Guide to Online English Degrees

What Does it Mean to Study English?

The English major has historically involved study of the language itself and its broadest cultural influences, both spoken and written. It’s one of the oldest ‘modern’ degree programs, one whose popularity can change from one generation to the next, and yet still one of the most popular bachelor’s degrees in North America.

Online English Degree Programs

Due to its incredibly large vocabulary, flexibility, and adaptability, English has quickly become the most common language for business, entertainment, policy, and communication. It is estimated that anywhere from 20 to 25 percent of the world speaks English (approximately 750 million people). Those who master it often have a decisive advantage in the workplace. This advantage is especially true for writing skills, as so much of modern business takes place via written correspondence, Web copy, and print media.

By attending Liberal Arts and Humanities programs in English, you typically focus on areas such as literature, critical thinking, critical writing, and public speaking. Obvious careers that follow might include education, politics, writing, publishing, law, business, and journalism. However, you can find English graduates in almost every field and industry imaginable, including Hollywood, manufacturing, science, and even Capitol Hill.

Online degree programs in English offer you an even more flexible way to master the crucial critical thinking and writing skills necessary for success in today’s modern business world. With online degree programs in English, you don’t have to leave your house to benefit from classroom discussions, intense lectures, challenging material, and constant feedback.

Online Classes and Degrees in English

At the bachelor’s degree level, online colleges offer flexible, convenient classes leading to degrees in English literature, professional writing, organizational management/language arts, and interdisciplinary studies. You can also earn an online master’s degree in liberal studies with a concentration in English.

Much of Western culture’s history and knowledge has been passed down through English. Since literature derives a great deal of its significance from the context in which it’s written, a piece of prose, poetry or social commentary gives us valuable insight into its era. Thus, long before the diversity of degree programs that we see now, English programs gained a reputation for maintaining our link to centuries of knowledge.

What is an English Degree Good For?

An Arts & Humanities degree in English major can be an excellent tool for more careers than you may initially expect. Except in the most technical of professions, a candidate who is well read and who demonstrates both comprehension and writing skills is likely to make a good impression on employers. The solid, adaptable communication skills that are needed for an English degree program are often attractive to potential employers. English majors help maintain high standards of accuracy, clarity and finesse of the language in any workplace they enter.

An English degree isn’t “job training,” but it will help you build important research and critical thinking skills. You’ll and learn to discern what is important and synthesize that information for the use of others. While you are learning to read with a critical eye, you’re also polishing your own writing skills.

If you think those book reports you wrote in school were a waste of time, you’ll change your mind when your manager asks you to quickly summarize the lengthy report he didn’t have a chance to read. When you’re asked your opinion of radically differing approaches to a business problem, thank the many “compare and contrast” essays you wrote. And you’ll appreciate the obsession for spelling, grammar, and syntax when it comes time to edit a critical marketing piece before it’s sent to the printer.

Types of English Degrees

Associate and Bachelor’s Degrees in English

Studying literature offers access to ideas, cultures, social mores, and political concepts of any given time or setting. You’ll explore British, American, and world literature, spanning centuries, cultures and genres. A quick scan of job postings shows that many management and middle management positions will require a bachelor’s degree or higher, and English degrees are often mentioned because of the need for excellent communicators in the workforce.

An associate’s degree in English or its close cousins, liberal arts and general studies, can be helpful when applying for entry level positions in business and communications. A bachelor of arts in English is likely to have a more academic slant, such as critical analysis of classic literature, media, and arts. The curriculum may also allow for electives which you can use to round out your degree according to your career aspirations. Technical and business writing may interest you if you’re into technology or business, so take courses in those disciplines. Working in the media will require a different set of electives. To teach English, you’ll need a regional certificate and extra credits specifically in education. An English degree is an excellent springboard for further education in law and medicine.

Some English majors choose to specialize in one period, genre or author, and spend their time taking the supporting classes to give them that specialized study. This usually leads to graduate studies. Other graduate areas can include linguistics, film and drama, and writing hypertext for interactive media.

Online English Degree Programs

You can earn online degrees in English, general studies, and more. Online degree programs allow for a greater amount of flexibility in your studies and are particularly useful for working professionals who don’t have the time or resources to attend a traditional college. Online and accelerated degree programs are just a few of the options available to working adults.

Careers You Can Pursue With a Degree in English?

Career Specializations: Media, Writing, and Communications

Many graduates of online associate’s, bachelor’s, and master’s degree programs in English pursue careers in journalism (news analysts, reporters, and correspondents). These professionals work in print, broadcast, and new media to write news, features, editorials, sports, weather, entertainment, business stories, and more. They also work as editors, manuscript analysts, or script writers. In 2018, broadcast news analysts earned a median annual wage of $91,990, while reporters and correspondents earned a median $66,000 wage.

Public relations specialists help businesses and non-profit organizations establish and maintain a positive public image, using their English language skills to craft effective press releases, broadcast scripts, or company publications. PR specialists earned a 2020 median annual salary of $62,810, with the top-end average of $94,620. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts a 7 percent increase in advertising and public relations jobs during the 2019 to 2029 decade.

For those with a real love of language and historical poetry, fiction, drama, or non-fiction essays, you traditionally need to pursue a post-graduate degree in English if you hope to teach writing or literature at a community college, four-year school, or university. The median annual wage in 2020 for English language and literature teachers (post-secondary) was $81,340.

Elementary and secondary school teachers usually need a bachelor’s degree in English plus a teaching credential to begin work in the classroom. Some school districts require teachers to pursue a master’s degree.

By remaining adaptable and ready to learn new areas of expertise, your career options are wide open.

English Certification, Licensure and, Professional Associations

With the variety of career choices open to an English major, the type of professional designation you seek will depend on what industry you work in and job title you hold.

Technical writers, editors, business managers, and teachers will find opportunities for networking, professional development and certification within their own peer groups.

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