English

Chair: Associate Professor B. Kuhn
Faculty: Professors H. Jenkins, J. Smith; Associate Professors C. Bracken, A. Burkett (on leave Fall 2017 & Winter 2018), K. Doyle (on leave Fall 2017), J. Lewin, K. Lynes, J. Murphy, B. Tuon, P. Wareh ; Assistant Professors J. Mitchell, J. Troxell; D. Venning; Senior Lecturer A. Pease; Visiting Assistant Professors J. Sargent
Staff: Debora Catharine (Administrative Assistant)

Course Selection Guidelines

Placement: Unless they have scored a 5 on the AP English Literature or AP English Language test (see below), incoming students should enroll in EGL 100, EGL 101, or EGL 102; alternatively, they may choose to take a non-writing-intensive EGL course numbered 0-99 (see below, “courses Suitable for Non-Majors”).

Scores of “5” on AP English Exams:

The English department recognizes an AP score of 5 as sufficient preparation for study at the intermediate (200-) level; therefore, any students with this test score may choose to enroll at the 200-level in English without the 100-level prerequisite. Note: English majors and minors cannot, however, use this AP credit to reduce the number of courses taken to fulfill major or minor requirements. English majors with an AP 5 still need 12 courses (7 for minors/ 8 for IDs). With AP credit specifically offsetting a 100-level prerequisite, the number of required 100-levels is reduced to one for majors, and zero for minors and IDs; therefore, de facto, majors and minors with an AP 5 get to take an extra elective.

Currently at Union College, a grade of 4 or 5 on an AP English Literature or AP English Language test earns an unspecified course credit that may be counted toward graduation. However, all students still must fulfill the requirements of the Common Curriculum. AP credit does not fulfill or substitute for HUL or WAC requirements; students with AP 5s may choose to fulfill these requirements in English with an intermediate (200-) level EGL course instead of a 100-level course.

Courses Suitable for Non-Majors:

The English department occasionally offers Common Curriculum courses, intended for non-majors. These courses have numbers between 0 and 99, and are lecture-plus-exam courses rather than writing-intensive courses; however, they do carry HUL credit. Any student is welcome to enroll in a 100-level course after taking a course numbered 0-99, but there is no prerequisite for any 100-level course. Note: Common Curriculum courses do not count towards the English major or minor.

Non-majors and majors alike are welcome to enroll in EGL 100 , EGL 101 , or EGL 102 , which are suitable for non-majors. EGL 100 and 102 are petition courses so as to help process high demand.

Any student who has completed EGL 100, 101, or 102 may then enroll in any 200-level EGL course (see also AP 5 information above). All 200-level courses are equal in difficulty.

300 and 400 level EGL seminars are petition courses; they are intended mainly for majors, who will be given priority in enrollment. Depending upon demand within the major, some seats may be available for non-majors (at the discretion of the instructor).

Prerequisites:

EGL 100 , EGL 101 , or EGL 102 is a prerequisite for any 200-level course. (See AP5 information above)
To enroll in a 300-level EGL course, a student must have taken EGL 100 , EGL 101 , or EGL 102 and two 200-level EGL courses.
To enroll in a 400-level EGL course, a student must have taken two introductory courses (selecting from EGL 100 , EGL 101 , and EGL 102 ) and four 200-level EGL courses.

Enrollment Limits: Enrollment limits for the categories of courses are as follows:

60 for Common Curriculum Courses (0-99)
20 for Introductory Courses (100 level)
25 for Intermediate Courses (200 level)
15 for Advanced Junior and Senior Seminars (300 and 400 level)

For detailed information about English department courses and activities, consult handouts available in the English department office, or see the English Department’s webpage.

Click through below for specific information about major and minor requirements.

Programs

Major

English, B.A.

Interdepartmental Major

English (ID), B.A.

Minor

English Minor