Robert Rogge

How did your time as an English major prepare you for your current role or your career?

Of course, I am a believer in the humanities and learning to think critically, and I think that has made all the difference in my career.

Other than critical thinking, the specific skills from my time at NDSU that have helped me in my career are simply reading, writing, and general communications. Luckily, it just so happens to be that thinking, reading, writing, and communicating are precisely those skills you will need to tackle your career. You will pick up knowledge along the way and possibly some wisdom, but those four skills are the ones that make the whole thing possible.

But the most important thing is that a degree in the humanities can prepare you for change, both personally and professionally. I have never fully understood what I would have done with, for example, a degree in marketing, because not three years after I graduated, everything in marketing had already changed, whereas my degree in English remained entirely useful. This trend has not abated one iota since I graduated, and as we all know, everything is changing all over again. The humanities can prepare you for many a career in an environment like this, where you have to think on your feet and learn continuously.

I would also add that my first real role, in my early twenties in Barcelona, was as a technical writer. English degrees were particularly desired in technical writing, and so this was a one-to-one match, true enough. But I want to stress that becoming a technical writer was something I could do at a high level without a single course in technical writing, and I would encourage English majors to focus on the literature and the humanities. If you are ambitious and believe in yourself, you will find that a career path will open up for you.

What advice would you give to someone considering an English major?

If, like I did, you want to become a great writer, I would watch The Art Life about the late, great David Lynch, because the moment you abandon The Art Life and set about running on the hamster wheel, it's going to be really difficult for you to write.

If you just love literature, thinking, reading, writing, etc., I would just say hey, you can have a career after that if you want it. I've met several literature majors, in several countries, who were surprised how my career had gone. I would always say, "You can do anything, just start sending applications." And most people would reply, "I can't do that!" But you can totally do that. You can't be a doctor, accountant, or physicist with just an English degree, but you can do a ton of other things, make as much money as you can rightfully expect, and your critical thinking will be highly valued wherever you go.

Is there anything else you’d like to share?

I have never thought particularly highly of the idea that the best education is one that prepares you for a specific career; I think that an education that develops your mind broadly is just as valuable. Careers are important and students must consider them, but I would gently push back on the idea that the only purpose of an education is to have a career, because what you do after university is up to you, and there are no shortage of career options should you choose to pursue them. Your English degree will prepare you for whatever you choose to do even if you focus on poetry.

In my opinion, a degree in English is about reading, writing, thinking, analyzing and having passionate conversations with friends or random strangers about life or current events. The English major is equipped to become knowledgeable and conversant in nearly any topic.

This serves you in your personal life, but also at work, because you can read about something, understand it, and use it right away. The English major is like a rapid prototype, ready to do anything.

But all of this discussion about work sort of distracts from the fact that having an English degree is a real pleasure. You are "classically trained" to analyze all kinds of things and also to enjoy them. I love to read, but that same way of thinking serves you when you travel, watch great films, read comics, listen to music, and talk to people the world over. It will help you to learn new languages. It will help you in your interpersonal relationships. It will help you to articulate just what was so nice about the evening light on that hike you just completed, what was so magical about this incredible thing you just did, or how, exactly, you feel about sand. All of this helps you in your career, but regardless of the working life you pursue, it will serve you.