English (BA)
This program was approved for students entering the university in the Summer 2018–Spring 2019 catalog year. For more information about catalog year, go to Catalog Year Information.
Bachelor of Arts in English (ENGLBA)
Unit: College of Arts and Sciences (AS)
Department: English
Program Information
The program for English majors is designed to lay a foundation for careers in writing, teaching, scholarship, and research, as well as for many other types of position in the business and professional world where skills in communication, creative, critical, or analytical writing, public relations, editorial skills, advertising, or the like are required.
Completion of this degree requires work to be submitted for the department’s Learning Outcomes Measurement. For details, contact the department.
Degree Summary
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| General Education Requirements | 31 | |
| College/School Requirements | 22 | |
| Program/Major Requirements | 68 | |
| Minimum Total Hours | 121 | |
Specific coursework information can be found on the Degree Requirements tab.
Departmental Admission Requirements
Admission to the BA in English requires completion of ENGL 101 and ENGL 102 OR ENGL 105 or approved substitute; a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0; and a minimum grade point average of 2.0 in courses in the major.
The Application for Major form can be found on the Arts & Sciences Advising Center web site: louisville.edu/artsandsciences/advising/apply.
General Education Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| General Education Requirements | 31 | |
All degrees require the completion of the University-wide General Education Program (link provided above). Some General Education requirements may be met in the requirements for the major or supporting coursework, in which case additional electives may be required to complete the minimum hours for the degree.
College/School Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Arts & Sciences Requirements | ||
| GEN 100 | Student Success Center Orientation | 1 |
| or GEN 101 | Arts and Sciences Orientation | |
| Foreign Language 1 | 12 | |
| Electives in Social or Natural Sciences 2 | 9 | |
| WR—two approved courses at the 300 level or above 3 | ||
| Minimum Total Hours | 22 | |
Program/Major Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Department of English 4 | ||
| ENGL 300 | Introduction to English Studies - WR 5 | 3 |
| ENGL 491 | Interpretive Theory: The New Criticism to the Present | 3 |
| English electives at the 300-level 6 | 9 | |
| English electives at the 400-level | 9 | |
| English electives at the 500-level | 12 | |
| Supporting Courses | ||
| Electives in Humanities disciplines other than English, at 400 level or above | 3 | |
| Electives in Humanities disciplines other than English, at 300 level or above | 12 | |
| Minimum Electives | 17 | |
| Minimum Total Hours | 68 | |
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Culminating Undergraduate Experience (Graduation requirement) | ||
| Requirement fulfilled by completing one of the following: | ||
| Teaching of Writing - CUE, WR | ||
| The Teaching of Creative Writing - CUE, WR | ||
| Studies in Old and Middle English Literature - CUE | ||
| Studies in Tudor and Elizabethan Literature - CUE | ||
| Studies in Stuart and Commonwealth Literature - CUE | ||
| Studies in Restoration and Eighteenth-Century British Literature - CUE | ||
| Studies in British Literature of the Romantic Period - CUE | ||
| Studies in British Literature of the Victorian Period - CUE | ||
| Studies in Modern British and/or Irish Literature - CUE | ||
| Studies in Contemporary British and/or Irish Literature - CUE | ||
| Studies in Post-Colonial and/or Ethnic Literature - CUE | ||
| Studies in African American Literature - CUE | ||
| Special Topics in Literature in English | ||
| Women's Personal Narratives - CUE | ||
| Cooperative Internship in English Studies - CUE | ||
| Chaucer - CUE | ||
| Shakespeare - CUE | ||
| Milton - CUE | ||
| Selected Figures in American Literature - CUE | ||
| Post-Colonial Voices: Writing Experience in African Literature - CUE, WR | ||
| Studies in American Literature to 1865 - CUE | ||
| Studies in American Literature, 1865-1910 - CUE | ||
| Studies in American Literature, 1910-1960 - CUE | ||
| Studies in American Literature, 1960 - CUE | ||
| Genre Studies in African-American Literature - CUE | ||
| The Harlem Renaissance - CUE | ||
| Studies in Renaissance Drama - CUE | ||
| Studies in American Drama - CUE | ||
| History of Criticism: Plato to the New Criticism - CUE | ||
| Studies in Literature and Science - CUE | ||
| Advanced Studies in English - CUE, WR | ||
| 1 | Completion of the intermediate level of a single foreign language |
| 2 | In addition to courses counted toward General Education; 6 hours must be at 300 level or above |
| 3 | May be incorporated into other degree requirements |
| 4 | Major must not include more than 9 hours of creative or expository writing (ENGL 300 and ENGL 310 are not included in this category). |
| 5 | Students planning to major in English are strongly encouraged to take ENGL 300 in the first semester after completion of ENGL 102 or ENGL 105. |
| 6 | ENGL 300 and ENGL 310 do not count toward 300-level electives. |
NOTE: Historical Distribution: Majors must complete a minimum of one course in each of the following historical periods:
Pre-1700 literature; 1700-1900 literature; Post-1900 literature. This requirement may be met by any selection of courses from the groups below. Consult course descriptions for information on the time-period to which a specific course applies.
Only 40 hours in the major department may be applied toward the Bachelor of Arts degree. Courses in freshman composition (ENGL 101, ENGL 102, and ENGL 105) and ENGL 202 are not counted in computing the 40 hours for an English major.
At least 50 of the total minimum hours required must be at the 300 level or above.
Flight Plan
| Year 1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | |
| GEN 100 or GEN 101 |
Student Success Center Orientation or Arts and Sciences Orientation |
1 |
| ENGL 101 | Introduction to College Writing - WC | 3 |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Quantitative Reasoning - QR | 3 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Arts & Humanities - AH | 3 | |
| Foreign Language 1 | 4 | |
| Hours | 14 | |
| Spring | ||
| ENGL 102 | Intermediate College Writing - WC | 3 |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Natural Sciences - S | 3 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Social & Behavioral Sciences Historical Perspective - SBH | 3 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Oral Communication - OC | 3 | |
| Foreign Language 2 | 4 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Year 2 | ||
| Fall | ||
| ENGL 300 | 3 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Social & Behavioral Sciences US Diversity - SBD1 | 3 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Arts & Humanities Global Diversity - AHD2 | 3 | |
| Social Science or Natural Science Elective | 3 | |
| Foreign Language 3 | 4 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Spring | ||
| English Elective | 3 | |
| General Education: Cardinal Core Natural Sciences with Lab - B | 4 | |
| English Elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| General Elective | 3 | |
| General Elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Year 3 | ||
| Fall | ||
| English Elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| English Elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| English Elective (400 level or above) | 3 | |
| Humanities Elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| Social Science or Natural Science Elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| ENGL 491 | Interpretive Theory: The New Criticism to the Present | 3 |
| English Elective (400 level or above) | 3 | |
| English Elective (500 level or above) | 3 | |
| Social Science or Natural Science Elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| General Elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Year 4 | ||
| Fall | ||
| English Elective (400 level or above) | 3 | |
| English Elective (500 level or above) | 3 | |
| Humanities Elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| Humanities Elective (300 level or above) | 3 | |
| General Elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| Humanities Elective (400 level or above) | 3 | |
| English Elective (500 level) | 3 | |
| English Elective (500 level) | 3 | |
| General Elective | 3 | |
| General Elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Minimum Total Hours | 122 | |
Degree Audit reports illustrate how your completed courses fulfill the requirements of your academic plan. What-if reports allow you to compare the courses you have completed in your current academic plan to the courses required in another academic plan. For both reports, please consult with your advisor before editing your course schedule.
To create either report:
- Log into your ULink account.
- Click on the Student Services tab.
- Next, click on "View my Academic Advisement Report" to run a Degree Audit report in the Undergraduate Advising area.
- To create a What-if report, click on "Create a What-if Advisement Report."
Click here to run a Degree Audit report, or create a What-if report.
