Requirements for Majors and Minors
General Requirements
Major requirements for students enrolled prior to fall, 2008
Minor requirements for students Enrolled
Prior to Fall 2008
Major requirements for students enrolled after fall, 2008
Minor requirements for students enrolled after fall, 2008
Environmental Studies-English Major
First-year students need departmental approval to take English courses at the 300 or 400 level, but all 200-level courses (except English 290) are open to them.
A unit of credit toward graduation is given for a test score of 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement test in English Language/Composition; a unit of credit is also given for a score of 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement test in English Literature/Composition.
Upper-level English writing courses have specific course prerequisites; most upper-level -literature courses have two courses at the 100 or 200 level as prerequisites.
Students may also take dramatic literature courses offered by the department of performance and communication arts for credit in -English when they are dual-listed with English.
Students planning to teach English at the secondary level are encouraged to include all four surveys of British and American literature (225, 226, 237 and 238) in their major, along with the following additional courses: English 319 or 320 (Shakespeare) and 362 (The English -Language), and Performance and Communication Arts 111 (Rhetoric and Public Speaking) or 113 (Introduction to Performance Studies). Students seeking initial certification as a 7-12 English teacher in New York must major in English and also complete the certification minor in education. English majors intending to complete student teaching after graduation in the University’s Post-Baccalaureate Teacher-Certification Program must complete the English major and the educational studies minor in education (or its equivalent) as undergraduates. Consult the Education section of the Catalog and/or speak to the coordinator of the teacher education program in the education department as early as possible.
Students planning to enroll in graduate programs in literature should take an enriched major that includes both surveys of British literature (225, 226), English 357 (Postcolonial Literature and Theory) and English 367 (Feminist Postcolonial Theory) and should consult with the department chair and their advisors carefully; such students should recognize that a reading knowledge of one or two modern -languages is often required by graduate schools. Students considering graduate programs in -writing should consult with a faculty member who teaches creative writing.Top of page
Requirements for the Major for Students Enrolled
Prior to Fall 2008
(Please note that students enrolled prior to fall, 2008 may choose to fulfil the requirements of the revised major)
A minimum of 11 semester units in English:
1. Introduction to the major
a. Literary history
Two of the following:
225. Survey of English Literature.
226. Survey of English Literature.
237. Survey of American Literature.
b. Forms of expression
One of the following
125. Introduction to Dramatic Scripts.
190. Introduction to Literary Forms.
201. Introduction to Newswriting.
212L. The London Stage.
215. Dramatic Texts in Context.
223. Playwriting.
241. Techniques of Fiction.
242. Techniques of Poetry.
243. Creative Non-Fiction Writing.
244. Techniques of Screenwriting.
290. Expository Writing.
295. Nature and Environmental Writing.
Or appropriate special
topics course.
c. Gender, ethnicity and
nation
One of the following
220. Introduction to African Literature.
224. Caribbean Literature in English.
228. Irish Literature.
230. Introduction to African- American
Literature.
238. Survey of American Literature II.
239. Introduction to Canadian Literature.
255. African-American Drama.
263. Native American Fiction.
Or appropriate special
topics course.
2. Eng 250. Methods of Critical Analysis.
This course is designed
to familiarize students with a variety of critical approaches to texts.
Students are encouraged to enroll during their sophomore year, but must, except
in extraordinary circumstances, take the course before the end of their junior
year.
3. A five-course
concentration
Students are encouraged
to supplement their concentration with appropriate courses from outside the
major. Focus areas:
a. British literature
Students electing
this concentration must take five courses in the literatures of Great Britain
and associated literatures. Two of these must be 300- or 400-level courses in
periods before 1830 and one must be a course in a minority British literature
(e.g., Irish literature) or literature of the postcolonial British Empire
(e.g., African literature, Caribbean literature, postcolonial literature and
theory, Canadian literature). The other courses must be taken at the 300 or 400
level.
b. American literature
Students electing
this concentration must take five courses in the literatures of the United
States. One of these must be a 300- or 400-level course in a period prior to
1900, and one of them must concentrate on a minority group within the United
States (African-American, Native American, ethnic American women, etc.). The remaining courses must be taken at the 300
or 400 level.
c. Anglophone, postcolonial
and multicultural studies
Students electing this
concentration must take English 357 or an appropriate substi- tute, and four other related
courses, two of which should be at the
300 or 400 level.
d. Writing
Students electing this
concentration, which combines a focus upon personal creative expression with
substantial literary study, are required to take a total of six courses in
addition to the five-course introduction to the major. Students must complete a
sequence of two courses (200- and 300-level courses in a genre) in one of the
following: screenwriting, fiction, playwriting, creative non-fiction or poetry.
In addition, students must take two 300-level literature courses, one of which
is in the genre of their sequence, and two other writing courses.
Students electing this concentration must take five courses approved by their advisors, three of which must be at the 300 or 400 level.
f. Independent
Students may, in
consultation with their advisor, design
their own concentration. Proposals for independently designed concentrations must be
approved by the department’s
independent project committee. Such concentrations must consist of five courses, at least
three at the 300 or 400 level.
4. An SYE
All majors must complete a course, -sequence
of courses or project approved by the department to receive SYE transcript
notation.
Requirements for the Minor for Students Enrolled Prior to Fall 2008
The English department currently offers four ways to minor in English, each one consisting of a group of six courses.
1. The minor in literature requires English 225 and 226 (surveys of British literature), 237 or 238 (one survey of American literature) and three 300- or 400-level courses in literature.
2. The minor in British literature requires Eng-lish 225 and 226 (surveys of British literature), 237 or 238 (one survey of American literature) and three 300- or 400-level courses in British literature.
3. The minor in American literature requires English 237 and 238 (surveys of American literature), 225 (the first survey of British literature), and three 300- or 400-level courses in American literature.
4. The minor in writing requires two of the following survey courses: English 225, 226, 237 and/or 238, three writing courses (two of which must be a sequence, listed above), and one 300- or 400-level course in literature.
The revised English curriculum, consisting of two majors and two minors, goes into effect for students entering the University in the fall of 2008.
The department offers two versions of the major that share many elements but have different emphases: the English major in literary studies and the English major in creative writing. Students may also minor in either. In addition, students may pursue a combined major of English and environmental studies.
Both the English major in literary studies and the English major
in creative writing are 11-course majors, requiring five courses at the
introductory level, five at the advanced level and one Senior Year Experience
(SYE). For both literary study and creative writing, students are required to
take the 200-level methods course (250), a 200-level survey of literary history
in an early period (225 or 237), and a SYE. All majors are encouraged to take
at least one course in creative writing.
Requirements for the Major for Students Entering in Fall 2008 or Later
The English Major in Literary Studies
A minimum of 11 semester units in English:*
1. Five courses at 100 or 200 level, to include:
English 250.
One survey of literary
history in an early period (225 or 237).
Three other introductory
courses (one of which can be in creative writing).
2. Five courses at 300 or 400 level, to include:
Two literature courses in
periods before 1900, one of which must be pre-1800.
Three other advanced
literature courses (one of which can be in creative writing).
3. SYE: one Senior Year Experience course, which can be taken as a senior seminar (450), an independent study (489 or 490), an honors project (495), the professional semester in education, or an SYE taken in another major.
*Students may take more than the minimum of 11 courses in English. However, the registrar will not give credit toward graduation for more than 14 courses in a single department.
The English Major in Creative Writing
A minimum of 11 semester units in English:*
1. Five courses at 100 or 200 level, to include:
English 250.
One survey of literary
history in an early period (225 or 237).
Two introductory creative
writing courses (201, 241, 242, 243, 244, 290, 295).
One other introductory
course.
2. Five courses at 300 or 400 level, to include:
Two advanced writing
workshops: these courses must complete the sequences in the genres begun at the
200 level (308, 309, 310, 311, 312).
Three advanced literature
courses, at least one of which must be in a period before 1900.
3. SYE: one Senior Year Experience course, which can be taken as a senior seminar (450), an independent study (489 or 490), an honors project (498), or an SYE taken in another major.
Requirements for the Minor for Students Entering in Fall 2008 or Later
The English department will offer two ways to minor in English, each one consisting of a group of six courses.
1. The English minor in literary studies requires English 250 (Methods of Critical Analysis); two literature courses at the 200 level, one of which must be English 225 or 237 (a survey of literature in an early period); and three literature courses at the 300 or 400 level.
2. The English minor in creative writing requires
English 250 (Methods of Critical Analysis); English 225 or 237 (a survey in
literature in an early period); three writing courses, two of which must be in
a sequence of courses in the same genre; and one literature course at the 300
or 400 level.
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Environmental Studies-English Major
The environmental studies-English major gives students an
opportunity to combine seven core courses in environmental studies with eight
core courses/electives in English, thus providing substantial study in both
disciplines, as well as their intersection. The interdisciplinary major seeks
to attract students who combine an interest in the environment with the desire
both to explore existing literature and to create new literature on
environmental themes. Note that students pursuing this major may not also major
in English.
All interdisciplinary majors in environmental studies require the following core courses:
101. Introduction to Environmental Studies. 1 unit
Environmental Science & Policy Courses (ESP) 3 units
335. Foundation of Environmental Thought. 1 unit
Electives* 2 units
Total 7 units
*One elective must be a dual-listed natural science course for B.A. students or a social science or humanities course for B.S. students. Some combined majors require an SYE in either department which may raise the total units to 8 if taken in environmental studies.
In addition to these core courses, students pursuing a combined environmental studies-English major should take the following:
A. At least three writing courses, two of which are in the sequence of journalism* or creative non-fiction+
201. Introduction to Newswriting.*
241. Techniques of Fiction.
242. T echniques of Poetry.
243. C reative Non-Fiction Writing.+
290. E xpository Writing.
295. Nature and Environmental Writing.
308. Advanced Creative Non-Fiction Writing.+
309. Feature Writing.*
310. Advanced Fiction Writing.
311. Advanced Poetry Workshop.
A relevant special topics course in writing or independent study in writing may count as one course.
B. At least three literature courses, which must include:
At least one of the following 200-level survey courses:
226. Survey of English Literature.
237. Survey of American Literature.
263. Native American Fiction.
At least one of the following 300-level literature courses:
328. English Romanticism.
331. American Romanticism: 1830-1860.
Or a relevant special topics or independent study in literature.
At least one dual-listed English/Environmental studies course:
346. American Literature and the Environment.
352. Contemporary Literature and the Environment.
SYE in English or Environmental Studies
Total 16 units
Note: Courses that are dual-listed should be taken under the course number for English. These electives count toward the English portion of the combined major.
To receive honors in English, students must achieve a minimum GPA of 3.5 in the major and submit for evaluation a critical or creative writing project of substantial length. The proposal for an honors project must be submitted to the department’s Honors/Independent Projects committee midway through the semester before the project is to -begin.
Normally, the project is developed in English 498 (Honors Projects) under the direction of a faculty advisor; English 498 is offered only in the fall semester. Critical projects usually examine the works of a particular writer or a literary theme or practice that two or more writers share. Creative projects are usually collections of original poetry, fiction or prose essays.