English, Writing Concentration, B.A.

Offerings in the Writing Concentration encourage students to develop their talents in three disciplinary areas: creative writing, professional writing, and rhetoric. Every student is also required to take at least one semester-long internship, and most students choose to study one area of writing in more depth, such as poetry or prose (fiction, creative nonfiction, playwriting, screenwriting) in the creative area, or journalism (feature writing, editing, sportswriting) or teaching of writing in the professional area.

Requirements For All English Majors

A minimum of 45 credits is required within the English major.
Completion of at least two college semesters of one foreign language is required, unless during high school the student has (a) completed three years of study of one foreign language, or (b) completed two years of study in each of two foreign languages. A student may also satisfy the foreign language requirement by passing a proficiency examination designed nationally and administered locally.
Students who transfer into the English major from other institutions must complete 21 credit hours in English at Westfield State University.

Students may satisfy three of the required six credits in the Literary and Philosophical analysis area of the core with any of the courses on the following list. English Education students may satisfy all 6 of the required Literary and Philosophical analysis credits with courses from this list.

ENGL 0112 - Black American Stories Credits: 3
ENGL 0115 - Indigenous American Stories Credits: 3
ENGL 0117 - Asian American Literature and Culture Credits: 3
ENGL 0210 - British Literature to 1780 Credits: 3
ENGL 0212 - Exploring British Literature Since 1780 Credits: 3
ENGL 0216 - Exploring American Literature to 1865 Credits: 3
ENGL 0217 - Exploring American Literature since 1865 Credits: 3
ENGL 0218 - Postcolonial Literature and Theory Credits: 3

Requirements for the Writing Concentration - 45 Credits

Students completing the Writing Concentration take four courses (or 12 credits) in the Literature area as defined below, and eleven courses (or 33 credits) in the Writing area for a total of 45 credits.

Literature - 12 Credits

A total of four courses (12 credits) are required according to the following distribution:

One course must be a Diverse Literary Traditions course (indicated with *).

Writing - 27 Credits

Creative Writing:

ENGL 0130 - Creative Writing Credits: 3
ENGL 0335 - Special Topics in Creative Writing Credits: 3
ENGL 0241 - Creative Non-Fiction Credits: 3
ENGL 0242 - Writing Fiction Credits: 3
ENGL 0346 - Writing Poetry Credits: 3
ENGL 0361 - Advanced Poetry Writing Credits: 3
ENGL 0371 - Playwriting Credits: 3
ENGL 0381 - Advanced Prose Writing Credits: 3
ENGL 0385 - Screenwriting for Feature Film Credits: 3

Professional Writing:

ENGL 0276 - Writing About the Arts Credits: 3
ENGL 0285 - Basics of Film Writing Credits: 3
ENGL 0305 - Grant Writing Credits: 3
ENGL 0331 - Special Topics in Professional Writing Credits: 3
ENGL 0337 - Visual Rhetoric for Publishing Professionals Credits: 3
ENGL 0342 - The Freelancer Credits: 3

Journalism:

ENGL 0275 - Journalism I Credits: 3
or COMM 0275 - Journalism I Credits: 3
ENGL 0375 - Journalism II Credits: 3
or COMM 0375 - Journalism II Credits: 3
ENGL 0377 - Feature Writing Credits: 3
ENGL 0394 - News Editing Credits: 3
or COMM 0394 - News Editing
ENGL 0395 - Sports Writing Credits: 3
or COMM 0395 - Sports Writing Credits: 3
COMM 0332 - Writing for the Interactive Media Credits: 3

Rhetoric and Writing:

ENGL 0301 - Tutoring Writing Credits: 2-3
ENGL 0302 - Writing Matters: History, Theory, Technology, and Action Credits: 3
ENGL 0303 - Persuasive Communication Credits: 3
or COMM 0303 - Persuasive Communication Credits: 3
ENGL 0334 - Special Topics in Rhetoric Credits: 3
ENGL 0347 - Advanced Critical Writing Credits: 3
ENGL 0383 - Teaching Writing: Issues in Rhetoric and Composition Credits: 3

Career Planning - 6 Credits

Writing Concentration students are required to complete two courses in Career Preparation, ENGL 0329 and ENGL 0380 . A 3-credit internship in English provides supervised work experience in a non-classroom context and setting. During their junior or senior year, students apply skills learned in the program in occupational settings and real-world situations. Work experience gained through the Internship typically culminates in a more competitive post-graduate job placement or graduate school acceptance. For Writing Concentration students an internship is a critical part of their preparation for entering the workforce, and interns often parlay their experience directly into paid employment as an extension of their professional relationship with their respective organizations when their internships are completed. Career Preparation for Writers, ENGL 0329, helps to ensure that students develop the tools they need to be professional writers, including putting together portfolios, preparing job materials, and writing personal statements.

ENGL 0329 - Career Preparation for Writers Credits: 3
ENGL 0380 - Internship in English Credits: 3-12

Additional Graduation Requirements

All students must meet the University Graduation Requirements and complete a general education or common core of studies, distributed among the different academic areas as detailed in General Education: WISE or Common Core .