and their historical and cultural contexts.
• Demonstrate knowledge of literary scholarship and skills through library, Internet, or multimedia research.

Hands-On Learning

There are so many ways for English majors to connect their medium to the world.

You may:

• Take advantage of the many departmentally sponsored, co-curricular internships, such as The Broadsheet Production Board, The Writers House and Studio and Annual Spring Symposium Programming Board.
• Serve as a field activity researcher and help an English professor identify field destinations and activities.
• Take the course The New England Shore, which includes field visits to many of the seashore locales featured in the works you will be studying.
• Take course-related trips to theaters, poetry slams and libraries to view performances and rare manuscripts.
• Participate in an externship, spending time working along a graduate of our program in his or her professional setting.

Career Options

Because so much of the professional world values critical thinking and communication skills — precisely the ones we hone in this program — a degree in English is beneficial, no matter what career you pursue.

Some of the positions our students have taken after graduation include:

• Manager of Professional Adviser Relations, The Boston Foundation
• Communications Assistant, Atlantic Hockey/College Hockey America
• Data Associate, Amazon
• Market Research Specialist, By Appointment Only
• Marketing Coordinator, RCM Telecom Services
• Sports Writer, CNHI Sports Boston

You’ll also be prepared to pursue graduate work in English, education, journalism, law, library science, business — any area, really, that requires clear, compelling thinking and writing.

LEARN MORE ABOUT CAREER PATHS

Two Tracks

As an English major at Merrimack, you can choose between two areas of study: literature or creative writing.