Affiliation: School of Arts and Letters
OVERVIEW
Combining a deep respect for tradition with enthusiastic innovation, Truman’s English BA program offers students a highly customizable learning experience. All students who complete the BA English program graduate with an understanding of how literary and cultural texts are created and how we can most meaningfully engage with them. Our English majors also develop a sophisticated set of tools for analytical reading, writing, and research.
The English program is designed to give students strong common experiences and skills while allowing room for students to select courses depending on their interests, passions, and plans for next steps after completing their undergraduate degrees. Some English majors choose to focus on canonical literature (a.k.a. “the great works”) with a sprinkling of less canonical work or the other way around. Some English students focus primarily on their development as insightful readers of literary texts, while others are deeply invested in their work as creative writers. Many English majors forge connections between their major program and minors in Creative Writing, Child Studies, Folklore, or Film Studies. The English program is also home to one of the largest groups of pre-MAE Secondary Certification students on campus.
Truman’s English majors develop strong working relationships with one another and with their faculty, beginning with ENG 216 - New Majors Seminar and ending with ENG 498 - Senior English Capstone . In between, we offer several other courses that give students ways to explore their interests and hone their skills while receiving strong faculty mentorship, including ENG 327 - English Practicum , ENG 401 - Undergraduate Projects in English , and ENG 451 - Internship for English /ENG 452 - Internship Evaluation .
Woven throughout the BA English program is the faculty’s commitment to creating opportunities for the following:
- development of excellent analytical reading, writing, and research skills
- engaging with course assignments that invite growth in flexible thinking, problem-solving, and content creation
- experience with many forms and genres of texts, including forms traditionally considered “literary” (ex. poetry, novels, plays, short stories, and essays) as well as other cultural texts (ex. movies, graphic novels, multigenre works, and experimental narrative forms)
- exposure to a wide range of texts ranging from old to new, including everything from revered classics to new treasures
- sensitive participation in important conversations about diverse human experiences and how those experiences are represented in literary and cultural texts
- practice communicating effectively about how the skills, knowledge, and experiences developed in the English program can translate into life and work beyond college
- learning to manage demands on time, respond to stress, and cope with challenging interpersonal interactions
- regular meaning occasions for faculty and students to discuss the big questions that energize English studies
DEPARTMENTAL HONORS IN ENGLISH
English majors who have maintained a 3.50 or better overall GPA and a 3.75 or better GPA in the major are eligible to be nominated for departmental honors by faculty who deem their work exceptional.
DEGREE REQUIREMENTS:
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