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Posts: 1482
  
Location: on my horse | Just what the title says, is there anything I can do with a bachelors in english? It would be easy for me to pick up the rest of the required credits to finish an English degree but is it just a waste of my time and money? I'm well over half way through my college education and still just as lost as I was when I started. Agribusiness was (is) my goal but I've gotten some experience in the field and don't feel like it's a good fit for me, I'm paying for this all out of pocket and am scared!  |
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Hungarian Midget Woman
 
Location: Midwest | Teach english |
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  That's White "Man" to You
Posts: 5515
| barrelracr131 - 2014-04-16 11:27 AM Teach english
Sorry, that answer is to obvious. Try again! |
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 The One
Posts: 7997
Location: South Georgia | I am an English teacher. |
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The One
Posts: 7997
Location: South Georgia | Some attorneys also hire English degrees as paralegal/legal assistants. |
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That's White "Man" to You
Posts: 5515
| My secretary is an english major. Hired her because my english sucks. |
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Expert
Posts: 1482
Location: on my horse | Do you like teaching? do you teach high school or college level? I enjoy giving riding lessons but kind of think teaching day in and day out would make me want to slap someone hahaha |
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Hungarian Midget Woman
Location: Midwest | Whiteboy - 2014-04-16 11:33 AM My secretary is an english major. Hired her because my english sucks.
Do you speaka da engleesh???? |
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 Accident Prone
Posts: 22277
Location: 100 miles from Nowhere, AR | I have a friend with a degree in English. After she quit her flight attendant job, she got her teaching certificate and is doing adult ed. Out of curiosity, what did you not like about Ag-business? |
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Hungarian Midget Woman
Location: Midwest | redmansmyman11 - 2014-04-16 11:34 AM Do you like teaching? do you teach high school or college level? I enjoy giving riding lessons but kind of think teaching day in and day out would make me want to slap someone hahaha
I don't teach, but I have a friend that teaches both English and Spanish.
She has days she wants to pull her hair out, and other days where she makes a connection with the kids and loves her job. She does teach at a Catholic high school though, so she really doesn't have to deal with that many disciplinary problems. |
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That's White "Man" to You
Posts: 5515
| barrelracr131 - 2014-04-16 11:35 AM Whiteboy - 2014-04-16 11:33 AM My secretary is an english major. Hired her because my english sucks. Do you speaka da engleesh????
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Accident Prone
Posts: 22277
Location: 100 miles from Nowhere, AR | Btw, a lot of jobs require a college degree, but aren't picky about what kind of degree it is. My cousin has a biology degree, and got into logistics with a trucking company. He has progressed from there and now has a big $$$$ job with Disney Stores. |
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Hungarian Midget Woman
Location: Midwest | Whiteboy - 2014-04-16 11:39 AM barrelracr131 - 2014-04-16 11:35 AM Whiteboy - 2014-04-16 11:33 AM My secretary is an english major. Hired her because my english sucks. Do you speaka da engleesh????
That guy looks like Bieber |
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That's White "Man" to You
Posts: 5515
| barrelracr131 - 2014-04-16 11:40 AM Whiteboy - 2014-04-16 11:39 AM barrelracr131 - 2014-04-16 11:35 AM Whiteboy - 2014-04-16 11:33 AM My secretary is an english major. Hired her because my english sucks. Do you speaka da engleesh????
Which is a perfect example! |
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Location: Texas | I work in marketing and proposal writing and managers in my field sometimes hire English majors as technical writers for proposals. Not glamorous or super highly paid, but it's an option.
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Expert
Posts: 1482
Location: on my horse | Three 4 Luck - 2014-04-16 10:37 AM
I have a friend with a degree in English. After she quit her flight attendant job, she got her teaching certificate and is doing adult ed. Out of curiosity, what did you not like about Ag-business?
Does she like it? Honestly as far as agribusiness goes the higher up I get into the course work and the more experience I get in the field I realize I have no passion for it, no real interest in it and it bores me to death.
I'm sure there are good jobs out there in the field that would be a good fit for me but I'm just not seeing anything available. I'm thinking picking up a different degree like English that I've already got the majority of the credits I need for will open some more doors but am just not sure of anything at this point.
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Location: Texas | Three 4 Luck - 2014-04-16 11:39 AM Btw, a lot of jobs require a college degree, but aren't picky about what kind of degree it is. My cousin has a biology degree, and got into logistics with a trucking company. He has progressed from there and now has a big $$$$ job with Disney Stores.
This is very true! |
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Expert
Posts: 1482
Location: on my horse | vthayer - 2014-04-16 10:42 AM
I work in marketing and proposal writing and managers in my field sometimes hire English majors as technical writers for proposals. Not glamorous or super highly paid, but it's an option.
Very true, I've been doing some technical writing on the side as a little bit of a supplemental income. I like it but don't think I could support myself and furry family with it... Then again I don't know all that much about the field as a whole |
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Location: Texas | redmansmyman11 - 2014-04-16 11:45 AM vthayer - 2014-04-16 10:42 AM I work in marketing and proposal writing and managers in my field sometimes hire English majors as technical writers for proposals. Not glamorous or super highly paid, but it's an option.
Very true, I've been doing some technical writing on the side as a little bit of a supplemental income. I like it but don't think I could support myself and furry family with it... Then again I don't know all that much about the field as a whole
The niche market that I work in is pretty unknown to most people, but once you get in, you can find a job almost anywhere!
If you can get hired as a technical writer for a large commercial general contractor, you can make really good money (architecture and engineering firm would also be an option, but with not quite as high a salary expectation.)
PM me and I can give you a lot more info! |
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Accident Prone
Posts: 22277
Location: 100 miles from Nowhere, AR | redmansmyman11 - 2014-04-16 11:42 AM Three 4 Luck - 2014-04-16 10:37 AM I have a friend with a degree in English. After she quit her flight attendant job, she got her teaching certificate and is doing adult ed. Out of curiosity, what did you not like about Ag-business? Does she like it? Honestly as far as agribusiness goes the higher up I get into the course work and the more experience I get in the field I realize I have no passion for it, no real interest in it and it bores me to death. I'm sure there are good jobs out there in the field that would be a good fit for me but I'm just not seeing anything available. I'm thinking picking up a different degree like English that I've already got the majority of the credits I need for will open some more doors but am just not sure of anything at this point.
Agronomy may have been a better fit. I have an Ag business degree, and liked most of the course work, but I have a knack for financial stuff and had a farm to come back to. My husband's graduate degree is agronomy and it suits him--he's more of a concrete, scientific thinker than I am--and the jobs available for that are more technical stuff in the field or research rather than sales reps and management jobs.
And my friend loves adult ed. Her students are there because they want to be and she feels like she's making a difference. She thought this was a foot in the door to becoming an elementary teacher, but she stayed because she developed a passion for the work. |
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Expert
Posts: 1482
Location: on my horse | Three 4 Luck - 2014-04-16 10:52 AM
redmansmyman11 - 2014-04-16 11:42 AM Three 4 Luck - 2014-04-16 10:37 AM I have a friend with a degree in English. After she quit her flight attendant job, she got her teaching certificate and is doing adult ed. Out of curiosity, what did you not like about Ag-business? Does she like it? Honestly as far as agribusiness goes the higher up I get into the course work and the more experience I get in the field I realize I have no passion for it, no real interest in it and it bores me to death. I'm sure there are good jobs out there in the field that would be a good fit for me but I'm just not seeing anything available. I'm thinking picking up a different degree like English that I've already got the majority of the credits I need for will open some more doors but am just not sure of anything at this point.
And my friend loves adult ed. Her students are there because they want to be and she feels like she's making a difference. She thought this was a foot in the door to becoming an elementary teacher, but she stayed because she developed a passion for the work.
That's where I started getting into trouble. I don't have a knack for financial stuff at all, getting through the basic accounting courses pretty much made me want to put my head through a wall  and it just never really got better after that but I've kept pushing through it because I don't really know what else to do. I'll look into Agronomy, that sounds a little better. |
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 Expert
Posts: 3782
Location: Gainesville, TX | There are a lot more options out there for people with an English degree than people think.
Technical Writer
Teacher
Tutor
Copywriter (lots of opportunities in the publishing industry)
Writer (novelist)
Paralegal
Librarian
Public Relations
Speechwriter
Law School (people with English degrees tend to do well here)
Corporate blogger
Search Engine Optimizer
Basically an English degree teaches communications skills and critical thinking skills that help you be successful in a number of areas. So long as you can sell it, they will buy it. I have a Ph.D. in English and direct a Writing Center (tutoring center). I've done many jobs, administrative and education. I was even an IT specialist for a time. I copyedit for my university too. It's quite useful.
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 729
Location: south central usa | Three 4 Luck - 2014-04-16 11:52 AM
redmansmyman11 - 2014-04-16 11:42 AM Three 4 Luck - 2014-04-16 10:37 AM I have a friend with a degree in English. After she quit her flight attendant job, she got her teaching certificate and is doing adult ed. Out of curiosity, what did you not like about Ag-business? Does she like it? Honestly as far as agribusiness goes the higher up I get into the course work and the more experience I get in the field I realize I have no passion for it, no real interest in it and it bores me to death. I'm sure there are good jobs out there in the field that would be a good fit for me but I'm just not seeing anything available. I'm thinking picking up a different degree like English that I've already got the majority of the credits I need for will open some more doors but am just not sure of anything at this point.
And my friend loves adult ed. Her students are there because they want to be and she feels like she's making a difference. She thought this was a foot in the door to becoming an elementary teacher, but she stayed because she developed a passion for the work.
having an ag degree as well, my experience was that a large % of the graduates simply went back to the family farm.
the ones who wanted to stick it out looking for jobs, were relegated to either low paying jobs (to each their own opinion on pay scale), moving "states" away, or trying to obtain a job in an industry unrelated to ag. Yes the degree may have opened the door for someone to get into banking, yet a true finance degree would have done the same.
two cents
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 Elite Veteran
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| I have an ag business degree as well. I just graduated in December 2013. I was like you and didn't like the financial side of it too much but didn't want a horticulture or animal science degree as I didn't feel like I would find the type of job I wanted. What I did was took lots of soil science classes and crop science classes for electives. You could consider that as well, ag business isn't all accounting and management. You could use your writing skills for marketing or PR for an agriculture based company even. There are a ton of options out there that you really dont think of until you start job searching for real.
I ended up getting a job with the USDA Farm Service Agency and absolutely love it. I'm getting to help the producer from the ground up & with not much "business" side to it per say.
Whatever you decide I hope you end up happy! Best of luck to you  |
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Accident Prone
Posts: 22277
Location: 100 miles from Nowhere, AR | runnink - 2014-04-16 2:00 PM Three 4 Luck - 2014-04-16 11:52 AM redmansmyman11 - 2014-04-16 11:42 AM Three 4 Luck - 2014-04-16 10:37 AM I have a friend with a degree in English. After she quit her flight attendant job, she got her teaching certificate and is doing adult ed. Out of curiosity, what did you not like about Ag-business? Does she like it? Honestly as far as agribusiness goes the higher up I get into the course work and the more experience I get in the field I realize I have no passion for it, no real interest in it and it bores me to death. I'm sure there are good jobs out there in the field that would be a good fit for me but I'm just not seeing anything available. I'm thinking picking up a different degree like English that I've already got the majority of the credits I need for will open some more doors but am just not sure of anything at this point.
And my friend loves adult ed. Her students are there because they want to be and she feels like she's making a difference. She thought this was a foot in the door to becoming an elementary teacher, but she stayed because she developed a passion for the work. having an ag degree as well, my experience was that a large % of the graduates simply went back to the family farm. the ones who wanted to stick it out looking for jobs, were relegated to either low paying jobs (to each their own opinion on pay scale ), moving "states" away, or trying to obtain a job in an industry unrelated to ag. Yes the degree may have opened the door for someone to get into banking, yet a true finance degree would have done the same. two cents
My husband's friends from grad school are doing anything from private conservation/environmental management to NRCS to extension jobs to working for seed/chemical companies in various capacities. I don't think any of them ended up working in a totally unrelated field. Now, the folks I went to college with ended up all over the place as far as jobs go. Get a degree in a field you like and then see where life takes you... |
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Point And Shoot
Posts: 7656
Location: the land of heat and rain. | Most people I know with a degree do not work in their field of study. A lot of jobs require a degree and that's all they care about. It doesn't matter that it has nothing to do with your job. For instance, The lady who runs our local library has a degree in Spanish. She never used it. She got a job at a library and became a media specialist and then moved to another branch as head librarian. She has made a huge difference in our little town by forming various book clubs, children's programs and training classes for adults and kids. She has really helped out this community. Hey, maybe you could be a librarian who makes a difference too!
By the way, I found out that our library can only hire people with a degree or they would loose funding. So, now days just knowing the dewey decimal system is not enough to put books on a shelf. You have to have earned a degree to do so. lol.
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 Expert
Posts: 1718
Location: Southeast Louisiana | Whiteboy - 2014-04-16 11:28 AM
barrelracr131 - 2014-04-16 11:27 AM Teach english
Sorry, that answer is to obvious. Try again!
Should be "too obvious" instead of "to". |
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That's White "Man" to You
Posts: 5515
| Nita - 2014-04-17 10:26 AM Whiteboy - 2014-04-16 11:28 AM barrelracr131 - 2014-04-16 11:27 AM Teach english Sorry, that answer is to obvious. Try again! Should be "too obvious" instead of "to".
Exactly! |
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Expert
Posts: 1718
Location: Southeast Louisiana | Whiteboy - 2014-04-17 10:43 AM
Nita - 2014-04-17 10:26 AM Whiteboy - 2014-04-16 11:28 AM barrelracr131 - 2014-04-16 11:27 AM Teach english Sorry, that answer is to obvious. Try again! Should be "too obvious" instead of "to".
...and I don't even have an English degree! Lol
But, seriously, I wouldn't recommend 'grammar nazi' as a line of work. Doesn't pay very well. |
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That's White "Man" to You
Posts: 5515
| Nita - 2014-04-17 10:55 AM Whiteboy - 2014-04-17 10:43 AM Nita - 2014-04-17 10:26 AM Whiteboy - 2014-04-16 11:28 AM barrelracr131 - 2014-04-16 11:27 AM Teach english Sorry, that answer is to obvious. Try again! Should be "too obvious" instead of "to". ...and I don't even have an English degree! Lol But, seriously, I wouldn't recommend 'grammar nazi' as a line of work. Doesn't pay very well.
However, it can be very satisfying.  |
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I Really Love Jeans
Posts: 3173
Location: North Dakota | Get a Masters in English so you can be a teacher. You can even teach some basic college English classes with a Masters. Whatever you do you have to ask yourself how far you can go with a specific type of degree. |
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 Expert
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Location: SE Louisiana | You can take over RWR's job here.... |
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Expert
Posts: 1482
Location: on my horse | komet. - 2014-04-17 10:36 AM
You can take over RWR's job here....
hahaha I think I'll pass on RWR's job, I kind of enjoy not having everybody after me  |
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OT -- Can I do anything with a bachelors in English?