Liz Shulman - 1992

What career pathway have you pursued since your time at UW?
I earned an MA in English Literature after graduating from Wisconsin, and also an M.Ed. I’ve been teaching high school English for 25 years, and I also teach future English teachers in the School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University. I’m also a writer. My book, By the Book: Inside Today’s Tech-Driven Classroom and How Literature Can Save our Students, is forthcoming from Prometheus Books. More about my writing can be found at lizroseshulman.com.

What did you enjoy about the English major?
I enjoyed all of my English classes immensely–from Professor Baker’s 19th century British Lit course, to Professor Reames’s pre-1800 literature class, to Professor Henning’s Shakespeare courses.

Did your time in the English major provide any skillset that you find useful in your career? How do you find yourself reflecting on your time as an English major now that you are in a career?
My English degree from Madison helped reinforce to me how the degree is helpful in any job I could have gotten. It helped teach me not only to analyze and think critically, but to feel the literature. There’s a real purity when getting an undergraduate degree in English. It’s just you and the text, and I’m so grateful for having had that experience. It’s what I hope for my high school students, and I try to help empower the future English teachers I teach how important literature can be for everyone.

What advice would you offer the current English majors or those considering joining the major?
My advice would be not to listen to those in our society who have contributed to the cutting of the humanities in higher ed. The English degree is just as important today–if not more given everything happening in our current moment–and it’s such an incredible foundation to have this degree.