Careers

The Next Step

Cultivate a Meaningful Life and Build a Fulfilling Career

Limitless Possibilities

The myth of the unemployed English major is just that — a myth!

Top employers continue to seek those who read perceptively, write convincingly, and think critically and creatively. In an ever-evolving, information-hungry society, curious, detail-oriented people who can harness analytical reasoning, tap into innovative solutions, and make meaning of the world around them go on to flourish professionally.

You might be surprised to know that a B.A. in English can be your ticket to medical schools or business administration programs, where the ability to see situations from the perspectives of others, strong communications skills, and the ability to work with a team are essential. These are all skills that English majors develop while earning a degree.

Why hire English grads?

Our major prepares students to be effective communicators, creative and engaging writers, empathetic collaborators, ethical decision-makers and problem-solvers, and compassionate global citizens—all traits top employers continue to prioritize. These skills translate to a wide variety of exciting careers in environmental justice, tech, business, healthcare, education, marketing & PR, policy, publishing, and more.

Get Career Ready

From the moment you arrive at CSU until you graduate, you have access to a community of professionals who can help you navigate career possibilities and carve out a direction for future work or further education.

College of Liberal Arts Career Resources

Schedule a 1-on-1 virtual appointment with the CLA Career Education Manager

Kelsey Schultz
Career Education Manager, College of Liberal Arts
kelsey.schultz@colostate.edu

Kelsey is proud and excited to be a part of the College of Liberal Arts and Career Center Family after living in 5 other states. She brings seven years of experience in higher education and storytelling, focusing on empowering liberal arts students. Through faculty collaboration and student engagement, she’s excited to create and implement a strategic plan to build CSU students’ career confidence with an equity and inclusion focus so they can change the world.

Build your resume

Use these editable Google doc resumes and PDF samples tailored for industries such as Publishing & Writing, Teaching, Marketing, and Law & Public Policy.

Jobs board

Check out this list of industry-specific job and internship boards just for Liberal Arts students, covering opportunities in art, communications, entertainment, government, non-profits, writing, and more!

Upon completion of the B.A. in English, our accomplished grads will be able to:

  • Work with, explain, or analyze English-language writings of the broadest textual range with an eye practiced in close-reading, historical context, and rigorous critical judgment
  • Write with flexibility, effectiveness, and originality for diverse rhetorical purposes and audiences
  • Read and write with technical awareness of language foundations, contexts of literacy, multi-modal environments, and theories of discourse and meaning
  • Integrate English literacy (disciplinary methods of reading and analysis) with interdisciplinary knowledge and action

Not sure where to start when thinking about career options? Want help de-mystifying job postings? Or, would you like to learn more about networking opportunities?

Check out the link below to familiarize yourself with tools specifically designed for Liberal Arts students!

What Can You Do With an English Major?

Better Question: What Can't You Do?

A degree in English prepares you for incredible career flexibility. How? Within our coursework and the department's experiential learning opportunities, students develop key liberal arts skills that translate to a variety of industries and jobs.

CSU students hanging out on the steps of Eddy Hall.

Career Competencies

Lucy Lawrence, B.A. '21

Being an English major has been one of the biggest assets for me when applying to medical school. These days, medical schools are looking for candidates who communicate clearly, work well in a team environment, and are willing to go into kind of dark caves with people. And that is, I think, what a major in English at CSU has given me. I am so excited to begin my medical career at Wake Forest School of Medicine and serve people not only as a physician but also as a poet. 

Career Q&As with our alumni

In this new series, we've connected with recent alumni to provide insight into their professional lives and share stories about their jobs. Learn more about how a degree in English has helped advance their careers, below.

Jenna Schuster ('18)

Jenna Schuster, B.A. '18

Soon-to-be novelist Jenna Schuster (’18) has gone from the Greyrock Review to the Motley Fool. She’s a content strategist for the financial and investing company and recently completed a graduate degree in fine arts in creative writing.

Schuster outlines the ways in which her undergraduate experience prepared her for success in both a Content Strategist position and her terminal graduate degree in Fine Arts in Creative Writing, here.

Andrea Day

Andrea Day, B.A. '21

As an employee of Old Firehouse Books in Fort Collins, Andrea Day ('21) considers their job a balancing act. While they started out as a part-time bookseller, Day has since grown to take on a new position as the events and social media coordinator. In this role, they use their degree to support the store by managing author events, coordinating communication across social media platforms, expanding their design skills, and more.

Read about Day's emerging literary career, here.

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Meg Prekeryte, B.A. '23

Making an impact in her community: Meg Prekeryte ('23) shares how a degree in English led to her current role as a grant writer for a nonprofit in the healthcare industry.

Learn about Prekeryte's non-traditional career path and how she applies writing and analytical skills from her English degree to the professional space, here.

Interested in pursuing an advanced degree? The Career Center is here to help you decide if graduate school is the right next step for you.

English Majors Find Success As

  • English language arts and English as a foreign/second language teachers
  • Attorneys and paralegals
  • Communications and events coordinators
  • Podcast writers/producers
  • Human resource managers
  • Medical professionals
  • Brand copywriters
  • Social media managers
  • Technical writers
  • Poets, short fiction writers, novelists, YA authors, essayists, writers of memoir, and literary translators
  • Nonprofit program coordinators
  • Digital marketing and content strategists
  • Community engagement officers
  • Grant writers
  • Counselors and therapists
  • Web content designers
  • Literary agents and more!
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Similarly, graduate programs in medicine, law, and other fields also seek out undergraduates who majored in English. Undergraduates majoring in English are well positioned to take advantage of the CSU Effect.

Meaningful Life, Meaningful Work Stories

Find career inspiration by reading stories in our alumni magazine of English grads and current students who are making a difference in their communities and around the world.

Paul DeMaret, his two daughters and his wife

Paul DeMaret 
English, B.A ’88, M.A ’95
Language Arts Teacher at Rocky Mountain High School

“I think nothing prepares you better to examine life than an English degree because it throws open the doors of how we make meaning -- of texts, of experiences, of the world -- and of how we communicate this meaning with each other.”

DeMaret was inspired by the faculty in the CSU English department to pursue teaching, and their influence continues to impact the work he does with students in Fort Collins. 

Read more about DeMaret's career journey >> 

Paul DeMaret, his two daughters and his wife

English majors are a diverse group doing interesting work in the world, but something else you might not know – they don’t wait until they graduate to start being amazing.

Meet Ashle’ Tate, Kaitlyn Phillips, Jennifer Stetson-Strange, Avery Jones, and Madison Van Doren.

Read more about how they made an impact while at CSU>>

Pete Wilson
English and Philosophy, B.A ’23

Senior Peter Wilson prepared for graduate school by spending six months on an internship with Professor Zach Hutchins doing archival research and looking at original sources for Hutchins’ book project about Harriet Beecher Stowe’s A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin. 

Read more about Wilson's internship experience >>

Bud Hunt
B.A '01; M.A. '11

The first time Bud Hunt earned a degree from CSU, he was planning a career as an English teacher. The second time he earned a degree, he had been creating smarter classrooms and students for a decade and was on his way to becoming a CIO.

Read more about Hunt's career journey >>