English at Aquinas College

The English major at Aquinas College exposes students to a wide variety of literature and approaches to literary studies. Every English major must take EH 221, Introduction to Literary Studies, which is a methods course introducing various critical approaches to the three main genres of literature and to research tools specific to literary studies.
 
The following checklist is used to track the English major at Aquinas College. Students may print out this form to maintain a record of their progress towards the completion of the English major.
 
The core of the program consists of historical surveys of British and American Literature in which the student learns about major authors and trends of English language literature.
 
A total of thirty-six (36) semester hours, exclusive of EH101, 105, 106, 111, 112, 113, 245, 246, and 247. (At least 18 hours must be taken at Aquinas.) Major requirements must be fulfilled according to the following distribution:

• EH221;
• 9 hours from the British Literature Core (EH361, 362, 363, 364, 365);
• 6 hours from the American Literature Core; at least one must be at the 300 level (EH273, 370, 371, 372);
• 3 hours from each of the following six groups: Composition (EH205, 210, 400*); Genre/Thematic Studies (218, 225, 260, 266, 355, 356); Linguistics and Literary Theory (230*, 231*, 450); Major Authors (401, 410, 451); Diversity Studies (211, 212, 255, 274, 395); Elective (any other English course, except those listed in sentence one of this description). In lieu of an elective, students seeking teacher certification are required to take EH388.
• Those seeking teacher certification are required to select courses marked with an *.
• English majors must also assemble a portfolio of their work and submit it to the English Department for approval before graduation. Guidelines available from members of English Department.

Distribution areas assure that Aquinas College English majors can express themselves clearly in writing, have an understanding of literary genres, and have been exposed in depth to major authors like Shakespeare and Chaucer.
 
The final category, Diversity Studies, allows a student to come to know a wider body of literature than that normally covered in the traditional canon of literary studies.
 
The portfolio requirement provides the graduate with a record of his/her progress through the program and can be a useful tool in career planning and placement.
 
Helpful Links
"Let's Get Serious About Pursing a Ph.D. in English" (pdf)