Mar 19, 2024  
2019-2020 General/Graduate Catalog - Expires August 2025 
    
2019-2020 General/Graduate Catalog - Expires August 2025 [Archived Catalog]

English (BA)


Affiliation: School of Arts and Letters

Studying language and texts is at the core of the liberal arts tradition. Students in the B.A. English program participate in this tradition by:

  • analyzing the content, form, and techniques authors use in literary works, criticism, and other texts;
  • examining words and texts in order to develop their literacies and foster their own power to communicate and participate in communities;
  • developing their aesthetic appreciation of diverse texts, pursuing personal enrichment through their work with these texts, and actively seeking opportunities for professional development; and
  • crossing borders, imagining different worlds, and exploring human expression in order to better understand their own and other cultural conditions.

Through this work students pursuing the B.A. in English at Truman develop the habits of thought needed to make intelligent and humane decisions, to communicate those decisions to diverse communities, and to lead others. They should emerge from our program as committed lifelong learners, ready to pursue meaningful lives as they enter the world of work and pursue graduate or professional studies.

Note for Students interested in the Master of Arts in Education
B.A. English majors interested in pursuing an advanced degree in secondary English teaching at Truman State University must meet the requirements for admission to the Master of Arts in Education program as stated in the Education section of this catalog. These requirements are consistent with the standards set forth by the National Council of Teachers of English and should provide a strong foundation for teacher preparation for those pursuing certification or a degree here or elsewhere. Missouri state certification requirements are also listed in the Education section. Close consultation with an English academic advisor as well as with the secondary English Master of Arts in Education program coordinator is strongly recommended for students interested in the Master of Arts in Education.

DEPARTMENTAL HONORS IN ENGLISH

Seniors who wish to graduate with Honors in English must meet these requirements and follow the procedure below.

 Requirements:

  • 3.50 or better overall GPA
  • 3.75 or better GPA in the major
  • A 15-page paper (or the equivalent) supervised by a mentor and approved by the English Honors Committee

 Procedure:

  1. Eligible student chooses a faculty member with expertise in the topic for the 15-page paper or project and asks that faculty member to mentor the student in the paper or project.
  2. Student, under guidance of the mentor, writes a formal abstract of the paper/project to be submitted to the English Honors Committee no later than April 15 for December graduates, October 1 for May graduates, or February 15 for August graduates.
  3. Student works with mentor on the approved paper/project.
  4. Student submits paper/project to the English Honors Committee by November 1 for December graduates, April 1 for May graduates, or July 1 for August graduates.

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS:

Liberal Studies Program Requirements: 31-60 Credits


Bachelor of Arts Requirement: 0-6 Credits


  • Intermediate Proficiency in ONE foreign language

Major Requirements: 34 Credits Minimum


  • A minimum of 20 credits must be at the 300-level or above.
  • No grade of “D” in major courses is accepted toward an English degree.

B.A. English Major Required Courses: 10 Credits


These three courses both introduce concepts and terms that facilitate literary study and guide students as they engage in larger conversations about the purpose of literary study.

Aesthetic Literature Requirement: 7 Credits Minimum


Complete at least seven credits from the list of courses approved for the Aesthetic-Literature Mode of Inquiry (Click for the full list of approved courses). This requirement extends students’ knowledge of literary texts through the study of writing from select literary periods, literary movements, and/or national literatures; the study of representative texts spanning successive literary periods; the study of literary genres; and/or topic-based inquiries into literary texts.

Note: All courses approved for the Liberal Studies Program Aesthetic-Literature Mode of Inquiry (including courses approved for the Literature and Geography Requirement and the Literature and History Requirement below) may fulfill the B.A. English Aesthetic Literature Requirement. However, a student may not count a single course toward both the Aesthetic Literature Requirement and the Literature and Geography Requirement or both the Aesthetic Literature Requirement and the Literature and History Requirement.

Literature and Geography Requirement: 4 Credits


Select at least one course from this list. This requirement further acquaints students in the B.A. English program with cultural diversities in literary texts as well as with relations among, between, and within global, national, and/or regional literatures.

Literature and History Requirement: 4 Credits


Select at least one course from this list. This requirement develops the ability of B.A. English students to recognize and explain how literature, language, and related phenomena (such as genre) change over time.

B.A. English Electives: 0-9 Credits


Select a combination of additional courses from the areas listed above (including all courses approved for the Aesthetic-Literature Mode of Inquiry and/or the additional courses listed below that, combined with the courses completed to fulfill the requirements listed above, total to a minimum of 34 credits. This area of the major (which includes courses in theory, literature, language, and culture) encourages students to focus their coursework - in consultation with their advisor and their instructors - on their distinct professional, intellectual, scholarly, and creative goals and passions.

Electives to Total: 120 Credits