English and Comparative Literature

Introduction

English majors enter a wide array of careers, including teaching, technical writing, graduate programs in English, Law, and Medicine, and industry. The English and Comparative Literature Department offers programs of study in English, American, World, and Comparative Literature, and in Creative and Professional Writing. Sophisticated critical abilities and a knowledge of culture are the hallmarks of our program's graduates. The department offers a BA in Literary Studies as well as BA with concentrations in Creative Writing and Career Writing and a BA in Preparation for teaching English. It also offers an MA degree that develops further the literary, critical, and creative abilities of students who want to go on to teaching careers or doctoral studies. The Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing trains professional writers in the history and craft of poetry, creative nonfiction, fiction, and script- and screen-writing. The English and Comparative Literature Department supports active student organizations such as the Poet's and Writers' Coalition, the English Graduate Group, and the Student Society for Technical Communication. It is also home to the Steinbeck Fellows Program and to the Lurie Visiting Distinguished Author, both annual appointments of distinguished writers who are in residence. The department also houses the Center for Literary Arts which brings distinguished poets, fiction writers, and creative non-fiction writers into campus where they give free readings.

Faculty include instructors who are publishing poets and prose writers, scholars of literature and language, and active contributors to their fields nationally and internationally. English faculty have won university awards for superior teaching and professional accomplishment. Because the department takes seriously its mission to develop the reading and writing skills, interpretive ability, and cultural awareness of all the university's students, it maintains a tradition of strong teaching, good scholarship, and vigorous support of the literary arts. Majors, minors, and general education students all have access to some of the best teachers and writers in the university. The department has a broad program of advising, and students are able to meet with faculty for consultation on a regular basis.

The department offers a BA in English, a BA with a concentration in Career Writing, a BA with a concentration in Creative Writing, a BA in Preparation for Teaching (Single Subject: English),an MA in English and an MFA in Creative Writing. Students majoring in other fields may elect to minor in literature, comparative literature, creative writing, or technical writing.

Undergraduate Honors Program

Upper-division students with a minimum grade point average of 3.0 overall and 3.5 in the major are eligible for Departmental Honors. Honors students complete an Honors Colloquium (ENGL 190). Application to the honors program should be made through the English Department Office.