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Welcome to the WKU English Department!


If you're reading this page, you are at least considering a major--and/or minor--in English. To study English can mean very different things, and this journey can take you in many different directions as you look to life after college. Your family and perhaps your friends are asking you, "Why English?" That's a good question.

english class 2020

 

Many students choose English because they love to read and/or write, though they might not have given a great deal of thought to why, or to how this will ultimately benefit them. To studyliterature is to study the human condition, in all its glory and in all its ignominy. As such, literature is a multi-faceted subject, one that incorporates a variety of other disciplines including history, psychology, sociology, religion, political science, anthropology, and art, among others. So to be a student of literature is to be a student of life. But literature is only one possibility.

  • Interested in how we use language to express ideas, to make sense of inchoate thought, to persuade, to make arguments, to make things happen? Try composition and rhetoric.
  • Interested in teaching English in high school? Then English for Secondary Teachers is the major for you. Want to try your hand at teaching English to non-native speakers, perhaps in a foreign country? Then study Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL).
  • Want to write novels or short stories? Poems? Biography or memoir? To express your creativity with words? To give voice to what means to be human? Then creative writing is your best choice.
  • Or perhaps you want to write for more practical purposes, say, to spread information, to explain how something works, to inspire philanthropy. Then professional writing is the way to go.
  • Interested in how language works? In how we acquire language, how various dialects develop, how usage varies depending on one's gender, religion, or class, how language is structured? Try Teaching English as a Second Language.
  • Interested in graduate studies in English? See our Graduate Degree Program page

No matter what you choose to emphasize (and you're not limited to one of these), you will develop a prodigious skill set that will serve you well the rest of your life. English majors, curious and analytical, practice critical thinking and are better writers than most. They are good at drawing generalities from particulars, they are articulate, they appreciate the nuances of language (and are therefore not easily manipulated by it), and they develop the ability to see things from multiple points of view. In short, they are prepared to pursue a plethora of professions, limited only by their desires. For more specifics, see our Career Guide.

If you'd like to see some of the great opportunities and activities WKU English students can participate in, check out our Current Students page.


 

To talk with a faculty member about one or more of these possibilities, just email one of the following faculty members:

Composition or Rhetoric: Dr. David LeNoir

Creative Writing:  Dr. Rebbecca Brown

English for Secondary Teachers: Dr. Peggy Otto

Literature: Dr. Alison Langdon

Professional Writing: Dr. Jeffrey Rice

Teaching English as a Second Language and Linguistics: Dr. Alex Poole

Graduate Studies: Dr. Wes Berry

For general questions or information, don't hesitate to contact me (Dr. Rob Hale)

 

 

 


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 Last Modified 4/24/18