Some students love literature, but do not want to teach. Fewer than 20% of our graduates choose careers in teaching. The English major trains students in critical reading and communication skills that offer ideal preparation for many careers. Communication and writing skills equip English majors for publishing careers as writers, editors, promotion managers or marketing directors. Our graduates are working for major publishers or Fortune 500 companies. Career opportunities in business and publishing are also available through our ever-expanding internship program.

What are some of our recent graduates doing?

• Craig Renfrow '96, English professor
  University of North Carolina at Wilmington
• Jennifer Sutton Smith '95, English teacher
  Forest Hills High School, Marshville, NC
• Kevin Winchester '95
  Poet & novelist
• Nolan Belk '94, English professor
  Wilkes Community College
• Sharon Kale '94, law school graduate
  Campbell University Law School 1997
• Erica Hollis Wagoner '93, Corporate Real Estate Division
  First Union, Charlotte, NC

Making a Living
Our concern with career placement is an integral part of our department. We will work with the Office of Internships & Career Development to design an internship experience tailored to your career interests.

We also have programs to help prepare students for graduate or professional studies. An active program of student research support, the Jessie Ball duPont Summer Research Program, teams students and professors to work together for ten weeks of in-depth research. Participation in these competitive grants enhances a student's application for graduate school and gives personalized training in the research skills needed to succeed there. The department regularly supports student application for post-graduate fellowships, including Fulbright and Rotary foreign study scholarships.

Building a Life
While we care about your future career success, we also treasure opportunities to support our common search for meaning through classroom study and other programs. Our faculty have been trained in diverse bodies of literature and approaches to its study at internationally renowned institutions. We try to relate the study of literary texts to all dimensions of human culture, both in the classroom and beyond. Students are encouraged to pursue special interests like creative writing or women's studies. We provide annual opportunities for students to enjoy literature in performance through lectures and readings by critically-acclaimed authors, theatre presentations and film viewings. Our faculty often take the lead in Wingate University's diverse travel programs.

Famous English majors and their careers:

• Alan Alda, M*A*S*H star & writer
• Dave Barry, humorist
• Mario Cuomo, former Governor of New York
• Bart Giammatti, former Commissioner of Baseball (and President of Yale)
• Cathy Guisewite, cartoonist (Cathy)
• Chris Isaak, songwriter & singer
• Stephen King, novelist
• Joe Paterno, Penn State football coach
• Steven Speilberg, filmmaker
• Harold Varmus, Nobel Prize in medicine
• Barbara Walters, broadcast journalist

CONTACT:
Dr. Robert Doak
Associate Professor and Department Chair
robdoak@wingate.edu
704-233-8080