By Ana Diaz —
On Thursday evening, Miami Regionals’ Literatures, Languages, and Writing department hosted a Zoom conversation. The subject was “Harvesting Success: LLW Majors Then and Now.” The talk focused mostly on the English Studies (EGS) program at the Regionals campuses. This degree is like a beefed-up version of a traditional English degree, and is fairly unique among other English programs.
Two English Studies graduates joined the talk to discuss how the program helped them reach their post-undergrad goals. Two other current English Studies majors also joined in to talk about what the program has done for them, and to give some advice to other students in the program. Ultimately, English Studies has helped these students in a range of ways, from more traditional pursuits like teaching high school English and succeeding in their chosen fields, to other fields including law and the aerospace and aviation industries. Miami’s English Studies program is geared towards creating well-rounded students with a range of skills designed to help them continue to develop and hone their skills throughout their lives.
The first English Studies grad to talk was Heather Freeman, who graduated in English Studies and Strategic Communication in 2020. She now works with CTL Aerospace in West Chester in program management and customer service. Asked for her perspective on how the program helped her reach her current position, she reflected on the range of perspectives she acquired attending Miami and how she connected them to the world around her. Ms. Freeman also discussed how her original dream was to be a pilot, but after graduating and learning she was too short to pilot, she began to think about how she could still work in the aviation industry. She asked herself, “What’s the next step?” Despite this seemingly daunting task, when asked, Ms. Freeman said she wasn’t scared about her job search not working out; as she put it, EGS taught her how to think about problems and remain a lifelong learner.
Some of the day-to-day responsibilities of Ms. Freeman’s job include leading her team to complete projects in a timely manner, and communicating effectively with her team, customers, and organization. She said the English Studies program put an emphasis on learning and developing these skills, and to keep developing them as she continues in her pursuits past graduation. While it involves some more traditional aspects of literature and analysis, EGS is designed to prepare students for whatever they want to achieve as workers and students in the future.
English Studies also stands out because it’s offered entirely online. This makes the program much more accessible to non-traditional students. Most Miami Regionals students commute. Many students wear multiple hats and fill multiple roles, making traditional in-person instruction difficult. Claire Barrington, a 2022 graduate of English Studies with a B.S. in criminal justice, was one such non-traditional student who found online instruction helpful.
At the time Ms. Barrington was attending Miami, she was living abroad in Norway focused on ballet and contemplating what would come next. The performance world faced many uncertainties as the globe began to transition to a “post” Covid era, so she wanted to try something else. She had always liked writing and literature, so she was attracted to Miami’s EGS online option. “English Studies saved my life,” she said, “because Miami gave me something else to focus on.”
After her undergraduate studies, Claire took a year off to plan for her next career step, which was law school. She took time to figure out which schools she wanted to apply to, and now, as a student at Washington University Law School, she has actually met several other students and faculty who are fellow Miami graduates.
While it’s no secret that law schools love to accept English students, Claire said that her time in Miami’s EGS program, and getting involved with opportunities in the school community, allowed her to show prospective law schools that she was a real “leader in her environment.” She said that the writing, editing, and analytical skills she picked up in the EGS program have helped her in law school.
Daniel Cox, another EGS graduate who now teaches high school English, emphasized the skills and inspiration he has drawn from the program and uses in his own job. As much as EGS can prepare students for jobs unrelated to the traditional English field, it can also help in more traditional pursuits as well. Daniel said that the EGS curriculum helped him to develop his own lessons, which often involve not only teaching high school students how to read and write, but how to think critically and solve problems as well.
While the English Studies program is well-rounded, it is also fairly intensive. Miami has many graduation requirements that may seem daunting, especially to students who work or have families to care for. Linh Dich, an associate professor in the LLW department, directs the EGS internship program. This program has focused on providing support to EGS students by developing a website that offers tools to help students track their degree progress, among other things.
The website is developed for EGS students, by EGS students. Prof. Dich emphasized that this aspect of the resource helps make it more inviting to students and less administrative. Having students lead the project helps to align the content with the collective student struggles, making it more “appealing and accessible” to students. As a web resource, it’s a way for students to connect with one another and their department off campus.
Students who work on the internship get more than just a class credit for it. Prof. Dich stressed that they also develop their industry-based research skills, work on teamwork and collaboration, and focus on project management and design. These are all skills that are considered valuable in many of today’s work environments. The EGS internship provides a valuable experience that is attractive to prospective employers and gives students an idea of what sort of work is possible for them in the future.
Simply put, this isn’t your mother’s English program. Miami University has created a modern, comprehensive program that allows students to develop critical thinking, communication, and analytical skills that will help them in a wide range of careers and pursuits in the future. It caters to the Regionals’ significant non-traditional students, making success much more attainable due to the online availability of the curriculum. The internship option also gives students valuable work and collaboration experience.
Miami University clearly wants its students to succeed, and to have the confidence and foundation needed to keep developing and learning even after leaving classroom instruction. As adults, the learning truly never ends, and Miami’s English Studies program is focused on preparing students for a lifelong learning journey. Its current and former students feel passionate about what they’ve gotten out of the program, and want to remind current students to just soak it all in and enjoy the learning experience. Graduates of the program know that an English Studies degree is unique and will help form a critical foundation for their future pursuits.