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Tamil Language & Literature

What Tamil Language & Literature Majors Need to Know

Programs in Tamil Language & Literature develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Tamil Language & Literature graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing Tamil Language & Literature emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Foreign Language — Importance 4.7 / 5; level 5.9 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 5.2 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Administrative — Importance 3.1 / 5; level 3.6 / 7.
• Sociology and Anthropology — Importance 2.8 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

The skill set emphasized by a Tamil Language & Literature program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to Tamil Language & Literature careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Oral Expression — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Tamil Language & Literature graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	4.2 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.1 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.1 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.0 / 7
Getting Information	3.9 / 7
Working with Computers	3.9 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	3.8 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	3.7 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	3.7 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	3.7 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Tamil Language & Literature professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Learning management system LMS	Computer based training software	✓
iParadigms Turnitin	Information retrieval or search software	—
Skype	Desktop communications software	—
Adobe Illustrator	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Blackboard software	Data base user interface and query software	—
American Sign Language ASL browser	Dictionary software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Tamil Language & Literature graduates include:

• Hebrew Teacher
• French Teacher
• Arabic Language Instructor
• Italian Teacher
• Russian Language Professor
• Hebrew Professor
• Arabic Professor
• Lecturer
• Language Teacher
• Spanish Literature Professor
• Program Instructor
• Swahili Teacher
• College Professor
• Foreign Language Instructor
• Professor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Tamil Language & Literature graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Doctoral degree	44.6%
Bachelor’s degree	26.8%
Master’s degree	21.8%
High school diploma or equivalent	3.1%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	1.7%
Post-master’s certificate	1.4%
Postsecondary certificate	0.5%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	CIP Code
South Asian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	16.07
Bengali Language and Literature	16.0704
Hindi Language and Literature	16.0701
Punjabi Language and Literature	16.0705
Sanskrit and Classical Indian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	16.0702
South Asian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, Other	16.0799
South Asian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	16.0700
Urdu Language and Literature	16.0707
African Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	16.0201
Albanian Language and Literature	16.0404
American Indian/Native American Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	16.1001
American Sign Language (ASL)	16.1601

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.