English

First-Year Writing Seminars:

As part of the university-wide First-Year Writing Seminars program administered by the John S. Knight Institute for Writing in the Disciplines, the department offers many one-semester courses dealing with various forms of writing (e.g., narrative, autobiographical, and expository), with the study of specific areas in English and American literature, and with the relation of literature to culture. Students may apply any of these courses to their first-year writing seminar requirement. Detailed course descriptions may be found in the first-year writing seminars program listings, available from college registrars in August for the fall semester and in November for the spring semester.

Freshmen interested in majoring in English are encouraged to take at least one of the department’s seminars listed under ENGL 1270 - FWS: Writing About Literature . These courses are open, as space permits, to first-semester freshmen with scores of 700 or above on the CEEB College Placements Tests in English composition or literature, or 5 on the CEEB Advanced Placement Examination in English, as well as to students who have completed another first-year writing seminar.

The Major in English:

Students who major in English develop their own programs of study in consultation with their major advisors. Some choose to focus on a particular historical period or literary genre, or to combine sustained work in creative writing with the study of literature. Others pursue interests in such areas as women’s literature, African American literature, literature and the visual arts, or critical theory. The department recommends that students prepare themselves for the English major by taking one or more 2000-level courses, many of which provide introductions to important aspects of literature, culture, and theory that are also covered in more advanced courses. These 2000-level courses concentrate on the skills basic to the English major and to other academic work—responsive, sensitive reading and lucid, strong writing. ENGL 2800 , ENGL 2810 , ENGL 2880 , and ENGL 2890  are also suitable preparations for the major, and are open to students who have completed their first-year writing seminar requirement. However, these introductory courses in creative and expository writing do not count toward the 40 credits required for the major.

To graduate with a major in English, students must complete with a grade of C or better 10 courses (40 credit hours) approved for the major. With the exception of 2000-level courses in creative and expository writing, all 2000-level ENGL courses are approved for the major. Courses used to meet requirements for the English major may also be used to meet distribution requirements in the College of Arts and Sciences. Many of these courses may be used to meet the college’s “historical breadth” requirement as well.

Of the 40 credits required to complete the major, 12 credits (three courses) must be from courses in which 50 percent or more of the material consists of literature originally written in English before 1800; 8 credits (two courses) must be at the 4000-level; and another 12 credits (three courses) must form an intellectually coherent “concentration.” The 4000-level and pre-1800 requirements may only be satisfied with ENGL courses. ENGL 4930 - Honors Essay Tutorial I -ENGL 4940 - Honors Essay Tutorial II  may not be used to satisfy either requirement.

Courses that satisfy the pre-1800 requirement are so designated in Courses of Study. Many English majors use ENGL 2010  or ENGL 2030  to begin meeting this requirement, since these courses provide an overview of earlier periods of British and American literatures and so enable students to make more informed choices of additional pre-1800 courses. ENGL 2020  and ENGL 2040  do not qualify as a pre-1800 course. Advanced courses in literary works not originally written in English may not be used to fulfill the pre-1800 requirement, even if they are offered by the English department.

The three-course concentration requirement may be satisfied with any courses approved for the major. The department’s guide, “Majoring in English at Cornell” (available at english.arts.cornell.edu), suggests areas of concentration and offers examples of courses that fall within those areas, but majors define their own concentrations in consultation with their major advisors.

As many as 12 credits in appropriate courses originating in departments and programs other than English may be used to satisfy English major requirements. Courses in literature and creative writing offered by academic units representing neighboring or allied disciplines (German Studies, Romance Studies, Asian Studies, Classics, Comparative Literature, Africana Studies, the Society for the Humanities, American Studies, Feminist, Gender, & Sexuality Studies, Religious Studies, Asian American Studies, American Indian Studies, Jewish Studies, Latino Studies, and Performance and Media Arts) are routinely counted toward the 40 hours of major credit provided they are appropriate for juniors or seniors, as are most courses at the 3000-level and above.

All English majors are urged to take courses in which they read foreign works of literature in the original language, and for that reason 2000-level literature courses for which qualification is a prerequisite (as well as more advanced foreign literature courses) may be counted toward the English major. Credit from other non-ENGL courses may be included within the 12 credits of non-departmental courses approved for the major only when the student is able to demonstrate to the advisor’s satisfaction their relevance to his or her individual program of study.

Planning a Program of Study:

Few students know from the moment they decide to pursue a major in English exactly what they wish to study. Moreover, it is natural for interests to change in the course of time. The effort of creating or discovering a coherent pattern in the courses selected is itself a valuable part of a literary (as well as liberal) education, and English majors are expected to discuss their overall program of study when seeking their advisors’ approval of courses each semester. While the department leaves a great deal to the discretion of its individual majors and their academic advisors, it expects them to choose courses with an eye to breadth and variety on the one hand and focus and coherence on the other.

Students with a special interest in developing their skills as writers of verse or prose will find a variety of workshop courses in expository and creative writing. As a rule a student may not enroll in more than one such course in any given semester, although exceptions are sometimes allowed where one of these is ENGL 2880  or ENGL 2890 .

A number of English majors do part of their course work at a foreign institution, usually during their junior year; some spend a single semester away from campus, others an entire year. The Cornell Abroad office has information on a variety of programs at universities around the world. Many English majors study abroad in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, but some choose other locations. As long as they continue to meet all college and department requirements or can complete them upon returning to Cornell, studying abroad poses no serious problems. Students planning to study abroad in their junior year who wish to complete the Honors program should make arrangements with the Director of Honors in English before leaving campus.

Credit for literature courses taken abroad can in most instances be applied to the 40-hour minimum for the English major and to requirements like the concentration and pre-1800 requirements. Approval of requests to apply credit for study abroad to the English major is granted by the DUS rather than the academic advisor, however, and students must confer with the Director of Undergraduate Study (DUS) in advance of going abroad as well as on their return. The first conference includes a review of catalogue descriptions of courses the student expects to take while abroad (along with a few alternatives), the second a presentation of papers, exams, transcripts or equivalent documentation of successful completion of the work proposed.

No more than 16 credits per year, or 8 credits per semester, of non-Cornell credit may be applied to the English major. This restriction applies to study abroad even when that study is conducted under Cornell auspices.

The Major in English with Honors:

Second-semester sophomores who have done superior work in English and related subjects are encouraged to seek admission to the departmental program leading to the degree of Bachelor of Arts with Honors in English. Following an interview with the Director of Honors, qualified students will be admitted provisionally to the program. During their junior year these students complete at least one Honors Seminar (ENGL 4910  in the fall or ENGL 4920  in the spring) and are encouraged to take an additional 4000-level English course in the area of their thesis topic. On the basis of the work in these and other English courses, provisional Honors candidates must select a thesis topic and secure a thesis advisor by the end of the junior year. A student who has been accepted by a thesis advisor and whose brief thesis proposal has been signed by the Director of Honors becomes a candidate for Honors rather than a provisional candidate.

During the senior year, each candidate for honors in English enrolls in a yearlong tutorial (ENGL 4930 –ENGL 4940 ) with the faculty member he or she has chosen as a thesis advisor. The year’s work culminates in the submission of a substantial critical essay to be judged by at least two members of the faculty. More information about the Honors Program may be found at www.arts.cornell.edu/english/undergrad/honors/.

The English Department Minors:

The English department offers three minors, open to any student at Cornell with any major (except English). Students may declare their intention to minor at any time and declare completion of their chosen minor at any time up to week 7 of their final semester. Each minor requires them to pass five courses with a grade of C or higher (no S/U). No first-year writing seminar may count, and at most four credits in all from transfer, study abroad, or independent study, or (where relevant) from another Cornell department may count. Students should seek an advisor from any Cornell English Department faculty or work with the English minors advisor, Stuart Davis (sad4@cornell.edu).