What can I do with an BA in English?

Question

I don't know what I want my future career to be - my husband is in the military and we move often, so I'm trying to choose a degree that is flexible and can be applied to many fields. I'm about to finish the core curriculum so I need to declare a major or apply to a program soon.
I would most likely like to be a librarian or reading teacher at an elementary school... something along those lines.
Would a Bachelor's in English prepare me enough for the teacher's certification exam and/or qualify me to work as a teacher or librarian?
Would it be better if I just major in education? (It would take longer, and be less interesting to me than English).
What other jobs can I qualify for with a BA in English or Education?
(I'm afraid I won't enjoy teaching, but will be stuck with a useless degree if I choose to major in education).

Answer 1

There are a lot of opportunities for an English major. Many job opportunities are out there in many different types of industries that you can venture into.

WRITING/EDITING
* Creative Writing- Books, Poetry, Plays, Screenplays, Scripts, Greeting Cards, Lyrics/Jingle Writing
* Journalism- Writing/Reporting, Editing
* Technical Writing- Science and Medical Writing
* Freelance Writing

EMPLOYERS
* Newspapers
* Magazines
* Broadcast media companies including television, radio, and the movie industry
* Trade, professional, or consumer publications
* Internet sites
* Large corporations
* Government agencies including: Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, Department of State, Veterans Affairs, National Archives and Records Admin.
* Universities and university presses
* Technical industries
* Self-employed/Freelance

EDUCATION
* Teaching
* Administration
* Student Affairs
* Academic Advising
* Information Science
* Non-classroom Teaching
* Tutoring

EMPLOYERS
* Public schools
* Private schools
* Colleges and universities
* Language institutes, local and abroad
* Libraries
* Museums
* Private learning centers
* Test preparation organizations
* Nonprofit organizations involved with literacy

PUBLISHING
* Editing
* Advertising
* Sales
* Circulation
* Production
* Publicity
* Marketing
* Promotion
* Administration

EMPLOYERS
* Trade publishing
* Special interest magazines
* Trade magazines
* Association magazines
* Sunday newspaper supplements
* Educational publishing
* Religious books and magazines
* Professional and scholarly publishing
* University presses
* Independent publishers
* Alternative media publishers: E-books, Audiobooks

ADVERTISING
* Creative Services- Copy Writing, Art Direction
* Account Management
* Media
* Account Planning
* Production

EMPLOYERS
* Advertising agencies
* In-house agencies of large companies

PUBLIC RELATIONS
* Account Coordination
* Writing/Editing
* Media Relations
* Account Management

EMPLOYERS
* Public relations firms
* Advertising agencies
* In-house public relations departments
* Trade associations
* Colleges and universities
* Nonprofit organizations
* Government agencies

BUSINESS
* Management
* Sales
* Marketing
* Human Resources
* Insurance: Claims, Underwriting

EMPLOYERS
* Business organizations including banks, real estate agencies, insurance firms, and large and small corporations
* Retailers including department, grocery, drug, specialty, variety, and book stores

# A major in English can be good preparation for continued graduate or professional training in areas such as English, law, political science/government, public administration, psychology, counseling, communications, and religious studies (i.e., seminary).
# Develop a specialty area of interest via additional coursework and/or work experience for greater marketability within that specific career field.
# Save samples of written work to be used for a portfolio.
# Be prepared to be proactive, determined, assertive, and confident in order to secure freelance writing opportunities. Writers typically experience many rejections for each piece that is accepted for publication.
# Cultivate other career opportunities in order to supplement a freelance writing income.
# Obtain additional areas of expertise such as journalism, broadcasting, technical writing, or politics for specialized positions.

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Answer 2

A BA in English along with a couple more years to get a teaching qualification will let you be a high school English teacher. It will not let you be an elementary school teacher.

Basically this is a "personal enrichment" degree does not lead to any type of job. All it tells an employer is that you are able to work at something difficult but it provides you with no actual skills that the job market requires.

Most BA degrees are enrichment degrees and do not lead to a job.

An education degree qualifies you to be a K-12 school teacher and is a far more likely degree to lead to a job than an English degree.

A community college diploma as a dental hygienist will likely make you as employable as an English degree would.

If you want a portable 4 year degree where you can find work almost anywhere, take accounting or business administration.

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