Why Major in English?
Top 10 Reasons to Apply to the Undergraduate Program:
- Small classes are taught by actively publishing faculty
- Work with your professors on an individual level, and become the best writer possible
- Take Innovative World and Comparative Literature courses
- Explore American and British literature
- Opportunities to meet famous writers
- Career Writing Concentration prepares students to be writers and editors in the Silicon Valley
- One of the few English Teacher Credential programs approved under new State Guidelines
- Work on Reed Magazine, one of the oldest literary journals West of the Mississippi
- Numerous cash awards for student writing, creative and critical
- Businesses, non-profits, law schools and MBA programs prefer English as a major
Careers for English Majors
English majors enter a wide array of careers, including teaching, technical writing, graduate programs in English Law and Medicine, and industry. (See our Careers section.) The English and Comparative Literature Department offers programs of study in English, American, World, and Comparative Literature, and in Creative and Professional Writing. Sophisticated critical abilities and a knowledge of culture are the hallmarks of our program's graduates.
The Department
The Department offers a BA with a focus in Professional and Technical writing as well as literary study. It also offers a Master of Arts degree that develops further the literary, critical and creative abilities of students who want to go on to teaching careers or doctoral studies. The Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing trains professional writers in the history and craft of poetry, creative nonfiction, fiction and a track for those interested in script-and screen-writing.
Programs Within the Department
The Department of English and Comparative Literature supports active student organizations such as the English Society, Poets & Writers Coalition, English Graduate Group, and Society for Technical Communication. It is also home to the Steinbeck Fellows and the Lurie Chair, our annual writers-in-residence.
Know Your Professor
Faculty include instructors who are publishing poets and prose writers, scholars of literature and language, and active contributors to their fields nationally and internationally. English faculty have won university awards for superior teaching and professional accomplishment. Because the department takes seriously its mission to develop the reading and writing skills, interpretive ability and cultural awareness of all the university's students, it maintains a tradition of strong teaching, good scholarship and vigorous support of the literary arts. Majors, minors and general education students all have access to some of the best teachers and writers in the university.
Majors and Minors
The department offers a BA in English, BA with a concentration in Career Writing, BA in Education, BA in Creative Writing, MA in English and MFA in Creative Writing. Students majoring in other fields may elect to minor in literature, comparative literature, creative writing or technical writing. Look our Department's website for information, frequently asked questions and contact details. For further questions, contact our Department office: english@sjsu.edu.
