Many college students wonder where they will end up after graduation and what they can do with the majors they pursue.
For some students, choosing a major is difficult when post-graduation careers are not one-size-fits-all. Students studying within the field of English can often encounter this problem.
SVSU’s Bachelor of Art and Behavioral Sciences degree in English offers students three possible areas of concentration: English literature, creative writing and professional and technical writing (PTW). An English education major also is available from the College of Education.
Helen Raica-Klotz, an English professor at SVSU, explains what English students often intend on doing once they obtain their major. “Students can be writers, teachers, go into human resources, marketing, and non-profit writing jobs,” Raica-Klotz said.
Recent SVSU alumni Jason Wolverton and Kelly Stewart are making career strides after obtaining undergraduate degrees with majors in English.
Wolverton graduated from SVSU in the spring of 2007. He majored in creative writing and worked at SVSU’s Writing Center and for the Valley Vanguard.
Currently, Wolverton is a marketing director for Commercial Software Inc. in Midland.
“We do many things, including Web page and software design, and we also operate a number of real estate and rental Web sites in the Tri-Cities,” Wolverton said, who also is an overseer for Midlandsports.com.
It wasn’t until Wolverton discovered the Writing Center and the Vanguard that he found his niche.
“My work at the Vanguard and at the Writing Center not only taught me a great deal, but also allowed me to make vital contacts that are useful in the real world,” he said. Raica-Klotz served as his Writing Center coordinator and helped him get his current job.
One thing Wolverton wishes someone would have told him was to get involved in other activities.
“If getting a good job is your number one priority, you need to get involved in other activities,” he said.
SVSU helped Wolverton learn to think critically and “outside the box.”
“Both of these things I do day-in and day-out at my job,” he said.
Technology also plays a role in
his work ethic now, because, according to Wolverton, it is important to write well and communicate one’s message, whether it is in an e-mail, blog or letter.
Stewart concentrated on PTW at SVSU. She moved on to law school after graduation, hoping that it would help her.
“It’s only my first term, so it’s hard to say how helpful my writing degree will be in law school, but I’ve heard that an English degree gives you a good foundation,” she said.
Before law school, Stewart worked as a grant writer at a fund consulting firm in Bay City. Her experience at SVSU is similar to Wolverton’s, as she also worked at the Writing Center.
“My classes at SVSU and my experience as a tutor in the Writing Center gave me a good working knowledge of writing and editing principals, and the rest I learned on the job from my co-workers,” she said.
Both Stewart and Wolverton managed to get to where they wanted to be with the help of their classes and advisers.
No comments:
Post a Comment