Job Placement

Our graduates have found rewarding careers in tenure track as well as in teaching track and in administrative positions. We are equally pleased to see the ingenuity of our students finding work in the business, nonprofit, and art worlds. One recent alum is a successful novelist; one is a researcher for the Council of Graduate Schools; one teaches at a private high school; and one works for a marketing firm; among many others.

Each year, the department appoints two faculty members to serve as job placement officers; we have also begun a program of alternative career advising for those who wish to find university positions outside of conventional disciplinary appointments (in archives, administration, advising, etc). These faculty members guide students seeking academic positions by holding workshops, reviewing materials, and staging mock interviews.

Professional Development Support

Students traveling to the Modern Language Association conference and other venues for interviews receive financial support through the Laney Graduate School's Professional Development Support Funds. 

The department also prepares students professionally long before they are ready to begin looking for positions.  We offer pedagogical seminars on composition and literature to prepare the teaching materials required for academic employment.

The list below reflects positions secured by our graduates.

Marguerite Adams (’26) – Post-Doctoral Fellow, Writing Program, Emory University

Christopher Adamson ('20) -- Director of Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching, Saint Mary's University of Minnesota 

Levin Arnsperger ('13) -- Associate Director, Emory Writing Center, Emory University

Emily Banks ('21) -- Assistant Professor of English and Creative Writing, Franklin College

Mary Behrman ('04) -- Senior Lecturer in English, Kennesaw State University

Bailey Betik ('23) -- Digital Publication Specialist, Emory Center for Digital Scholarship

Elizabeth Bishop ('14) -- Visiting Assistant Professor of English, SUNY-Oswego

Patrick Bixby (’03) – Foundation Professor oand Associate Director of SHArCS, Arizona State University

Jenny Bledsoe ('19) -- Associate Professor of English, Northeastern State University

Rian Bowie (’07) –Associate Teaching Professor, Wake Forest University

Emily Bowles (’04) – English Instructor, Georgia Gwinnett College

Rachel Bowser (’08) – Vice President and Dean of the College, Agnes Scott College

Jennifer Brady ('10) -- Managing Director, Inclusive History Project, Bowman Center, University of Michigan

Alyssa Stalsberg Canelli ('16) -- Assistant Provost for Academic Affairs, Brandeis University

Tesla Cariani ('21) -- Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies Lecturer, Boston University

Mary Carter (’08) – Adjunct Professor, Holy Names University

Sumita Chakraborty ('18) -- Assistant Professor of English and Creative Writing, University of Virginia

Elizabeth Chase (’12) – Director of Academic Assessment, Emerson College

Lisa Chinn ('16) -- Head of Research Data Services, University of Chicago

Brian Chitwood ('19) -- Senior Director Data Solutions & AI Strategy, Collegis Education

Brian Cliff (’01) – Visiting Research Fellow, English, Trinity College

Dori Coblentz ('17) -- Lecturer of Technical Communication, Georgia Institute of Technology

Josh Cohen  ('19) -- Lecturer in English, University of Georgia

Derrick Cohens ('19) -- Assistant Professor of English, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff

Christina Colvin ('14) -- Director of Training and Learning, TRAILS

Brendan Corcoran (’03) – Associate Professor of English, Indiana State University

Lillian Craton (’06) – Professor of English, Lander University

Kathryn Crowther (’08) – Associate Professor of English and EPIC Coordinator, Georgia State University Perimeter College

Brian Croxall (’08) – Associate Research Professor of Digital Humanities, Brigham Young University

Anthony Cuda (’04) –Professor of English, UNC-Greensboro

Brent Dawson ('14) -- Associate Professor of English, University of Oregon

Kate Doubler ('13) -- Visiting Assistant Professor, University of South Florida

Gavin Drummond (’02) – English Teacher, The Paideia School

Jessie Dunbar ('12) -- Associate Professor of English, University of Alabama, Birmingham

Shanna Early ('18) -- Instruction Archivist, Rose Manuscript, Archive, and Rare Book Library, Emory University

Amy Elkins ('16) -- Associate Professor of English and Creative Writing, Macalaster College

Madison Elkins ('23) -- Assistant Managing Editor, Duke University Press

Scott Ellis (’01) – Professor of English, Southern Connecticut State University

Katherine Ellison (’04) – Professor of Literature and Publishing Studies, Illinois State University

Patrick Erben (’03) – Professor of English, University of West Georgia

Hans-Georg Erney (’06) – Professor English, Georgia Southern University

Natalie Eschenbaum (’06) – Dean and Professor of English, University of Washington Tacoma

Sophia Falvey ('21) -- Senior Director of Principal Gifts Communications, Tulane University

Yoshiaki Furui ('15) -- Professor of English, Rikkyo University 

Caroline Garnier (’02) – Founder, Mischool MD

Nicholas Giannini ('10) -- Associate Director, Event Planning, Cooley LLP

Corey Goergen ('18) -- English Teacher, Westminster School

Michael Gordon-Smith ('15) -- Founder and CEO, Achieve Education Group

Margaret Greaves ('15) -- Associate Professor of English, Skidmore College

Hannah Griggs ('22) -- Humanities Librarian for English, Emory University

Erin Gross (’05) – Associate Professor of English, Clemson University

Lindsey Grubbs ('19) -- Assistant Professor of Bioethics, Case Western Reserve University

Perry Guevara ('16) -- Assistant Professor of Early Modern Literature, Georgia Institute of Technology

John Gulledge ('23) -- Assistant Professor of English, University of North Alabama

Michelle Gunn (’07) – Vice President and Creative Director, Fuse Fundraising

Kathleen Hanggi ('12) -- Associate Professor, Focused Inquiry, Virginia Commonwealth University

Keme Hawkins ('12) -- Founder, Breathe with Keme

Jennifer Heil ('12) -- Faculty Member, Saint Joseph Seminary College

Benjamin Hilb ('14) -- Associate Professor of English, Francis Marion University

Shannon Hipp ('11) -- English Teacher, Marist School

Allison Hobgood (’02) – Associate Professor of English and Women’s and Gender Studies, Willamette University

Richie Hofmann ('18) -- Lecturer in Core Curriculum, University of Chicago; 2025 Guggenheim Fellow; Contributing Editor, Kenyon Review

Lauren Holt ('12) -- Upper Learning English Faculty, English Departmetn Chair, Galloway School

James Howard ('16) -- Lecturer in English, University of Georgia

Jennifer Hughes (’09) –Assistant Professor of English, Averett University

Jareema Hylton ('25) -- Long-Term Fellow, Folger Shakespeare Library

Stephanie Iasiello ('18) -- Associate Program Director, Office of the Faculty, Emory University; Assistant Public Defender, Flint Judicial Circuit Office of the Public Defender 

Francis Ittenbach ('25) -- Lecturer, English, Georgia State University 

Cassandra Jackson (’00) – Professor of English, The College of New Jersey

Laura Jeffries (’03) – Professor of English, Florida State College at Jacksonville

Joseph Johnson ('15) -- Director, Writing Programs, Union College

Nicole Morris Johnson ('18) -- Assistant Professor of Englsih, SUNY Buffalo

Jason Jones (’02) –Director of Educational Technology Strategy, Northeastern University

L. Bellee Jones-Pierce ('18) -- Assistant Professor of English, Centenary College of Louisiana

Emily Kader ('11) -- Anne Belk Distinguished Professor and Curator for Distinctive Collections, Appalachian State University

Tara Kinsey (’07) –Head of School, Charlotte Country Day School

Margaret Koehler (’03) – Professor of English, Otterbein University

Rebecca Koeser (’06) –Lead Research Software Engineer, Center for Digital Humanities, Princeton University

Simon Kress ('10) -- Counsel, WilmerHale

Rebecca Kumar ('15) -- Assistant Professor, Literature, Media and Writing, Spelman College

Connor Larsen ('22) -- English Teacher, Sidwell Friends School

Stephanie Larson ('20) -- Health Care Ethics Consultant

Claire Laville ('14) -- Lecturer, Thompson Rivers University 

Ariel Lawrence ('25) -- Writing Specialist, Emory National Scholarships and Fellowships Office

Lori Leavell ('11) --Associate Professor of English, University of Central Arkansas 

Ra'Niqua Lee ('24) -- Associate Director, Project South 

Michael Lehman ('21) -- Visiting Lecturer, School of Literature, Media and Communication, Georgia Institute of Technology 

Emily Leithauser ('16) --Professor of English and Creative Writing, Morehouse College 

Amy Li ('20) -- Digital Content Producer, Cornell University ILR School

Jessica Libow ('21) -- Interim Director of Writing Program, Visiting Assistant Professor, Haverford College 

Thomas Lilly (’03) – Assistant Provost for Academic Assessment and Accreditation, Professor of English, Georgia Gwinnett College

Diana Louis ('14) -- Assistant Professor, Women's and Gender Studies and American Culture, University of Michigan

Aruni Mahapatra ('20) -- Assistant Professor, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee

Mary Taylor Mann ('23) -- Marion L. Brittain Postdoctoral Fellow, Georgia Institute of Technology

Yolanda Manora (’03) – Associate Professor of English, University of Alabama

Hannah Markley ('17) -- Assistant Professor of English, Stetson University

Jeffry Massey (’03) – Professor of English, Molloy University

Dominic Mastroianni (’08) – Associate Professor of English, Clemson University

Lauren Maxwell (’08) – Professor of English, Director of The Citadel Distinguished Scholars Program, The Citadel

Lynn Maxwell ('11) -- Associate Professor, Spelman College

Christine McCulloch ('12) -- Senior Lecturer, Oglethorpe University

Rebecca McGlynn ('20) -- Senior Production Editor, Bloomsbury USA

Michelle Miles ('11) -- Director of National and International Scholarships and Fellowships, Associate Professor of English, Kennesaw State University

Miriam Moore (’00) – Dyslexia Training Specialist, Wilson Language Training

Susana Morris (’07) –Associate Professor of Literature, Associate Chair, Media and Communications, Georgia Tech

Marc Muneal (’10) – Professor of English, Averett University

Carol Newell (’02) – Clinical Associate Professor, Stern School of Business, New York University

Em Nordling (’26) – Post-Doctoral Fellow, Writing Program, Emory University

John Peck ('13) -- Business Intelligence Administrator, Farm Credit Mid-America

Sarah Peterson (’08) – Co-Founder, Atlanta Science Festival

Aimee Pozorski (’03) – Professor of English, Central Connecticut State University

Elizabeth Redwine (’04) – Senior Lecturer in English, Seton Hall University

Roopika Risam ('13) -- Chair of Film & Media Studies, Professor, Dartmouth

Mixon Robinson, Jr ('18) -- Assistant Teaching Professor, Rutgers University-New Brunswick

Dominick Rolle ('16) -- Director of Undergraduate Research Programs, Pathways Center, Emory University

McKenna Rose ('17) -- Associate Director of Effectiveness, University of Mississippi

Steve Schessler (’07) – English Professor, Department Chair and Honors Faculty Lead, Cabrillo College

Sarah Schiff ('10) -- English Teacher, The Paideia School 

Caroline Schwenz ('17) -- Analytics Consultant, Campfire Analytics

Erin Sells (’09) – Assistant Director for Institutional Giving, National Museum of the American Indian

Gitanjali Shahani (’07) – Associate Dean, San Francisco State University

Ishanika Sharma ('24) -- Assistant Professor of English, University of North Texas

Justin Shaw ('20) -- Assistant Professor of English, Clark University

Kayla Shipp ('20) -- Program Manager, Student Success and Research Innovation, Yale University

Molly Slavin ('18) -- Assistant Professor of English, Clark Atlanta University

Eric Solomon ('17) -- Instructor of English, University of Mississippi

Robert Stalker (’04) –Senior Writer/Editor, Georgia Tech

Marlo Starr ('18) -- Assistant Professor of English, The College of Wooster

Palak Taneja ('21) -- Faculty of Literature and Writing, College of the Atlantic 

Tyler Tennant ('23) -- Education Coordinator, University of Oklahoma; Adjunct Professor, Oklahoma City Community College

Shirley Toland-Dix (’01) – Associate Professor of English, Auburn University

William Tolbert ('22) -- English Teacher, Dekalb Early College Academy

Christopher Vilmar (’05) – Professor of English, Salisbury University

William Wandless (’02) – Professor of English, Central Michigan University

Peter West (’01) – Dean of the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Pratt Institute

Julian Whitney ('18) -- Assistant Professor of English, Wabash College

Kelly Duquette Williams ('23) -- Director of Research and Scholarly Writing, Center for Faculty Development and Excellence, Emory University

Jimmy Worthy II ('18) -- Assistant Professor of English, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Jennifer Yusin (’07) – Associate Professor of English, Drexel University