There are a few things that every English major goes through, some more often than others. From certain phrases every one of us has heard, to back aches from too many books, and the constant need for more printer paper, the struggles of English majors are unlike that of any other major. Here are a few of them:
“So, you want to be a teacher?”
Everyone points out your grammar mistakes We get it, we made a mistake. You don’t have to point it out. People think that, just because we study English, we automatically know all the grammar rules. We try not to point out your grammar mistakes (we don’t always succeed), so try not to do it to us either, because we don’t like it any more than you do.
Your backpack always has at least 4 books in it
Some of us also carry multiple bags just for this reason. It used to cause back pain, but we’ve gotten used to it. Some use eBooks instead of paper books, saving themselves from the back pain. Other just prefer the feel of a real book, even though real books get heavy when you have more than a couple of them.
Everyone asks if you will edit their papers Unless we like you, no. Some of us may enjoy doing it, but we’re not going to do it for free. We don’t ask you to check our math homework.
Only Non-English majors think English is easy
If your definition of easy is writing multiple many-page papers in a week’s worth of time, then yeah, English is easy. Just because we don’t have difficult tests doesn’t mean we aren’t losing sleep and stressing about grades too.
The struggle of running out of printer ink (or paper) Some of us go through printer ink and paper very quickly, especially around finals and midterms. Running out the night before your paper is due means an unexpected trip to the nearest store, which may or may not be your definition of fun. Might as well get some snacks and energy drinks while you’re there though, you’re going to need them.
Writer’s block Everyone’s experienced writer’s block, but it’s especially frightening for English majors, since most of our grades depend on writing papers. There’s nothing quite like experiencing writer’s block the midnight before your 10 page paper is due.
Although the major is difficult at times, and may not make us millionaires, we chose to major in English because we love it. Everything we love about the language makes even the most annoying and difficult things worth it. I, for one, wouldn’t buy hundreds of dollars’ worth of printer paper for any other major.
