English

Vision

The vision of the Department of English and Modern Languages is to chart a course for English students to engage globally in a variety of professions, including teaching, research, and related technology, all of which are underpinned by expertise in English skills.

Program Overview

The Department of English and Modern Languages offers a varied and rich curriculum to graduate students. The department is particularly proud of its multicultural approach to teaching literature and its efforts to expand the curriculum to include Africana, Caribbean, Asian, and Native American literatures. Graduate students pursuing the Master of Arts Degree in English must take the standard British and American literature courses plus additional courses in African American and Africana literature and pass a foreign language examination and a sitting comprehensive examination in four areas of literature: American, African- American, British, and Africana. In addition, graduate students must write a thesis reflecting extensive research in a literary topic or linguistic field that relates to literature.

Program Objectives

1. Introduce various genres of literature written by American, African American, British and multiethnic/cultural authors.
2. Study of literature to describe the differences and commonalities of global cultures.
3. Prepare students for advanced studies as well as careers in education, research, creative writing, and other professions.
4. Complete a thesis on topics relating to American, African American, British, and/or ethnic literatures using literary criticism and theory to develop the work’s thesis.
5. Ethnic literatures using literary criticism and theory to develop the work’s thesis.

Student Learning Outcomes

Students pursuing the Master of Arts Degree in English will be able to:

1. Apply literary theories from various cultures around the world for analytical, critical and scholarly articles and research papers.
2. Communicate effectively in written and oral formats essential works of literature by American, African American, British, and other multiethnic/cultural authors.
3. Utilize theory based literary texts to interpret short and long essays and analyze the commonalities and differences between and/or among multi-ethnic/cultural literatures.
4. Write annotated bibliographies and bibliographic essays using relevant scholarly articles and/or books published in various formats.
5. Apply theoretical knowledge from a literary and/or linguistic perspective to analyze and interpret texts and construct research papers, proposals and theses.