Odd Situation -- BME Major w/ English Minor

juillet
Fri, 08 May 2015 13:28:10 +0000

I, personally, think it’s excellent. I love STEM and I understand why the STEM fields are in such high demand these days (well, some of them). At the same time, scientists and engineers need to know how to communicate fluidly and clearly with people - and even moreso need to understand the things that make us people, about the struggles of our species, about the grand questions that we still grapple with. How, for example, can you design a prosthetic leg if you don’t consider how people are going to use and perceive it (both the wearer and others they interact with)? (I also take issue with the implication that English - and basically any field of study besides a handful of technical majors - is “useless.” We wouldn’t even be able to communicate on these online boards coherently without the study and teaching of English.)

There’s no set time and you may never make a set decision. And honestly, you don’t have to. Pursue what feels right to you. People switch careers all the time these days - you could decide to be an English teacher for a few years, decide that you hate it, and try to transition back into engineering. Or vice versa. One thing I will say is that depending on the school, a minor in English might not be enough to teach high school English - they might expect you to take more courses or get a master’s.

A minor in English probably isn’t enough to do a PhD in English - you’d probably get an MA first. That’s simply because PhD programs in English are fiercely competitive these days, and many of the people you’ll be competing with will have an undergrad major in English AND an English MA. But that’s going to be a career field that I’m going to say you probably don’t want to enter. Not because it’s not fascinating or anything, but because the academic market in English is severely impacted. I’m talking about 200-300+ applications for each job, and more for very desirable ones. You could be a superstar and still strike out several application cycles in a row, and that’s after spending an average of 8-9 years earning the PhD. If you want to go into academia, engineering is actually a much better route. But I would say you only should think about the PhD if you have a deep, abiding love for answering your own research questions and digging much more deeply into your field. NOT simply learning more about it - but actually generating new knowledge in the field.