Rhetoric & Writing

Your degree prepares you for roles where language is a tool to achieve a specific goal. In the corporate world, you might start as a junior copywriter and progress to a content strategist, managing a company's entire voice. As an editor, you'll shape manuscripts to be market-ready, not just fix typos. Or, as a technical writer, you'll interview engineers to translate complex jargon into clear user guides. Alternatively, in academia, you’ll teach, grade countless essays, and publish research, often starting as an adjunct instructor before competing for tenure-track roles.

Be aware of major shifts facing these careers. With an average AI exposure of 75%, writing and editing are being fundamentally reshaped. AI now handles the first drafts and basic copyediting that junior employees once did, causing entry-level positions to shrink. Your value is no longer in pure content generation but in your ability to architect complex arguments, critically evaluate AI output, and apply sophisticated judgment. While some paths show modest growth, the jobs themselves are changing; fewer people will be hired to do more strategic work.

Closely-related majors include Literature, English, and Journalism, which share overlapping career paths and skill sets.