The English major consists of at least 27 hours of English beyond 101-102.

For the major, students must take three of the four British Literature period courses:

ENG 310 Anglo-Saxon and Medieval British Literature: 600 to 1500
ENG 320 Renaissance British Literature: 1500 to 1660
ENG 330 Restoration and Romantic British Literature: 1660 to 1830
ENG 340 Victorian and Modern British Literature: 1830 to Present

Likewise, majors must take two of the three American Literature courses:

ENG 350 Colonial and Early American Literature: 1620-1820
ENG 360 Romanticism, American Renaissance and Realism: 1820-1890
ENG 370 Naturalism and Modernism: 1890-Present

As these courses together comprise the core of the major, students are encouraged to take as many as possible before venturing into the more specialized courses at the 400 level.

In addition to the 15-hour minimum in historical period courses, students must also take at least 12 hours at the 400 level:

ENG 401 Special Studies in British Literature
ENG 402 Special Studies in American Literature
ENG 403 Special Studies in Western Literature
ENG 404 Special Studies in Genre, Literary Criticism and Writing

At least three of the four 400-level course areas must be represented, and at the instructor's discretion, prerequisites among the 300-level courses may apply to a specific course at the 400 level. Courses at the 400 level may be repeated as long as the specific topic for the course is not the same. Each semester, the Department will issue a bulletin (in time for registration) detailing the topics, instructors, and any prerequisites for its 400-level courses. Those bulletins will be available from the Department chair, secretary and/or web site.

With the permission of the English Department chair, up to three hours of credit from courses taken outside English may count toward the 400-level requirement in the major. Upper level offerings in the Departments of Theatre and Speech, Classical Studies, French, German, and Spanish are examples of courses that may qualify for this credit. These credits may not be used to count toward requirements in another major or minor. Likewise, no more than six hours of English credit, including Hillsdale-approved study-abroad credit, may be transferred in for the English major. Credit toward the major or minor in English is not granted for hours earned by Advanced Placement (AP) work.

Departmental Honors is a distinction available to graduating students given the following criteria. English majors who have a departmental G.P.A. of approximately 3.6 or higher and who wish to write an honors thesis must propose a thesis topic in the spring semester of the junior year and submit a formal application. This application will be reviewed by the entire Department. Applications are available from the Department chairman and must be submitted no later than October 1st. Only successful applicants will then be enrolled in English 575 during the spring semester of their senior year. Part of the application consists of securing a professor to be an advisor for the thesis, as well as a secondary reader for the completed thesis. These faculty will constitute the student's thesis committee. Honors will be granted only to those students whose thesis earns an "A-" or above and who maintain their departmental G.P.A. of 3.6 until graduation.

ENG 575 Senior Seminar and Thesis