Students majoring in English are required to take two core methodology courses, English 201 and English 202. English 201 introuces students to the study of literature through reading and discussion of major methodologies, analytical approaches, and perspectives in literary study; and English 202 entails a series of guest presentations by full-time faculty, and is designed to demystify the process of literary critical writing by offering anecdotal, informal accounts of how a faculty member’s article (which the students have read in advance) was conceived, developed, revised, and found publication. Please visit our current and recent course offerings as well as the Course Catalog, which lists all of the many courses that are offered in English.

Students also take a number of courses designed to give them coverage of every major period of literature in English and have the option to choose a “focus area” as well to further structure the major. The possible Focus Areas in English include Genre Studies, Identity Studies, Creative Writing & Publishing, and Cultural Studies. Seniors may choose to take a Senior Seminar which serves as an optional “Capstone Experience” and results in the composition of a Senior Thesis on a topic of their choice.

Double Majors in English and Education

The English Department works closely with the Department of Education to ensure that those double majors in Secondary Education and English receive the courses they need to ensure they are properly certified in English as their content area.

Minor in English

A minor in English may be earned by completing 18 credits in English. The University requires that a minimum quality average of 2.0 must be earned in the minor courses, and at least 12 of the 18 credits must be at the 200 level or above. In addition, the English Department requires that at least 6 of the 18 units be at the 300 level or above. At least half of the credits required for an English minor must be earned at the University of Rhode Island. General Education requirements may be used for the minor, but no course may be used for both the major and the minor. Minor courses may not be taken on a pass/fail basis.

Applications for the English Minor are available in the offices of the English Department Undergraduate Advisors, located at Independence Hall rooms 108 and 114B.

Interdisciplinarity

The English Department is engaged at the undergraduate curricular level with several interdisciplinary programs on campus, including Women’s Studies, African and African American Studies, Film Media, Comparative Literature, the Honors Program, and the New England Studies Program. In 2001, the Writing Program, which used to be housed within the English Department, became an independent program of its own. However, English Majors with a special interest in Rhetoric, in other discursive forms of writing, or in the teaching of composition, are encouraged to take courses from or even to Minor in the Writing Program. While both programs place a heavy emphasis on writing instruction in their courses, the English Department emphasizes writing about literary, filmic or other cultural texts, and offers Creative Writing courses, while the Writing Program emphasizes writing in such contexts as business, science, technology, and electronic environments.

Through a generous endowment from Edmund S. and Nathalie Rumowicz, we regularly offer an undergraduate seminar on the Literature of the Sea in collaboration with faculty and students from Marine Affairs and the History Department. The Rumowicz endowment also makes possible a yearly distinguished lecture on Literature of the Sea, and an undergraduate essay contest that draws contestants from disciplines all over the campus.

Students of English at URI have the opportunity to participate the URI in Bath, England Program, which is a summer program consisting of six credits of study: 3 credits in English (ENG 397: The Literary Landscapes of Britain) and 3 credits in History (HIS 397: The Historical Landscapes of Britain). Students live and study at the University of Bath, which is located about an hour south west of London.

Scholarships & Prizes

Each year, students of the English Department have the opportunity to compete for numerous scholarships and prizes, which celebrate and facilitate academic success as well as excellence in numerous forms of writing, such as the critical essay, poetry, and non-fiction prose.