Dec 01, 2024  
Undergraduate Record 2024-2025 
    
Undergraduate Record 2024-2025

English, B.A.


Universal Curriculum Requirements


To be awarded a degree from the College of Arts and Sciences, students are required to complete universal curriculum requirements in addition to the program requirements provided below. The school universal curriculum requirements can be found on the school Degree Programs page .

Prerequisites for Declaring the Major


Students may take one of two paths into the major.

1. In the recommended path, student complete one 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 and 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 majo without enrolling in an ENGL 2000-level course.

Program Requirements


The degree in English requires ten courses (30 credits), as specified below. All course must be at the upper-division level (numbered 3000 or above), with the exception of the single ENGL 2000-level prerequisite course.

  1. Two courses in the “History of Literatures in English” sequence:

Additional Rules


1. Eight of ten courses for the major must be taken in the English department at UVA. With permission of the Director of Undergraduate Studies, up to two major electives may be taken in other departments on campus, or as trasnfer credit from other institutions, including study abroad programs. Courses taken outside the department may not fulfill distribution requirements.

2. One of the two courses from outside the department allowed to count as a major elective may be in the literature of a lnaguage other than English, taught either in that language or in translation. These courses may be taught at the 2000-level or above. Grammar and composition courses do not count.

3. No more than three courses in total may fall under the writing program rubrics (ENWR and ENCW).


Independent Study

Only one semester of independent study, in literature or writing, may be counted toward the major. Students may apply to take an indepedent study only if they have completed four 3000- or 4000-level courses in English and they have achieved a major GPA of at least 3.30.

  • Both classes below allow considerable flexibility, with no formal limitations on the project’s nature, as long as a faculty member is willing to direct the independent study.
  • To request an independent study course, students (and their faculty advisors) should apply to the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the semester prior to that in which they wish to pursue their project.

Grading Standards


  • A minimum GPA of 2.0 in major courses is required. Courses in which a student receives a grade lower than C- will not count toward the major. 

Special Programs in English


Area Programs


The department offers five area programs:

  • Two programs are interdisciplinary in focus:
    • Medieval and Renaissance Studies, and Modern and Global Studies (MGS). 
  • Two programs allow students to concentrate in the practice of writing: 
    • Area Program in Literary Prose (APLP) and the Area Program in Poetry Writing (APPW). 
  • The fifth program, English Literature and Language for Secondary School Teaching, serves students considering a career in teaching, whether or not they are simultaneously enrolled in a degree program in the Curry School of Education.

Each area program modifies the English major program of study as specified below. Some programs admit students by application only, while others are open to all interested. If the area program is selective, students must apply for admission in the spring semester of their second year. For more information about the area programs, including the names of their directors and application procedures, please consult the English department website, english.as.virginia.edu.

The Medieval and Renaissance Studies Concentration in English


Students in the Medieval and Renaissance Studies Concentration in English take at least 30 credits for the major. These must include:

Concentration in Modern Global Studies Requirements


Take at least 30 credits of English and other approved courses. These must include:

Area Program in Literary Prose Requirements


Take 30 credits of coursework.  These must include:

Area Program in Poetry Writing Requirements


Take 30 credits of courses in English.  These must include:

  • Credits: 3
  • Credits: 3
    1. 12 hours of upper-division (3000-level or above) ENCW poetry writing courses or independent studies. Students may count one fiction or creative non-ficition course at the 3000-level or above to fulfill this requirement.
    2. Two poetry Writing Area Program seminars (ENCW 4820).
  • Credits: 3
  •  4. One course in literature published before 1800 at the 3000-level or above.

     5. The Capstone Course (ENPW 4920), offered in the spring semester of the fourth year.

    NOTE: When offered, a prosody or other poetic forms class is also recommended.

English Literature and Language for Secondary School Teaching Requirements


Take at least 24 credits of English courses.  These must include:

  • Credits: 3
  • Credits: 3
    1. An advanced (higher than ENWR 1510) undergraduate writing course.
    2. A Shakespeare course at the 3000 level or higher.
    3. A course in language and/or literacy (ENGL 3030 or another option approved by the track director.)
    4. ENGL 5900/EDIS 5500 (the Counterpoint Seminar)
    5. An additional elective in English at the 3000 level or above.

    Take in addition:

    7. EDIS 3400 (Teaching English in Secondary Schools)

    8. One relevant course either in or outside of English as approved by the track director.

The Distinguished Majors Program


Majors who wish to be considered for a degree with distinction, high distinction, or highest distinction in English must have a GPA of 3.600 in the major and 3.400 overall by the spring of the third year, and must submit a formal application to the Director of the Distinguished Majors Program.           

In addition to the standard requirements for the English major, candidates for distinction must complete

  1. A second 4000-level seminar in literature. 
  2. The two-semester distinguished majors tutorial (ENGL 4998 and 4999), taken in the fourth year.  Each student in the tutorial produces a long essay (approximately 50 pages).

In awarding distinction, the departmental Honors Committee considers: two faculty evaluations of the thesis essay; the quality of the student’s work in all 4000-level English seminars taken; and the student’s overall performance in the major.

Additional Information


Independent Study

Only one semester of independent study (in literature or writing) may be counted toward the English major.  Students may apply to take an independent study only if they have completed four 3000- or 4000-level courses in English and they have achieved a major GPA of at least 3.300.  Both ENGL 4993 (critical projects) and ENCW 4993 (creative writing projects) allow considerable flexibility, with no formal limitations on the project’s nature, as long as a faculty member is willing to direct the independent study and the proposed course does not duplicate what is already available in regular departmental offerings. 

To request an independent study course, students should apply to the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the semester prior to that in which they wish to pursue their project.


Contact

For more information, contact Mr. Carl Stukenborg, Undergraduate Administrator, 236 Bryan Hall, P.O. Box 400121, Charlottesville, VA 22904-4121; (434) 924-7887; Fax: (434) 924-1478; cjs3cu@virginia.edu; english.as.virginia.edu.