Transition Guidelines for English Majors
In Fall 2012, the English Department will inaugurate a new curriculum. Any course previously taken for the completion of the English major will still count toward the completion of the major, and the Department will ensure that students pursuing the major under the former curriculum will be able to complete their requirements. If you enrolled as an English major under the former curriculum and if you have not yet fulfilled your Gateway requirements, beginning in Fall, 2012, you will be able to do so by taking the comparable courses, ENGL-090, -091, or -092. All electives in the new curriculum will fulfill specified Field requirements in the former curriculum; however, since these courses will be renumbered, you should be particularly attentive to what Field the course you choose belongs. Because transitions like this can be confusing, you need to take special care to read the instructions below, check your Degree Audit, AND consult with your adviser, who will help you choose classes that will meet the requirements for the major.
GUIDELINES FOR THE CLASSES OF 2013 and 2014
You will finish out the major by completing the requirements of the former curriculum: HUMW-011 (or its equivalent: HUMW-009, Liberal Arts Seminar or 3 hrs/credit AP), two Gateways (ENGL-040 or -041 AND ENGL- 042 or -043) and seven electives; of the seven electives, one from Field 1, one from Field 2 and one from Fields 3 or 4 are required.
Because Gateways are being replaced and because courses are being renumbered, you can complete your required courses as follows:
1. If you have already completed the Gateway ENGL-040 or -041 but you still need to take your second Gateway, you can fulfill your remaining Gateway requirement by taking ENGL-090 (“Methods of Literary and Cultural Studies”) OR ENGL-092 (“Literary History II”).
2. If you have already completed the Gateway ENGL-042 but you still need to take your second Gateway, you can fulfill your remaining Gateway requirement by taking ENGL-090 (“Methods of Literary and Cultural Studies”) OR ENGL-091 (“Literary History I”).
3. If you have already completed the Gateway ENGL-043 but you still need to take your second Gateway, you can fulfill your remaining Gateway requirement by taking ENGL-091 (“Literary History I”) OR ENGL-092 (“Literary History II”).
4. You will still need to take seven electives; of the seven electives, one from Field 1, one from Field 2 and one from Fields 3 or 4 are required. Since electives will be renumbered beginning in Fall, 2012, be careful to choose the appropriate courses to fulfill your Field requirements by consulting the list below:
Field 1. Medieval / Renaissance: ENGL-100-134; 300-329; appropriate Capstone (consult with adviser)
Field 2. Eighteenth / Nineteenth Century: ENGL-135-179; 330-369; appropriate Capstone (consult with adviser)
Field 3. Modern / Postmodern: ENGL-180-259; 370-419; appropriate Capstone (consult with adviser)
Field 4. Critical, Scholarly, Creative Practices: ENGL-260-299; 420-459; appropriate Capstone (consult with adviser)
Note that to take any Level 2 elective in the new curriculum (that is, any course numbered ENGL-300-459) or a Capstone Seminar (ENGL-460-497), students who are completing their major under the former curriculum must first have completed their Gateway requirements.
Students of the CLASS OF 2014 have the option of completing their degrees following the requirements of the new curriculum. Whether shifting to the new curriculum will be advantageous and beneficial for an individual student depends on a number of factors, and for that reason interested students need to consult with their advisers, who will help them determine which curriculum is best for them and which classes have fulfilled or will fulfill their requirements. Students of the class of 2014 who elect to complete the major under the new curriculum MUST inform the Director of Undergraduate Students of their decision. The requirements for the new major and instructions for meshing courses already taken with the requirements of the new curriculum are described below in the “Guidelines for the Class of 2015 and Beyond.”
GUIDELINES FOR THE CLASS OF 2015 AND BEYOND
Students of the class of 2015 will complete the major under the new curriculum requirements. Under the new curriculum, the English major will consist of ten courses:
Foundation Courses
1 Methods of Literary and Cultural Studies (ENGL-090)
1 Literary History I (ENGL-091)
1 Literary History II (ENGL-092)
[NOTE: Foundational Courses do NOT fulfill the HUMW II requirement]
Electives
2 Level I Electives (ENGL-100-299)
[Prerequisite: HUMW-011 or its equivalent (HUMW-009, Liberal Arts Seminar or 3 hrs/credit AP). The majority of Level I Electives fulfill the HUMW II requirement; those that do NOT fulfill the requirement will indicate that they do not do so in the course descriptions and registrar’s notes]
2 Level II Electives (ENGL-300-459)
[Prerequisites: Students must take ENGL-090 (“Methods”) AND either ENGL-091 (“Literary History I”) or ENGL-092 (“Literary History II)
2 Free English Electives (Levels I and/or II)
Seminar
1 Capstone Seminar (ENGL-460-497)
* Period requirement: At least one of the six electives (either Level I or Level II) must be focused on literature written before the nineteenth century (ENGL_100-149; 300-349; 461-469).
* Foundational Courses should be taken as early in one’s career as a major as possible. The Capstone Seminar should be taken in your senior year.
Instructions for meshing English courses you’ve already taken with the requirements for the new curriculum.
If you have already taken English courses, they will count under the new curriculum. The following guidelines show you how to mesh these courses with the requirements of the new curriculum:
Gateways: If you have taken any Gateway course, the following substitutions will be made –
(former) ENGL 040 = new (ENGL 091)
(former) ENGL 041 = new (ENGL 091)
(former) ENGL 042 = new (ENGL 092)
(former) ENGL 043 = new (ENGL 090)
In other words:
1. If you have taken ENGL-040 or 041, you must take ENGL-090 (“Methods of Literary and Cultural Studies”) and ENGL-092 (“Literary History II”)
2. If you have taken ENGL-042, you must take ENGL-090 (“Methods of Literary and Cultural Studies”) and ENGL-091 (“Literary History I”).
3. If you have taken ENGL-043, you must take ENGL-091 (“Literary History I”) and ENGL-092 (“Literary History II”).
4. If you have taken ENGL-040 or -041 AND ENGL-042, you must take ENGL-090 (“Methods of Literary and Cultural Studies”)
5. If you’ve taken ENGL-040 or -041 AND ENGL-043, you must take ENGL-091 (“Literary History II”).
Electives: Any English elective you took under the former curriculum (ENGL-100-499) will be counted as a Level I elective under the new curriculum.
Field 1 and 2 courses: If you took a Field 1 or Field 2 elective under the former curriculum (ENGL-100-199), it will count for the Period Requirement under the new curriculum.
Any exception to these policies will be adjudicated on a case-by-case basis by the Director of Undergraduate Studies.
