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Major · English Language & Literature

A small humanities track for readers across genres and traditions

General Literature is the cross-tradition literary studies track inside the English family — a niche cousin of English Language and Literature, General (about 27,000 grads a year) and Comparative Literature. About 303 degrees are awarded each year across 68 colleges, with a five-year bachelor’s earnings median of $47,318.

Schools offering
68
Annual completions
303
Typical degree level
Associate's + Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$47k

About this major

General Literature is a niche humanities major built around the study of literature from one or more genres, cultures, or traditions — period and genre studies, author studies, literary criticism, and analysis of various literary text types. The CIP definition keeps the framing broad on purpose, which is what distinguishes 23.1401 from English Language and Literature, General (CIP 23.0101, about 26,983 completions a year) and from Comparative Literature (16.0104), the cross-tradition track that requires proficiency in two or three languages. General Literature sits between them: cross-tradition reach without the foreign-language requirement, and broader cultural framing than the English-only default.

The major rewards a particular kind of student. You bring interest in literature itself, comfort sustaining sophisticated arguments in writing, and patience for slow primary texts and dense secondary criticism. Strong reading and writing habits coming in tend to be the reliable predictor of a comfortable start. Students who pair the degree with a practical second capability — editorial tools, marketing fundamentals, systematic LSAT preparation — typically find a wider bench in the bachelor’s-only labor market.

The scale signals tell a specific story. About 303 degrees are awarded each year across 68 colleges, spread across small liberal-arts schools (Sewanee at 33, Hamilton at 17, Bennington at 11), national universities (American at 25, Miami University-Oxford at 19), urban privates (The New School at 32), and a community college (Connecticut State at 26). The five-year bachelor’s earnings median is $47,318. The career table maps to writers and authors at $72,270, editors at $75,260, and English language and literature postsecondary teachers at $78,270 — the first two are bachelor’s-entry, the third lists a doctoral or professional degree as typical education.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Writers and authors $72k +3.6% Bachelor's degree
Editors $75k +0.6% Bachelor's degree
English language and literature teachers, postsecondary $78k 0.0% Doctoral or professional degree
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$47k

Who this major is for

You may thrive here if literature itself is the draw rather than a career label, if you are oriented toward graduate study or law school and want a bachelor’s that trains the reading and argument skills those paths reward, if you want cross-tradition framing without the two-or-three-language requirement that comes with Comparative Literature, and if you are willing to pair the degree with editorial tools, marketing fundamentals, or systematic LSAT preparation. Editorial work at the major trade houses runs through New York entry roles in the $35K–$45K range that the $47,318 five-year median reflects.

Think twice if your goal is K-12 English teaching specifically — a teacher-education CIP with embedded licensure coursework reaches a classroom faster than General Literature plus a separate post-baccalaureate certification. Reconsider if you want a major that maps predictably to a single high-earning occupation: the bachelor’s-entry destinations sit at $72,270 for writers and authors and $75,260 for editors, both with low projected growth (3.6% and 0.6%), and AI disruption to entry-level content writing and copy editing is real. Pause if your draw is workshop-intensive creative production — Creative Writing (23.1302, 3,403 completions) is the genre-focused track. Pause again if the PhD pull is driven by career ROI, because the $78,270 postsecondary-teaching SOC requires a doctorate and the academic job market is saturated.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for General Literature

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
The University of the South Sewanee, TN 0 33 33
The New School New York, NY 0 32 32
Connecticut State Community College New Britain, CT 26 0 26
American University Washington, DC 0 25 25
Miami University-Oxford Oxford, OH 0 19 19
Hamilton College Clinton, NY 0 17 17
Grove City College Grove City, PA 0 16 16
Boise State University Boise, ID 0 12 12
Bennington College Bennington, VT 0 11 11
Allegheny College Meadville, PA 0 8 8
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

English Language and Literature, General

26,983 completions/yr

Communication, General

9,537 completions/yr

Journalism

8,274 completions/yr

Mass Communication/Media Studies

6,797 completions/yr

Creative Writing

3,403 completions/yr

Rhetoric and Composition

1,071 completions/yr

Broadcast Journalism

672 completions/yr

Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other

660 completions/yr
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What do General Literature majors actually study day-to-day?
Coursework spans literary periods, genres, author studies, and literary criticism, with the cross-tradition framing that distinguishes the major from the Anglophone-focused English, General track. The CIP definition pins the work to literature from one or more genres, cultures, or traditions, alongside instruction in period and genre studies, author studies, literary criticism, and analysis of various literary text types. Most programs combine surveys, seminars on specific authors or movements, and frequent argumentative essays. Day-to-day life is reading-heavy and writing-heavy, with sustained close reading and dense secondary criticism as the steady diet.
Why are there only 303 General Literature graduates a year if literature is so widely studied?
The 303 annual completions and 68-college footprint reflect administrative grouping rather than student demand. Most universities funnel literature students into the much larger English Language and Literature, General CIP (23.0101), which records about 26,983 completions a year across the same kind of coursework. General Literature shows up as a distinct program at institutions that explicitly offer a cross-tradition or literary studies track separate from an English department default. The scarcity is a reporting artifact, not a signal that the field is shrinking.
What kinds of jobs do General Literature graduates end up in?
The career table maps to three roles: writers and authors at $72,270 median wage with 3.6% projected growth, editors at $75,260 with 0.6% growth, and English language and literature postsecondary teachers at $78,270 with flat 0% growth. Only the first two are bachelor’s-entry; the postsecondary teaching role lists a doctoral or professional degree as typical education. Beyond the career table, the realistic bachelor’s destinations cluster in trade publishing (Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, Hachette, Macmillan, Simon & Schuster — concentrated in New York), library and archive technician work, university development and alumni magazine roles, K-12 teaching with a post-bacc certification, and nonprofit communications. Pre-law is a documented strong-fit lane for literature majors, who score above-average on the LSAT.
How does General Literature differ from English, General or Comparative Literature?
English Language and Literature, General (CIP 23.0101) centers the Anglophone canon and is enormous at about 26,983 completions a year. Comparative Literature (CIP 16.0104) requires demonstrated proficiency in two or three languages and reads texts in their original languages. General Literature (23.1401) sits between them: cross-tradition framing without the foreign-language proficiency requirement, and a broader cultural reach than the English-only default. Creative Writing (23.1302, 3,403 completions) and Rhetoric and Composition (23.1304, 1,071 completions) are the production and argumentation tracks rather than literary studies tracks.
Do I need a bachelor’s, or is an associate’s enough for General Literature?
The major is bachelor’s-dominant in practice. The data packet lists both associate’s and bachelor’s as available levels, but eight of the top ten institutions report zero associate’s completions, and the bachelor’s median sits at $47,318 with no associate’s figure recorded. Connecticut State Community College is the one program in the top ten with associate’s output (26 completions), and it functions as a transfer track. For students aiming at editorial, publishing, pre-law, K-12 teaching with certification, or graduate study in literature, the bachelor’s is the standard credential.
What is a realistic next step after a General Literature bachelor’s?
Five paths recur. Trade publishing entry runs through New York editorial-assistant roles in the $35K–$45K range — slow advancement, but a clear ladder at the major houses. Pre-law is a strong data-driven lane: literature majors score above-average on the LSAT because the major trains the reading-comprehension and argument-analysis skills the test rewards. K-12 English teaching is reachable with a post-baccalaureate certification or master’s in education — the bachelor’s alone does not license you. Graduate study is the ramp for academic careers, with MFA, MA-Lit, or PhD-Lit programs feeding into the $78,270 postsecondary-teaching SOC the data packet flags as doctorate-required, though the academic job market is famously saturated.