English

Major

Why This Program & What You'll Learn

Literature taps into our deepest emotions and illuminates the human experience. As a student of English, you’ll immerse yourself in language, stories and ideas across disciplines.

Our flexible program allows you to design your own major. You can either follow a general program of English studies or focus on a particular interest, such as nonfiction writing, world literature or applied linguistics.

Whichever path you choose, you’ll work closely with faculty who will mentor you, advise you and collaborate with you on research. Our faculty publish widely in the field and have won honors for their teaching and research. They bring expertise in everything from children’s literature to creative writing to linguistics.

You’ll also have access to an exceptional collection of children’s literature. Our Lucile Clarke Memorial Children’s Library has more than 7,000 old and rare children’s books, and our Instructional Materials Center features a variety of contemporary works and teaching materials.

You can also expand your degree by adding an undergraduate certificate in Creative Writing.

Program Highlights

As a student of English literatures, language and writing, you can:

• Study with award-winning faculty and published authors.
• Submit your poetry, fiction or nonfiction work to Central Review, our literary journal.
• Apply for scholarships designed specifically for students in the English department.
• Find a community of writers by joining student groups such as the Fiction Collective, the Poets Collective​​, ​Word Hammer or the Writing Circle.
• Hear from prominent poets and fiction writers who come to campus for readings and classroom visits.