Communications vs English vs Film

College Majors
1

Hi, everyone!

I am currently a first-year student at Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, with the the idea of becoming an English major or a Film major. Before I express my predicament, I will explain my future aspirations:
-After I graduate from Dickinson (an undergraduate institution), I will attend a graduate program to study film and television production. As of now, I am currently looking at top producing programs, such as those at the University of Southern California, the American Film Industry, Columbia University, New York University, etc. So, in other words, I know what career path I want to enter: producing for film/television.

However, here are my dilemmas:
-At Dickinson, an English degree is offered and a Film Studies degree is offered. More or less, the film major is an interdisciplinary major of the English department. Originally, I had the idea of majoring in English and minoring in Film because, at the end of the day, an English major is probably more marketable than a major solely in Film. However, I am now thinking about pursuing a double-major in both Film and English.

Through research, I have discovered that most of the internships that I have stumbled across (for production), are primarily geared toward Business majors or Communications majors. Of course, for a career in production, communications seems to be a very suitable major. Unfortunately, Dickinson does not offer a major in Communications (and that makes me nervous), so that leads me back to the question of Film versus English.

To be honest, I am leaning toward a major in English with a minor in Film becomes it seems a little more marketable to me. Nevertheless, I’m nervous as to whether or not I am making the most discerning decision. Communications does seem like the ideal undergraduate major, but with enough experience, internships, etc., wouldn’t a major in English and a minor in Film be just as - if not more - effective to employers?

In all, these are my questions:
-For film production, what is most appropriate for a degree: a major in Film, Communications, or English?
-If communications really is the most suitable major, should I transfer to a different undergraduate institution?
-If I were to stay at Dickinson, should I major in English or Film (or double-major)?

I am sorry for the long message. Lately, though, this topic has been comprising every thought in my mind. I would be very grateful to hear of the scholarly feedback from all of you.

Thank you so, so much.

2

Yes, probably! Major in English, take all of the communications classes you can. And many of those communications internships are open to any major - they may “prefer” a communications major all other things being equal, but you can still get them.

I wouldn’t transfer schools just for one major.

I’m checking out Dickinson’s website and here’s what it says about film studies majors:

Students have the option of doing a six course minor or an 11 course self-developed major that culminates with a senior thesis done in conjunction with two faculty from different disciplines.

They don’t really have a film studies major; they have a film studies minor OR you can develop an independent/individualized major in film studies by using coursework from several departments. That’s very much like doing an individualized major at other schools.

Dickinson also has an international business & management major, and you can take courses from that department to help with marketability. There’s also a certificate in social innovation & entrepreneurship.

3

Wow! Thank you so much, @juillet! I am very impressed with your response. Thank you for going to my school’s website and searching for information.

So, you think an English major (and possibly a film minor) will be adequate when combined with other classes in the business department? I’m just trying to make sure that I am making the right decisions now, that way I have more opportunities when I am looking for employment.

Also - one more question. Do you think that (for this career) a liberal arts degree (and a graduate degree) will be enough, or should I look into schools with career-based majors?

Thank you again!! :slight_smile:

4

No problem ! :slight_smile:

As I understand it, film production is a competitive career anyway. Even someone with all of the “right” degrees may not have the level of success he wants, simply because there are so many people trying to get into it. That said, no, I do not think that a humanities major will the thing that holds you back. Film studies is a humanities field anyway, and lots of people go from English or film studies major into more professional film production master’s degrees afterwards. Film is definitely not my field, but judging by the application requirements (e.g., USC requires a personal statement, writing sample, visual sample and portfolio) I’m assuming that your portfolio and samples are far more important than your exact major, especially since these MFA programs don’t require any specific major for admission. In fact, Columbia says it explicitly:

Many of our students have undergraduate degrees in areas completely unrelated to their graduate studies.

If you’re talking about general business internships and careers…yes, I do, but you have to do some legwork. Humanities majors can be very successful in business-related careers - however, they have to be a bit more creative and purposeful about the experiences and skills that they acquire. That’s because many professional and science majors have desirable hard skills baked right into their majors, whereas the social sciences and humanities often don’t. You also have a harder road, because you have to get the film experiences (producing, internships, independent films, ECs, whatever) that are necessary while also getting the business internships that are necessary for a fallback, too.

It will take some planning. But I think you can totally do it. First of all, many production internships can double as business-related internships depending on the places and kinds of roles you take on. Second of all, if you are a freshman you have three summers to do cool stuff. I might try to alternate, although I would definitely try to spend my junior/senior summer doing the business internship because lots of students get offers on the basis of their internship from junior/senior summer.

5

I’d go with English major, taking the classes you want in Film and International management. :slight_smile: IF that adds up to one minor, or two, good for you - but for employment, it doesn’t really matter much. You can lis “relevant coursework” on your resume anyway since the title of the major doesn’t tell much to your would-be employer.

6

Is it possible to do a create your own major? If so, maybe you can do English and Film…

If not, however, why do you have choose either English or film…?

George Lucas used aspects of anthropology to create Star Wars… That said, what I suggest is to find what you want to do in terms of film: psychological? Military / war? If you can find that out, you can do a major in that and a minor in film.

Psychological thrillers: Major in psychology and minor in film.
War: Major in history and minor in film.
FBI /Cop: Major in criminal justice and minor in film.

I don’t think you should just look at English or film…

Hope this helps!

7

@MYOS1634 Thank you! I was thinking the same thing. :slight_smile:

8

@davidj123 Very creative thinking. I like the suggestion a lot. I will keep it in mind. Thank you for your help!

9

Create your own major based on intended grad school admissions criteria and internship sponsor expectations, with those based on your intended job title (which kind of producer do you aim to be - executive producer?).

10

@dyiu13 Great idea! Thanks! I will definitely look into that. And yes, I am aiming to be an executive producer.

11

But you have to understand that if you want to be an executive producer, you’re going to need a business background as well. Financing a project; marketing the movie; renting and buying equipment; accounting…

Maybe, you should take a minor in business…

You have to look at what can stand you out. If its an interdisciplinary major, then you can do: “Finance and Film; Film and Finance”…