Programs
Academic Programs
The English Department is dedicated to the teaching of careful reading, creative and analytical writing, critical thinking, a historical and worldly appreciation of literature, and astute cultural awareness. Towards those ends, the department supports a variety of majors and minors: the major in English, the dual major in English and Childhood Education, a minor in English, a minor in Comparative Literature, and a minor in journalism. All majors and minors include foundational courses, core courses, upper-level courses, and elective courses.
12 Units
Foundation Courses (should be taken by the end of sophomore year)
Three Units: EN 111, EN 211, EN 212
Core British and American Courses
Pre-1800 British Literature
One Unit
Post-1800 British Literature
One Unit
American Literature
One Unit
Required Upper-Level Courses
EN 330, EN 400, EN 425
Electives
Three Units
Please note that additional core courses from the list above may be counted as electives.
Also note that, a maximum of two course from either of the following two categories may be counted as electives: 1) Film courses designated as ―F‖ (EN 230, 356, 357, and 291 or 593, when they focus primarily on film). 2) Courses devoted primarily to writing rather than literature (EN 280, 329, Journalism [JR] courses, and 291 or 593, when they focus primarily on writing).
Nota Bene:
Only courses with a grade of C- or higher may be applied to the requirements of the major in English. Although the study of a foreign language is not required, students majoring in English are strongly urged to undertake such a study.
5 Units
Foundation courses
Two Units chosen from: EN111, EN211, EN212
Core Course
One Unit from core course list
Electives
Two Units from electives list
6 Units
Required Course
JR 261
Electives
Two Units
Wagnerian
JR 011: .5 Unit course taken twice
Internship
Two units: either two different one-unit internships [JR 397 two separate times] or one two-unit internship [JR 497 one time].
Foundation Courses
Three Units
EN 111, EN 211, EN 212
Core British and American CoursesPre-1800 British Literature
One Unit
Post-1800 British Literature
One Unit
American Literature
One Unit
Elective upper-level courses
Four Units
Required upper-level course
EN 330 Shakespeare Survey
Please note: One of the core or elective courses must be an intercultural course (designated by “I”).
6 Units
Creative Writing
One Unit: EN 215, EN 316, TH 290, FM 322
Journalism
One Unit: JR 011 is not applicable.
Literature
Two Units: EN 200 level or above
Elective
One Unit: from any of the above areas.
Internship or Additional Elective
One Unit
5 Units
Comparative Literature addresses literary study from an international perspective. This approach to literature advances the idea that the study of literature is enhanced by knowledge of surrounding texts, languages, and cultures, and thus Comparative Literature emphasizes intersections between literature and global cultural, philosophical, and linguistic contexts.
Core Course
One Unit: EN 229, or EN 212
Literature or Language Courses
Two Units
300 level EN course
200-300 level French, Spanish, or Italian course
At least one course must be conducted in French, Spanish, or Italian
Initial eligibility for departmental honors in English: students who have earned a GPA of 3.5 in the major and an overall GPA of 3.0 at the end of their junior year are eligible to pursue departmental honors by writing an honors thesis in their senior year. Those who wish to do so should register for an independent study (EN 593) to be directed by a faculty mentor during the fall (and carrying over into spring) of their senior year. Though a student may elect to pursue departmental honors without taking an Independent Study, s/he should know that blocking out sufficient time to focus on the project is easier if there is an Independent Study obligation. It is essential that any student planning to pursue honors talk with a mentor during spring of junior year in order to begin work on the project during the summer prior to senior year. The same thesis may be counted for the Wagner Honors Program and departmental honors in English
It is important that you understand that you should undertake this project only if you have a keen desire to do the work involved. If you miss a deadline or event (in September or after), you will not be allowed to proceed to the defense, though you should complete your work in time to receive a grade for the Independent Study (in which case, it would usually be the completion of an incomplete from fall of senior year.)
Key due dates/events:
Failure to meet any of the following deadlines, indicated by an asterisk * means you cannot proceed further on the path towards departmental honors.
Junior Year
Spring: Talking with/selecting an area and a mentor. Registering for Independent study for fall of senior year.
Summer: Do all the critical research for the thesis.
Senior Year
September: *Bibliography submitted to mentor and department chair by the end of drop/add.
October: *Prospectus (5-10 pages) submitted to mentor and department chair by the third Monday of October.
January: *Colloquium for all departmental honors candidates, the first Monday of the spring semester
February: *Request readers by the first Monday in February
March: *Submit a completed, polished paper to readers by noon on the Thursday before Spring Break
April: *Defense–scheduled by the department–and final clean copy of thesis