An English Degree Matters
I could feel the tension exhibiting from the new freshmen English majors filling the room. They are worried, contemplating and searching for answers as to why their degree is so valuable. Most of us have heard the well-known question, “what are you going to do with an English degree?” Although I am an Secondary English Education Major, I still face this wrath. The English department hosts an event where an Alumni of the English Department comes in and talks about what their degree has done for them.
As some may know, Autumn Moss came into to talk about how her English degree from SRU has helped her career in healthcare. Now you are probably wondering, how can an English degree be useful in healthcare? Autumn provided us the answer. She was a part of a new program with the Allegheny Health Network, where she created content about the program in forms of pamphlets and posters, along with making the proposal for making this an official program.
Something I have come to realize after coming to see Autumn speak is that I too can make my English degree work for me. She said, “don’t listen to someone who says you cannot get job in this degree, because you can.” The passion and drive filled the classroom; the look in some of the first-year students’ eyes, as well as mine, were filled with reassurance.
From this experience I learned it does not matter what English degree you are in, because any English degree is highly versatile. The experiences here at Slippery Rock University will matter; cherish your professors, get involved, and get your name out there, because in the end, as Autumn stated, “do not put yourself in a box, but put yourself in a room.”
