UMD English Senior Spotlights
May 22, 2020
Get to know some of our graduating English students, including their job and intern experiences, favorite classes, skills learned and more.
"The English major to me is a compilation of the best skills, challenges, and projects. There is no career an English major can't pursue if they take their studies head-on. With the right amount of vigor, passion, and excitement, an English degree can take you anywhere."
"All of my interactions and experiences in the English department have been incredible and I'm so grateful to have nothing but good memories to look back on when I think about my time as an English major."
"The point of literature is to communicate an experience, to tell a story, and for so many marginalized people seeing ourselves in literature or fiction is powerful. The English major has taught me the importance of using your voice when you have one because so many people don't."
Read more from Liyanga de Silva.
"As an English major, you learn to analyze information and form your own opinions in a constructive manner, which is invaluable in today's world. This has also made me a very open-minded person, which has helped me get along with people from many different backgrounds."
Read more from Preston Foster Jr.
"The dream has always been to end up in the film and television industry. I’ve worked on a bunch of student films and music videos as well as on a couple of bigger productions in a wide range of roles. I’d ultimately like to end up directing one day."
"I can really do anything I want with my degree. My abilities to read and retain, research and produce, communicate efficiently and adapt to anything have all been learned and practiced as an English Major."
"I am passionate about raising awareness for marginalized voices, particularly those that are within the Black community. In addition, one of my biggest goals is to establish stronger reading and writing programs in under-resourced Black communities, as well as strengthening public school libraries with more diverse literature that is written by non-White authors."
"Being an English major challenged me to think in ways I wasn't comfortable with or confident in, which was unbelievably healthy."
"My dream has always been to encourage other people’s abilities for creating literature and art. I want to provide them with the resources and inspire them to create meaningful creations that both reveal and transcend individual times and cultures."
"The English major is unique in how it creates communities of people who are curious about the world and why things are the way they are."
"For me, the most valuable part of the English major has been the holistic approach to education. I've learned how to argue my own case, but also been challenged to consider perspectives other than my own."
"The most valuable part of the English major is the faculty. We have brilliant, forward-thinking instructors who are passionate about their jobs, and I’ve found them all to be so helpful in my development as a student."
"The English major has opened up an entire new world to me stretching across various disciplines. I never feel limited with English, and it certainly helped me come out of my shell."
Read more from Olga Petrovskikh.
"The most valuable part of the English major has been the space that the community has afforded me to think, read, write, discuss, and challenge ideas that I never would have encountered otherwise. The curiosity I was able to cultivate among peers and professors is indelible.
"For me, the most valuable part of being an English major was the opportunity to really get to know all of the other kids in my department and to cultivate great relationships with many of the professors. Tawes and all of the people in it really began to feel like home to me."
Read more from Stephanie Sadie.
"I'm very passionate about providing affordable, quality healthcare to others, regardless of their ability to pay. I think everyone has a right to live, regardless of their mistakes and actions. I want to fight for that right and contribute pro bono procedures to those who can't afford them."
"I have become a more critical reader and a more critical observer of things that I encounter. I am also better able to make arguments and defend them, and I have become more aware of what great art is and what great writing is and how to appreciate it when I see it."
"The English major has shown me the true power of literature, of stories. I hope to be a part of that someday."