Caldwell University
Caldwell University is a private, accredited Catholic university in Caldwell, NJ offering bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees and a vibrant campus life complete with rewarding activities, clubs, and service opportunities.
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Bachelor of Arts in English
Want to learn more? Speak with an admissions counselor.
Did you know that you can leverage your strong English skills to earn your MBA with only one additional year on campus? Learn more about how Caldwell’s five-year B.A./MBA program can elevate your earning potential after graduation.
The Bachelor of Arts in English encourages you to think critically and write both persuasively and creatively, as well as perform publicly with attention to developing voice and an awareness of audience. Within the major, you may elect to pursue one of two additional options: the Drama Minor or the Creative Writing and Performance Concentration.
In addition to six required literature courses, you will draw from a wide variety of electives, including:
- Children’s Literature
- Global Literature
- Literature and the Environment
- Literature and Diversity
Courses in the Creative Writing and Performance concentration include:
- Writing the Self in Poetry and Prose
- Modern Drama in Performance
- Journal Editing
The Journal Editing course engages students in reading submissions to the professional, international print poetry journal, Presence, using a leading online submissions platform, Submittable.com.
The department offers a B.A. degree in English.
Admission Requirements:
A student must be accepted into the program through the School of Education (see the School of Education Catalog Information for education requirements).
Statement of Outcomes Assessment
As a final requirement for graduation, English majors will complete EN410 which will encompass their outcome assessment requirement. See Chair for more information.
Courses
Admission Requirements
A student must be accepted into the program through the School of Education (see the School of Education Catalog Information for education requirements).
STUDENTS WHO MAJOR IN ENGLISH MUST COMPLETE:
Foundations of Western Literature
Course Code : EN 301
Course Description :
Surveys major literary texts in the history of western and world literature with an emphasis on those considered essential to an understanding of British and American literature.
Credit : 3
Prerequisites :
EN111, EN320, EN COR 1
British Literature
Course Code : EN 306
Course Description :
Covers the development of English literature from early medieval to modern times, including readings from representative authors of each period.
Credit : 3
Prerequisites :
EN COR 1, EN111, EN320
Literary Studies
Course Code : EN 216
Course Description :
In this course, we will learn key literary terms and concepts necessary for literary analysis, as well as the timeframes and characteristics of the major literary periods. Using a range of literature, from poetry to plays, we will also consider contemporary critical approaches to literature, including cultural studies, feminist, psychoanalytic, Marxist, African American, and postcolonial criticism, eco-criticism, and queer theory. We will examine the various theories as well as the assumptions and values upon which they rely in seminar form, further developing the tools of literary analysis. Alongside developing critical thinking, writing, and research-based skills, we will learn about the myriad career and postgraduate options for people with degrees in English.
Credit : 3
Prerequisites :
EN111, EN320, EN COR 1
Capstone E-Portfolio Project
Course Code : EN 410
Course Description :
One of the final courses that an English major takes, the "Capstone ePortfolio Project" offers students the opportunity to revisit several papers written for English classes taken at Caldwell University. In this capstone course, students will heavily revise these papers according to certain guidelines, incorporate the process of self-reflection, and ultimately create an e-portfolio that will showcase their accomplishments as English majors. *Formerly English Seminar through Spring 2019.
Credit : 3
Prerequisites :
EN COR 1, EN111, EN320
American Literature
Course Code : EN 305
Course Description :
Surveys over three hundred years of American literature beginning with the Puritans and other early English settlers and ending in the first half of the twentieth century, with an emphasis on the nineteenth century. Ranging across a variety of genres, modes, and literary movements, from the early Puritan plain style to the nineteenth-century American literary Renaissance, from realism and regional local color writing to modernism, from Realism to the Harlem Renaissance, this class will explore how American writers have created an American subject.
Credit : 3
Prerequisites :
EN COR 1, EN111, EN320
OR
The American Novel
Course Code : EN 313
Course Description :
What makes an American novel How did the American novel help to create a myth of national origins for the United States What role did the American novel play in shaping the cultural, political, economic, and social debates that arose as the United States grew from young nation to 20th-century world superpower How does the American novel work to effect social change and advocate for social justice In answering these questions and others, we will explore the development of the novel in America, spanning roughly three hundred years from late-18th-century novels of seduction through American literary nationalism and the American literary Renaissance into turn-of-the-century naturalism and realism and, finally, the 20th century. Students will gain a broad understanding of the development, modes, and major themes of the American novel as we explore how American writers have created an American subject.
Credit : 3
Prerequisites :
EN111, EN COR 1, EN320
Shakespeare: Plays of Politics
Course Code : EN 326
Course Description :
Explores Shakespeare's interpretation of the use and abuse of political power while tracing his dramatic development through critical reading of representative plays.
Credit : 3
Prerequisites :
EN COR 1, EN320, EN111
OR
Shakespeare: Plays of Love
Course Code : EN 327
Course Description :
Explores Shakespeare's use and interpretation of the literary conventions of love while tracing his dramatic development through critical reading of representative plays and sonnets.
Credit : 3
Prerequisites :
EN COR 1, EN111, EN320
Take five additional English Courses with Advisement.
CREATIVE WRITING AND PERFORMANCE CONCENTRATION
English majors wishing to concentrate on writing and/or performance must complete the following:
- 5 required courses for the English major
- 3 upper-level literature electives
- any 3 electives from among the following writing/performance courses:
Great Drama in Performance
Course Code : DR 202
Course Group(s) : Communication & Media Studies Electives
Course Description :
Introduces students to performance styles and conditions across the centuries.
Credit : 3
Modern and Contemporary Drama in Performance
Course Code : DR 203
Course Group(s) : Communication & Media Studies Electives
Course Description :
Focuses on a range of twentieth century scripts, styles and conditions.
Credit : 3
Shakespeare in Performance
Course Code : DR 204
Course Group(s) : Communication & Media Studies Electives
Course Description :
Introduces students to the study of Shakespearean drama as a performing art.
Credit : 3
Creative Writing: Writing the Self in Poetry & Prose
Course Code : EN 419
Course Description :
Writing the Self in Poetry and Prose is a hybrid literature/creative writing/performance course that allows students to explore the possibilities for self-expression in poetry and personal essays. Students read and analyze examples of personal essays and lyric poetry by published authors; read and discuss a guidebook discussion of craft; write their own pieces in a collaborative, workshop setting that encourages critique and revision; and, ultimately, perform selected pieces for their classmates and/or a campus audience in a campus venue. Though there will be a strong autobiographical element in the writing studied and produced for the course, students will also be encouraged to think about how their experiences and concerns as individual writers intersect with the wider world and can be expressed in ways that will engage an audience.
Does not fuflill CORE effective Fall 2022.
Formerly, EN319 SU24 and earlier.
Credit : 3 – 3
Writing Power
Course Code : EN 320
Course Group(s) : Literature Course Electives
Course Description :
Offers an intensive writing workshop for students determined to advance from average to superior writing performance. Emphasis on effective strategies for producing compelling prose in many disciplines. Chair’s permission required. Does not fulfill core literature requirement.
Credit : 3
Journal Editing: Presence
Course Code : EN 323
Course Description :
This course will enable students to exercise a critical eye when selecting poems submitted by a wide variety of contemporary poets on the basis of their artistic merit. Students read submissions using Submittable, the journal industry's leader in submissions software. Selected poems are published in the next annual issue of the international print poetry journal, Presence: A Journal of Catholic Poetry. Students' names appear under the category "Undergraduate Reader" on the issue's mast page. They read articles involved in understanding the cultural milieu from which the journal was conceived as well as examine the contents of other current literary journals devoted to the intersection of literature and religious faith or spirituality in order to determine Presence's contribution to this field. Students write short book reviews of recently published collections of poems. Excerpts from these student reviews are posted on the journal's website: www.catholicpoetryjournal.com.
Credit : 3
Writing for the Professions
Course Code : EN 338
Course Description :
Focuses on the professional writing required in a variety of professional fields such as education, finance, publishing, health professions, communications and others. Students work on the various genres of professional writing, including proposals, press releases, business plans, reports, feature articles, op-ed essays, letters, memos, and electronic formulations. Does not fulfill core literature requirement.
Credit : 3
Instruction methods : Lecture: 3 Hours
Prerequisites :
EN111, EN320
Creative Writing: Short Story & Poetry
Course Code : EN 406
Course Description :
Offers an intensive exploration of the short story and lyric poetry. A workshop for students interested in developing creative talents. Opportunity for publication in literary magazine. Does not fulfill core literature requirement.
Credit : 3
Prerequisites :
EN COR 1, EN111, EN320
Guilty Pleasures: Reading and Writing Genre Fiction
Course Code : EN 418
Course Description :
When we stay up far into the night reading a novel instead of sleeping, chances are that the book in question is not one of the “classics” typically enshrined in literature anthologies and taught in college English courses but a psychological thriller, romance novel, detective story, horror novel or science fiction narrative. For many of us, these and other forms of genre fiction constitute a vital part of our extracurricular reading—the reading we do, perhaps somewhat guiltily, for fun. Guilty Pleasures: Reading and Writing Genre Fiction starts from the premise that we need not apologize for the pleasure we find in the books of Stephen King or Octavia Butler or Patricia Highsmith—to take three well-known examples—that genre fiction often has great literary value, and that it can teach us a lot about how fiction works. This course introduces students to some of the best short fiction in a selected genre and helps them apply what they have learned in short stories of their own creation. Does not fulfill core literature requirement.
Credit : 3
Students concentrating in these areas must write the same comprehensive essay for outcomes assessment as all English majors.
Your degree includes credits from Liberal Arts and Sciences Core, Major, and Electives.
Total Credits 120
Capstone Project
An important part of the English major’s academic career at the University is the EN 410 Senior Portfolio Project. Throughout the course, you will be asked to reflect on your growth as a writer while collecting feedback and revising four 300-level essays. Completing an ePortfolio allows you to properly showcase some of your best work for future job and academic endeavors.
Internships
English majors are strongly encouraged to participate in one or more internships. In recent years, students have worked for Saturday Night Live, The Daily Show, The Late Show with David Letterman, NJ Kids Directory, The Poetry Center at Passaic County Community College, as well as for Calyx, the student-driven literary magazine of Caldwell University and for the media relations department at Caldwell. They have also assisted professional writers with research projects and worked at area public libraries. The department is also able to offer opportunities to intern in the area of grant writing.
Recent Graduates
Caldwell English major graduates find rewarding careers in many fields where the ability to write clearly and synthesize complex ideas for a wider audience is important: marketing, business administration, publishing, advertising, technical writing, software development, medical humanities, health care, finance, the charitable and nonprofit sector and, of course, elementary and high-school education. Recent graduates have also completed M.A. degrees in English and M.F.A. degrees in creative writing to teach courses at the college level. Others have pursued graduate degrees in the fields of law, history, library science, and education administration. Still others write for professional publications.
Helpful Links
Majoring in English at Caldwell University Powerpoint
Presence: A Journal Of Catholic Poetry
Undergraduate English Major Comprehensive Portfolio Assessment
Related Programs
Undergraduate Education Programs
Interested in a teaching career? At Caldwell, you can double major in English and Education (K-6 or K-12) to work toward a teacher certification.
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