College of Arts and Sciences 

For the past decade, we have maintained a major program of ten (10) English courses. The structure of this program is designed to ensure substantial breadth of learning in diverse periods of English and American literature, as well as to open up consideration of significant matters in the domains of rhetoric (ranging from composition theory to professional writing) and literary theory. Our program design was modified in 2005 to provide more opportunities for English majors to focus on specific areas of interests. To meet the goal of common experience, two specific courses are required of everyone in the major; four more courses are to be taken from a range of areas. Beyond those six courses, an English major selects a “track” in order to provide depth of learning and experience in an area of particular interest. The final four courses can thus be used to provide concentrated training in Writing, Literature, or Theatre/Drama.

Common Core for All English Majors (6 courses)

• Backgrounds for English Studies (ENG 2011)
  
• Sophomore Seminar: Critical Approaches to Literary Studies (ENG 2021)
  
• Writing (creative, journalism, rhetoric, pedagogy) (Area 1)
  
• Shakespeare (Area III)
  
• British/Irish/World Literature (Area IV)
  
• American Literature (Area V)

For all tracks:
Students can count no more than one 1200-level course toward the major.
One internship can count toward the major.
One course within the ten must be a diversity course, which can be taken at any level.

The specified courses:
In the sophomore year, ideally, majors will take ENG 2011, Backgrounds for English Studies in the fall semester and ENG 2021, Sophomore Seminar: Critical Approaches to Literary Studies, in the spring semester. These two courses provide a strong foundation for the remaining courses.

The four areas:
Students must take at least one course from each of the four areas in the common core. In the writing area (Area I), where the courses are often kept small by design because of the extensive writing involved, we usually offer several courses each semester. For the Shakespeare requirement (Area III), a course in the “Early Works” is generally offered in the fall, and a course in the “Late Works” is generally offered in the spring; students are welcome to take the second Shakespeare course as an English elective. British/Irish/World Literature requirement (Area IV) covers literature from the eighteenth century to the present; we usually offer more than one course in this area each semester. The American Literature requirement (Area V) spans from colonial times to the present, and there are generally two or more options every semester.

The English tracks:
Students are encouraged to choose a track (Writing, Literature or /Drama) according to their interests and future plans. If graduate school in American literature or British Literature is a strong possibility, the student could chose the literature track to add strength in those areas as preparation for the graduate school application process. If a career in some writing field is desired, including graduate study in rhetoric and composition, the student could chose the writing track and take an internship in public relations, journalism, editing, or broadcast media. The theater-drama track is especially good for students who want to develop their performance talents by being involved in Cap & Bells theatrical productions each year. All of the tracks provide good background for law school, teaching at the secondary level, and careers in business

The English major affords many options for your future. The fires of imagination are meant to burn brightly in your study of literature and language, and as you navigate diverse experiences in reading and crafting texts, you will be able to see which path for the future suits you best.

Some majors come to feel the call to be a teacher, perhaps at the secondary level, perhaps at the college or university level. If you want to work at the secondary level, you will want to prepare for certification; the full Pennsylvania certification program (see our Education Department) can be fitted into the nine (9) free electives in the English major, but recently a fast-track certification has been introduced, involving a summer of intensive courses after completing the B. A. degree in English, so you should carefully weigh your options. Anyone looking to on for a Ph. D. in English (many diverse British/American period fields in literature, plus good options in Rhetoric/Composition) should make those ambitions known to your department advisor and to other possible faculty mentors. Your major advisor can help you prepare well for the Graduate Record Examination (senior year) and also suggest ways to develop your portfolio of achievements as an undergraduate (e. g., clippings from the campus newspaper, publications in the literary magazine and editing experience, participation in conferences welcoming undergraduate participation, a significant independent study project producing a long piece of writing, leadership in Sigma Tau Delta--the English honor society).

Pre-law majors should use some electives for extra history and political science courses. Pre-med English majors (English is an extremely competitive pre-med program) should use electives to take all the usual requirements in the physical sciences--biology, chemistry, physics.

English majors frequently go on to wonderfully successful careers in business. Most people in public relations (a booming industry) have English backgrounds. Many journalists started as English majors; curiosity plus a knack for sentences plus a desire to dig for truth makes for lively reporting. Majors often take a business minor--or just sample a few key business courses (Introduction to Marketing, Principles of Management) to learn key points about the world of commerce.

Future writers and editors must engage in the work of writing for publication. You must have clippings to be taken seriously as a writer. Get started early and keep at it!