Frequently Asked Questions and Answers for Undergraduates
1. What introductory courses
does the department offer? What should a first- or second-year student
consider taking?
Course offerings vary from semester to semester, but sections of ENG 11a (Introduction to Literary Methods) are always offered. This is a good course for students planning to declare a major or minor in English. Other courses with a single- or double-digit course numbers (e.g., ENG 7a or ENG 33a) are suitable for first- or second-year students. Very few English courses have prerequisites, so students may enroll at will in almost any course in the department. Courses numbered 100-199 are open to both graduate and undergraduate students. Courses numbered 200 or above are graduate-level seminars.
2. How should I choose courses?
Which courses fit well together?
For help in constructing an individualized plan of study, students should
consult with their academic or departmental advisors or with the Undergraduate
Advising Head.
3. Where can I find information
about the courses being offered next semester?
Brief course descriptions and tentative schedules of the upcoming semester's offerings are available online and in the main office of the English department (Rabb 144). If you are interested in finding out more about a particular course, you may also want to e-mail the professor.
4. How do I find an advisor
in the English department?
You will be assigned an advisor in the department when you declare the
English major or minor. If you are not a major or minor but have questions
bout the department or the discipline of English, then you may want to
contact the Undergraduate Advising Head.
5. How do I declare a major
or minor in English?
To declare a major or minor in English, you simply need to meet with the
department's Undergraduate Advising Head. Students normally declare a
major in the spring semester of the sophomore year, although you may change
your major or add a second major at any time.
The declaration of the major usually takes place during the Undergraduate
Advising Head's office hours. You may want to prepare for this meeting
by picking up the appropriate form at the Registrar's office. When you
declare your major or minor, you will be asked to review requirements
of the major and to choose a hypothetical schedule of courses that will
fulfill those requirements. When you declare a major or minor, you will
also be assigned an advisor in the department.
6. Where can I find descriptions
of the current requirements for the English major or minors?
The current requirements for majors and minors are printed in the Brandeis
Bulletin: www.brandeis.edu/registrar/bulletin.html.
7. I'm still a little fuzzy about the requirements; what should I do?
Go see your advisor (if you are a major) or the Undergraduate Advising
Head. Or, consult the Bulletin.
8. Do creative writing courses count towards the English major?
As of 2002-03, students completing the English literature major may count one creative writing workshop towards the English major. (Obviously, creative writing courses count towards the major and minor in Creative Writing.) University Writing Seminars
and University Seminars in Humanistic Inquiry (USems) are not considered
creative writing courses, nor they do count towards the English major.
9. How do I apply to a creative writing workshop or to the creative writing major?
The director of the Creative Writing program is Professor Olga Broumas;
questions about writing workshops and the major and minor
should be directed to her. Her email address is broumas_@_brandeis.edu.
You may also wish to consult the Creative Writing website
and brochure, which is
also available in the main office of the English department (Rabb 144).
10. Can I receive credit for an internship related to the English major?
Yes, you may do an internship for credit in the English department. To
do so, you will need to arrange for an internship independently (or through
the Hiatt Center); the department does not maintain its own list of internships.
Then, you will need to find a faculty advisor in the department. For an
internship for credit, you should expect to meet with your faculty advisor
and produce an amount and type of academic work decided upon by your advisor.
The academic component of an internship for credit may run concurrently
with the internship itself or be pursued in the semester following the
internship.
11. I'd like to substitute a course taken in another department or at another university for one required for the English major. What should I do?
If the course you have taken elsewhere is a suitable substitution (that
is, if it meets the spirit of the departmental requirement), then you
should meet with the Undergraduate Advising Head to fill out a "Requirement
Substitution Form." It is helpful if you bring to this meeting a
copy of your transcript, showing the grade you received in the course
in question, and a course description or syllabus. In other words, you
take care of this matter after you have completed the course in the other
department or university.
Please bear in mind that the Brandeis English department allows majors
to count a maximum of three courses taken outside the Brandeis English
department towards the Brandeis English degree. This includes courses
taken while studying abroad, cross-listed courses, and transfer courses.
12. Should I write a senior essay or thesis?
Any English major may elect to write a one-semester senior essay or a
two-semester senior thesis. The essay or thesis counts towards graduation
requirements just like a regular course for credit, and it will be graded.
You also need to register for the essay or thesis as you would register
for a course. You do not have to have any particular grade point average
to write an essay or thesis; some restrictions do apply to an Honors essay
or thesis (see below). If you think you would like to write an essay or
thesis, the first step is to identify a few possible topics; then, you
should discuss your topic ideas with a faculty member in the department
who could serve as your advisor for the project. This person need not
be your academic advisor in the major, although it could be. If you need
help finding a faculty member to advise an essay or thesis, you can consult
with the Undergraduate Advising Head. In special cases, a faculty member
from another department may advise or co-advise an essay or thesis. After
you have found an advisor, you should write up a description of your essay
or thesis topic, have your advisor approve and sign it, and submit a copy
of the proposal to the Undergraduate Advising Head. You should plan to
complete these three steps (identifying topic, finding an advisor, and
submitting the proposal) before the end of the first week of the semester
in which you begin working on the essay or thesis. Realistically speaking,
you will probably want to complete these steps before the end of the preceding
semester. All other deadlines and procedures for researching and writing
the thesis are to be determined in consultation with the essay or thesis
advisor. Students writing a year-long thesis will need to find a second
faculty reader to whom they can submit a late draft of the thesis for
approval.
13. What does it take to be eligible for departmental honors in English?
Graduation with honors in English requires a GPA of 3.5 or higher in courses counting towards the major, and satisfactory completion of a Senior Honors Essay which counts as a 10th course. In rare cases, students may elect instead to complete the Senior Honors Thesis. See Departmental Senior Honors guide.
14. How can I get more information about graduate school in English?
If you are interested in learning more about graduate school in English,
you can speak with your advisor, the Undergraduate Advising Head, or any
professor in the department. It is a good idea to review websites of various
departments at other universities, so that you become familiar with their
admission requirements and areas of expertise. You may also wish to consult
the US News and
World Report rankings of various graduate programs, paying special
attention to the various subfields that interest you. The Hiatt Center
also regularly runs workshops for students interested in applying to graduate
school.
15. What good will an English major do me later in life? Why should I study English?
In addition to being inherently pleasurable and intellectually exciting,
a major or minor in English will help you develop important skills. English
majors and minors learn how to read carefully and closely, write skillfully
and stylishly, and argue analytically and critically. These "communications"
skills are widely in demand. Understanding the history and conflicts that
have shaped English-speaking cultures is also enormously valuable for
anyone interested in human services, politics, travel, cross-cultural
exchanges, or creative and artistic projects. Studying English can help
you perfect your understanding of a language that you already use and
enhance your appreciation for cultures you inhabit and/or recognize.
16. What are the special strengths of the Department of English and American Literature?
The faculty currently have special interest in a number of areas: women's
studies, gender and sexuality, modern American literature, Anglophone
literature and postcolonial theory, early modern (especially Renaissance)
English literature, literature and science, literary theory and philosophy,
and contemporary poetry. For further information on the research or teaching
interests of particular faculty members, please see the department's faculty
page and click on any name for a biography.
this page updated March 10, 2004