Why study English language and literature?

Because reading and writing shape the world.

KU's English Department is at the core of the humanities, highlighting the "human" through our individual, one-on-one interactions with our students, our emphasis on community and global engagement, and our abiding interest in our shared humanity through the stories of others. We seek to challenge the mind and to engage the imagination of our students, to teach them to ask questions and to seek for answers.  We encourage them to grapple with the complexity of a culturally and commercially interconnected world and the global networks and processes of cultural exchange. We believe that words and ideas will shape the world. We teach our students life-long skills, so that they learn to write clearly, creatively, and effectively—discovering themselves even as they lay a solid foundation for professional success. 

A commitment to teaching and learning.

Our department is renowned for its tradition of excellence in teaching.  The vast majority of our undergraduate classes have 20-35 students, and much of the class time is dedicated to active learning and engagement with texts and ideas. In the last ten years, faculty members in the department of English have won ten Kemper Fellowships for Excellence in Teaching, two Chancellors Club Teaching Professorships, a Career Achievement Teaching Award, and a wide variety of other university-level teaching and advising awards, and the department as a whole received the Center of Teaching Excellence (CTE) award for Department Excellence in Teaching at the University of Kansas. 

A variety of career and life paths.

English majors graduate to a variety of careers, including law, teaching, scholarship, publishing, library science, and journalism--as well as medicine, politics, design, and any number of other fields that value clear communication, interpretive skill, and critical and creative thinking. 

Engaged and innovative scholarship.

KU's English Department has several core strengths that cross tracks and periods, including Global and Cross-Cultural Approaches; Literature, Rhetoric, and Social Action; Diversity Studies; Language, Literature and Science; and Popular Expressive Forms.

At the KU English Department, students work closely with nationally-renowned writers and researchers. Our faculty have won national awards that recognize excellence in research, including grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the American Philosophical Society, and the Newberry Library, among others. English Department faculty members have also received major research funding from the University of Kansas, including the Hall Center for the Humanities Research fellowships and Keeler Intra-University Fellowships for interdisciplinary work. Undergraduate students can work one-on-one with English Department faculty mentors through the Honors Program, McNair Scholars Program, and Dean's Scholars Program, as well as through independent directed studies like the English Honors Thesis. 

Undergraduate Admission

Admission to KU

All students applying for admission must send high school and college transcripts to the Office of Admissions. Prospective first-year students should be aware that KU has qualified admission requirements that all new first-year students must meet to be admitted. Consult the Office of Admissions for application deadlines and specific admission requirements.

Visit the International Support Services for information about international admissions.

Students considering transferring to KU may see how their college-level course work will transfer on the Office of Admissions website.

Requirements for the B.A. or B.G.S. Major

The major in English requires 30 hours (33 for Honors English).

ENGL 300 Introduction to English Studies (3 hours – must be taken within first year of declaring the English major):

English Studies Coursework (21 hours, 300 or above)

This includes at least one course chosen from:

            Rhetoric, Language and Writing studies

            Literature, Language, or Rhetoric prior to 1850

            Diverse identities, communities, and texts

The remaining courses may be chosen from any 300-level or above English course offerings.  For students who are interested in focusing on a specific area of study, they may follow the optional emphases path outlined below.

• One 200-level course may be counted toward English Studies coursework.

Capstone Requirements (6 hours, 500 or above)

• Students must complete ENGL 300 and 2 other 300-level courses before they proceed to the capstone requirements. All 500-level or above English courses count as capstone courses.
• Students pursuing departmental honors may use ENGL 598 to fill one capstone requirement, and must also enroll in ENGL 599: Thesis hours.

Breadth Requirements

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
As part of the coursework above, students must take courses in the following areas of breadth
At least one course in Rhetoric, Language, and Writing studies		3
Creative Writing courses
ENGL 351	Fiction Writing I
ENGL 352	Poetry Writing I
ENGL 353	Screenwriting I
ENGL 354	Playwriting I
ENGL 355	Nonfiction Writing I
ENGL 551	Fiction Writing II
ENGL 552	Poetry Writing II
ENGL 555	Nonfiction Writing II
Rhetoric, Composition, and Language courses
ENGL 359	English Grammar
ENGL 360	Topics in Writing: _____
ENGL 362	Foundations of Technical Writing
ENGL 380	Introduction to Rhetoric and Composition
ENGL 381	Topics in Rhetoric and Composition: _____
ENGL 382	Composing Cultures
ENGL 383	Cultural Rhetorics
ENGL 385	The Development of Modern English
ENGL 386	Language and Social Justice in the US
ENGL 387	Introduction to the English Language
ENGL 388	Topics in English Language Studies
ENGL 389	Postcolonial and World Englishes
ENGL 580	Rhetoric and Writing: _____
ENGL 581	English Language Studies: ______
ENGL 582	Multimedia/Multimodal Rhetorics
ENGL 586	Language and Style
ENGL 587	American English
At least one course in Literature, Language, or Rhetoric prior to 1850		3
ENGL 301	Topics in British Literature to 1800: _____
ENGL 312	Major British Writers to 1800
ENGL 317	Topics in American Literature to 1865: _____
ENGL 320	American Literature I
ENGL 331	Chaucer
ENGL 332	Shakespeare
ENGL 385	The Development of Modern English
ENGL 521	Advanced Topics in British Literature Before 1800: _____
ENGL 525	Shakespeare: _____
ENGL 565	The Gothic Tradition
ENGL 576	Advanced Topics in American Literature to 1865: _____
ENGL 610	The Literature of England to 1500
ENGL 620	Renaissance English Literature: _____
ENGL 633	Milton
ENGL 650	Romantic Literature: _____
At least one course emphasizing diverse identities, communities, and texts		3
ENGL 305	World Indigenous Literatures
ENGL 306	Global Environmental Literature
ENGL 326	Introduction to African Literature
ENGL 337	Introduction to U.S. Latino/a Literature
ENGL 338	Introduction to African-American Literature
ENGL 339	Introduction to Caribbean Literature
ENGL 340	Topics in U.S. Ethnic Literature: _____
ENGL 341	American Literature of Social Justice
ENGL 382	Composing Cultures
ENGL 383	Cultural Rhetorics
ENGL 386	Language and Social Justice in the US
ENGL 389	Postcolonial and World Englishes
ENGL 492	The London Review
ENGL 530	Irish Literature and Culture: _____
ENGL 572	Women and Literature: _____

 

Concentrations within the Major

Students who receive degrees in English may pursue a concentration in a particular subfield by taking at least 3 courses in it. These concentrations will appear on transcripts and diplomas alongside your English Major.

These concentrations include

Creative Writing Concentration

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Workshops
Choose two from the following:		6
ENGL 351	Fiction Writing I
ENGL 352	Poetry Writing I
ENGL 353	Screenwriting I
ENGL 354	Playwriting I
ENGL 355	Nonfiction Writing I
Capstone		3
ENGL 551	Fiction Writing II
ENGL 552	Poetry Writing II
ENGL 555	Nonfiction Writing II

Language, Culture, and Rhetoric Concentration

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
ENGL 380	Introduction to Rhetoric and Composition	3
or ENGL 387	Introduction to the English Language
Choose one from the following:		3
ENGL 362	Foundations of Technical Writing
ENGL 381	Topics in Rhetoric and Composition: _____
ENGL 382	Composing Cultures
ENGL 383	Cultural Rhetorics
ENGL 385	The Development of Modern English
ENGL 386	Language and Social Justice in the US
ENGL 388	Topics in English Language Studies
ENGL 389	Postcolonial and World Englishes
Capstone		3
ENGL 580	Rhetoric and Writing: _____
ENGL 581	English Language Studies: ______
ENGL 582	Multimedia/Multimodal Rhetorics
ENGL 586	Language and Style
ENGL 587	American English

• 7 hours must be at the junior/senior level.
• No 100-level ENGL courses count toward major requirements.

Notes:

• Up to 6 credits combined of ENGL 494 Research Internship or ENGL 495 Directed Study: _____ may be applied as major electives.
• Up to 3 credit hours of ENGL 496 Internship or ENGL 497 Service Learning Internship may be applied as a major elective.

Major Hours & Major GPA

While completing all required courses, majors must also meet each of the following hour and grade-point average minimum standards:

Major Hours
Satisfied by 30 hours of major courses (33 for Honors English).

Major Hours in Residence
Satisfied by a minimum of 25 hours of KU resident credit in the major; exceptions by permission of Director of Undergraduate Studies only.

Major Junior/Senior Hours
Satisfied by a minimum of 27 hours from junior/senior courses (300+) in the major.

Major Junior/Senior Graduation GPA
Satisfied by a minimum of a 2.0 KU GPA in junior/senior courses (300+) in the major. GPA calculations include all junior/senior courses in the field of study including F’s and repeated courses. See the Semester/Cumulative GPA Calculator.

 

Departmental Honors

To be admitted to the English Honors major program, an undergraduate must have a 3.5 grade-point average in English courses. 

Honors English majors must complete at least 1 section of ENGL 598 Honors Proseminar: _____ and ENGL 599 Honors Essay. This requirement, in effect, adds 3 hours of capstone-level coursework to the student’s emphasis.