Creative Writing Major – Bachelor of Fine Arts

Program Competencies

  1. Students distinguish features of major literary genres.
  2. Students recognize works by major authors.
  3. Students create original works of fiction.
  4. Students create original poems.
  5. Students create original essays.
  6. Students critique peers' work.

Assessment

  1. Survey of graduates
  2. Portfolio
  3. Annual assessment of original works of creative writing via a cumulative portfolio
  4. Yearly progress reports
  5. Assessment of senior thesis - all graduating BFA candidates are required to present a senior thesis in the form of a cumulative portfolio that contains a collection of the student's best writing. This portfolio will be discussed during a 30-minute defense in which the student will be required to discuss the work, its literary influences, ideas toward publication, process, etc.


Program Requirements

The BFA in creative writing diverges from the BA in English in its significantly greater concentration on the study of creative writing (requiring 18 credit hours in creative writing and a senior creative thesis).

General Education

General Education Courses(See GNED Course Listings)

33

Total Credit Hours:33

Refer to the General Education section for a complete listing of general education requirements for the University. Program requirements that are also general education requirements will count in both places (as applicable).

Major Requirements

Creative Writing Requirements

ENG 395Poetry Writing

3

ENG 396Fiction Writing

3

ENG 397Writing Creative Nonfiction

3

CRW 499CSenior Thesis

3

Total Credit Hours:12
Select three courses from the following:
ENG 483Advanced Poetry Writing

3

ENG 484Advanced Fiction Writing

3

ENG 485Advanced Nonfiction Writing

3

THEA 412Playwriting

3

Total Credit Hours:9

Literature Cornerstone

ENG 300Introduction to the Study of Literature in English

3

Total Credit Hours:3

ENG 300: only offered in spring

Literature Surveys

Select three of the following:
ENG 331British Literature to 1789

3

ENG 332British Literature since 1789

3

ENG 341American Literature to 1865

3

ENG 342American Literature since 1865

3

Total Credit Hours:9

Literature and Linguistics electives

Select three of the following, no more than one course from a specific area:

Linguistics
ENG 305Introduction to Linguistics

3

ENG 315Structure of English

3

ENG 393History of the English Language

3

ENG 394Language and Society

3

ENG 401Semantics

3

ENG 404Advanced Syntax

3

Cultural Diversity
ENG 311Global English Literature

3

ENG 320Women Writers and Feminist Perspectives

3

ENG 348African American Literature

3

ENG 360Appalachian Literature

3

ENG 365Literature of the South

3

ENG 398Gay and Lesbian Literature

3

Literary Period
ENG 422Studies in American Literature to 1900

3

ENG 423Studies in American Literature, 1900-1965

3

ENG 424Studies in Contemporary American Literature

3

ENG 436The English Renaissance

3

ENG 441Restoration and Eighteenth-Century British Literature

3

ENG 442Romantic Writers

3

ENG 443Victorian Writers

3

ENG 444British Literature since 1901

3

Major Author
ENG 435Shakespeare

3

ENG 495Seminar: Major Writers

3

Genre
ENG 344The Short Story and the Novel

3

ENG 432The British Novel

3

ENG 435Shakespeare

3

ENG 453Modern Drama

3

ENG 455Early Dramatic Literature

3

ENG 463American Fiction

3

ENG 466American Poetry

3

ENG 470Film and Literature

3

Total Credit Hours:9

Supplemental Requirements

ENG 293Creative Writing I

3

Foreign Language one course above 101-level in any foreign language

3

Total Credit Hours:6

Minor

All majors must also include a minor or additional major. See Terms to Know.
Total Credit Hours:21

Free Electives

Free Electives (chosen by student)

variable

Total Credit Hours: 120