English Major @ La Roche College

If you love delving into language and literature, writing to persuade, astound, and inspire, or working to instill these skills and values in young people, the English major is for you.

The English major at La Roche College boasts three distinct programs, each tailored to students' unique interests and goals: Language and Literature, Professional Writing, and English Secondary Education. We also offer two minors for students who wish to supplement their education in another field (or who simply love great books!), as well as a certificate for students who seek to beef up their skills and portfolios as writers. Our majors go on to careers as writers, teachers, marketers, advertisers, lawyers, editors: anything that requires a gift and a passion for language, literature, and the written word.

Contrary to dire predictions, the digital revolution hasn't killed the English major; if anything, it has made the field stronger. After all, it's not computers producing all those web logs, discussion forums, and reviews-it's real live people, with the training and the commitment to put their thoughts to paper (or pixels). Ditto with the news media: newspapers may be in decline, but the news is becoming ever more pervasive, finding its way into niches as intimate and ubiquitous as laptops and cell phones.

So whether you see yourself standing in front of a class talking Shakespeare and Alice Walker, hammering out dynamic ad copy, covering the sports, entertainment, or metro news for your local paper, or delivering the goods online, you'll find a home in English.

What Makes the La Roche English Department Different

The La Roche English Department is small enough to meet each student's individual needs yet large enough to attract a diverse and dynamic faculty, to support co-curricular events and activities, and to forge lasting connections with prospective employers. You get the best of both worlds: average class sizes of 15; close, supportive relationships with your fellow majors; one-on-one contact with professors who are published poets, essayists, and scholars; an array of course offerings ranging from Renaissance Poetry to Creative Nonfiction to Film and Popular Culture; a flourishing writing program; and access to internships and apprenticeships in local news media, PR and advertising, middle and high schools, and other fields. There is no other college in the region that can offer the same mix.