Mar 28, 2024  
Undergraduate Record 2013-2014 
    
Undergraduate Record 2013-2014 [ARCHIVED RECORD]

English


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Prerequisites for Entry into the Department


Students may take one of two paths into the major. 1) In the recommended path, students complete one ENLT (or ENGL) 2000-level course with a grade of C- or better. This course prepares students for upper-division departmental coursework, and also provides three hours of credit toward the major. 2) In the alternative path, a student who takes any two upper-division courses in the department (3000-level or above, in literature not creative writing), with an average grade of B across those courses, may declare the major without enrolling in an ENLT 2000-level course. Again, these courses provide credit toward the major.

Requirements for Major


Students planning to declare a major in English should first read the booklet English: A Handbook for Majors, available online (www.engl.virginia.edu) and in the Undergraduate English Office (236 Bryan Hall). They should then visit the Director of Undergraduate Studies during office hours. No appointment is required.

For a degree in English, a student must take ten upper-division courses (those numbered 3000 or above). The prerequisite ENLT course is not included among these ten courses. All majors must take the three-semester survey sequence, ENGL 3810, 3820, 3830 (History of Literatures in English). Majors must also take:

  1. Two courses in literature pre-1800 (ENMD, ENRN, or ENEC). Only one of these may be a course in Shakespeare.
  2. One 4000-level seminar in literature.

Students participating in the Distinguished Majors Program are allowed to take five courses in the ENGL category, while students enrolled in an area program (e.g., modern studies) may take a fourth course under an appropriate rubric. Students who elect to take more than 30 credits of English may, of course, go over the nine credit limit in any category in choosing their electives. Normally, only courses numbered through the 5000-level are open to undergraduates.

Majors must maintain at least a 2.000 GPA in their English courses each semester. Students who fail to maintain this average are put on departmental probation. If the problem continues, they may be invited to declare a different major. No course with a grade below C- may be counted toward the major, and a 2.000 average in the major is required in order to graduate.

Transfer of Credits


With approval from the Director of Undergraduate Studies, student may transfer up to two courses to the major (no transfer credit is awarded for the minor).  These two courses include those taken at other universities in America or abroad; however, J-term courses, Semester at Sea courses, and summer-only study abroad course will not be granted major credit. As one of the transfer courses, a student may apply for credit after completing a major level course in a foreign literature (either in English or the original language), or a CPLT course at the 2000 level or higher.  Eight of the ten required courses for the English major must be completed in the English department at UVa.

Special Programs in English


Enrollment


Admission to advanced creative writing undergraduate seminars is by permission of the instructor only. Students should apply to the instructor during registration. Students wishing to take Independent Study (ENGL 4993, or ENWR 4993) should apply to the Director of the Undergraduate Studies. Students wishing to write an honors thesis (ENGL 4998-4999) should apply to the director of the Distinguished Majors Program.

Independent Study


Only one semester of independent study (in writing or literature) may be counted toward the English major; students should apply to the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the semester before the semester in which they wish to pursue their project.

For students who want to work on an individual critical enterprise under the direction of a faculty member, ENGL 4993 allows considerable flexibility. There are no formal limitations on the project’s nature, as long as a faculty member is willing to direct it and the proposed course of study does not duplicate what is already available in regular courses. The student and faculty member determine the length of the reading list and the nature of the written or oral work required. Students may register for this course only if they have completed four 3000- or 4000-level courses and have a GPA in English of at least 3.300. They should have their projects at least roughly defined when they submit their applications to the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

Students who wish to pursue an independent project in creative writing may do so under the rubrics ENWR 4993. Once they have found a faculty member who is willing to direct their work, they should apply to the Director of Undergraduate Studies for approval of their plans. Students who wish to enroll in ENWR 4993 must have completed four 3000- or 4000-level courses and have better than a 3.300 GPA in the major.

Distinguished Majors Program in English


Majors who wish to be considered for a degree with distinction, high distinction, or highest distinction in English are expected to complete at least two 4000-level seminars and the two-semester distinguished majors tutorial (ENGL 4998, 4999). In the tutorial, these students pursue a project of their own devising that they would not have the opportunity to develop in the department’s regularly scheduled courses. The reading requirements for the project are determined by the student and the faculty member who has agreed to direct the enterprise, and each student produces a long essay (approximately 50 pages), carefully revised for final submission to the Honors Committee. In awarding honors, the committee considers: two faculty evaluations of the thesis; the quality of the student’s work in all 4000-level English seminars taken; and the student’s overall performance in the major. Using these criteria, the committee recommends either no distinction, distinction, high distinction, or highest distinction.

Students who wish to be admitted to the Distinguished Majors Program must have a GPA of 3.600 in the major and 3.400 overall, and must submit a formal application to the Director of the Distinguished Majors Program in early April of their third year.

Requirements for Minor


Students wishing to minor in English must complete 18 credits of upper-level English courses (numbered 3000 and above). The 18 credits must include any two semesters of the three-semester survey sequence ENGL 3810, 3820 and 3830, (History of Literatures in English). No more than six credits may be in any one of the following distribution categories: ENMD, ENRN, ENEC, ENNC, ENMC, ENAM, ENCR, ENGN, ENWR, and ENSP. However, students may take all three parts of the core survey (ENGL 3810, 3820, 3830) and apply them to the minor.

The American Studies Program


See description under the American Studies Interdisciplinary Major.

Area Programs in English


The English department offers two area programs that are interdisciplinary in focus and offer majors the opportunity to examine the interrelationships between literature and history, religion, philosophy, and the fine arts. Each area program has its own formal requirements (see below), but both ask the student to take courses both in the English department and in other departments of the University. Both include special seminars and colloquia—sometimes limited to students enrolled in the area program—that are expressly designed to help students formulate methods of interdisciplinary study and synthesize material from other areas. 

The area programs currently offered are Medieval and Renaissance studies and Modern Literature and Culture. These programs are demanding. Students should apply to them no later than the end of their second year.

Medieval/Renaissance Studies requirements

  1. Take at least 30 hours of English courses, including ENGL 3820 and 3830. ENGL 3810 is encouraged, but not required.
  2. Take ENRN 4530, the core seminar in Medieval and Renaissance studies, ideally in the Fall of the third year.
  3. Take at least three other courses in the ENMD or ENRN areas (literature written before 1700). At least one of these courses should be at the 4000-level.
  4. Take nine hours of coursework outside the department in areas which will complement and inform your Medieval/Renaissance literary studies.
  5. We strongly encourage students in the Medieval and Renaissance program to work on an independent study project (ENGL 4993), or, if they are qualified, to consolidate their work within this field by writing a thesis in the Distinguished Majors Program (ENGL 4998 and 4999).
    Students admitted to this program may count twelve hours of ENRN courses towards their 30 hours of coursework for the English major.

Modern Literature and Culture requirements

Take at least 30 credit hours of English courses. These must include:

  1. ENGL 3830 (History of Literature in English III, 1900 to the Present)
  2. ENGL 3810 (History of Literature in English I) or ENGL 3820, (History of Literature in English II). Students can of course take both of these classes, but must take at least one.
  3. ENMC 3800, “Concepts of the Modern”
  4. One course pre-1900
  5. One Modern Literature and Culture seminar
  6. At least one additional 4000-level ENMC seminar
  7. Students are permitted, but not required, to count a total of five Modern and Contemporary courses (rather than the standard three) towards their major
  8. Four courses taken outside the department that relate to a particular area of interest
  9. Students are strongly encouraged to write a thesis in the ENMC independent study (ENMC 4993) or, if they are qualified, to enter the Distinguished Majors Program (ENGL 4998 and 4999) and bring together their work with a 50-page thesis.

To learn more about the area programs, the names of their directors, or to apply, please consult the English department website.

 

The Area Program in Poetry Writing


The Area Program in Poetry Writing allows talented undergraduate writers to pursue serious study of the craft of poetry writing within the contexts of the English major and of an interdisciplinary curriculum individually tailored to nurture and inspire each student’s particular work and developing aesthetic. The program is a two-year course of study; students apply in the spring semester of their second year. Along with declaring an English major, students must take 30 credits of courses in English, including ENGL 3830 and either ENGL 3810 or 3820; 12 credits of upper-level (3000 or above) poetry writing courses or independent studies; two poetry writing area program seminars (ENPW 4820); one pre-1800 course in English at the 3000-level or above; and 3 credits in a 4000-level major seminar (other than ENPW). A poetics course is recommended as well, when offered. The student may also (but is not required to) apply to the Distinguished Majors Program in English and submit a thesis for honors.

The Poetry Thesis Program is modeled on the Distinguished Majors Thesis option already in place in the English Department, and will be administered by the Director of the Distinguished Majors program in cooperation with the Director of Creative Writing. It is a year-long course—a directed poetry writing project for students in the English Department’s Undergraduate Area Program in Poetry Writing, leading to completion of a manuscript of poems and an accompanying essay. Both semesters of the course are required for honors candidates, and the students will be graded on a year-long basis.

Additional Information


For more information, contact Ms. Pam Marcantel, Undergraduate Secretary, 236 Bryan Hall, P.O. Box 400121, Charlottesville, VA 22904-4121; (434) 924-7887; Fax: (434) 924-1478; mpm3a@virginia.edu; www.engl.virginia.edu.

Course Descriptions


Introductory Seminars in Literature


These courses are designed primarily for first- and second-year students interested in becoming English majors and for non-majors at all levels. The purpose of the ENLT series is to introduce students to the aims, methods, and skills involved in reading literature and in writing about it. All ENLT courses fulfill the second writing requirement.

Upper Division Courses in English


The following courses are designed primarily for English majors and for students who have some previous experience or special ability in reading and writing about literature.

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