COURSE CURRICULUM

The Bachelor of Arts (BA) in English Language and Literature at Wichita State University is a 120-credit-hour program designed to build strong analytical, writing, and literary interpretation skills while allowing students to specialize through a structured set of core requirements and electives. The major itself consists of 34 credit hours, with only 3 credit hours permitted at the 200-level, ensuring that most coursework is completed at an advanced academic level. Alongside university general education requirements and Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences competencies, students begin with foundational courses such as Introduction to English Studies (ENGL 325), which introduces key approaches to literary analysis, and an English Career Seminar (ENGL 198), which helps students connect their studies to professional pathways. The curriculum then requires a multicultural literature component, where students select courses such as World Literature, African-American Literature, American Multicultural Literature, or other ethnic studies offerings to develop a broad understanding of global and diverse literary traditions. Students also complete period-based requirements that ensure exposure to both early and later literary traditions, choosing from options such as Medieval Literature, Renaissance Literature, Restoration and 18th Century Literature, Romantic and Victorian Literature, Modern and Contemporary British Literature, and major American literature sequences, allowing for balanced historical coverage of English and American writing. A central feature of the program is the capstone experience, ENGL 590 Senior Seminar, where students complete advanced research and synthesis work that demonstrates mastery of literary study and critical thinking. In addition, students take 18 credit hours of English electives, which may be concentrated in areas such as creative writing, professional writing and editing, linguistics, or text technologies, giving flexibility to align the degree with career goals. The remaining credits are completed through open electives to reach the 120-hour graduation requirement. Overall, the program emphasizes advanced reading, writing, research, and interpretive skills, preparing graduates for careers in education, publishing, media, communications, law, and other fields requiring strong analytical and communication abilities.