4. You understand people and are able to connect with them
We generally got to read a lot of fiction as English majors, which may have had a positive impact on our ability to connect with people. A study by the Journal of Research in Personality uncovered that frequent readers of narrative fiction score highly on tests of empathy and social acumen. Another study finds that people who read narrative fiction stories score higher on tests involving social reasoning skills than those who are assigned to read a non-fiction essay from the same magazine. This article sums it up, describing English majors as “outgoing, community-spirited individuals who strive to understand culture, society and human interactions.”