2018-2019 Undergraduate Catalog/Handbook 
    
    Mar 18, 2024  
2018-2019 Undergraduate Catalog/Handbook [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

English (including Theatre Arts)


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English majors receive the Bachelor of Arts degree and choose from two distinct concentrations in Literature or Writing. In addition, the department also offers a Theatre Arts major also leading to the Bachelor of Arts degree. Students may earn provisional teaching licenses under the Literature/Secondary Education concentration. Non‑majors also may include in their programs one or more of the department’s three minors: Literature, Theatre, and Writing. Department courses afford opportunities for developing the crucial skills of analysis, synthesis, comprehensive and critical reading, extended and incisive writing, and clear thinking. In addition, English study provides, through rigorous analysis of major literary works, a unique experience in recognizing, evaluating, and articulating human values, motives, and qualities. Offerings in Theatre and Writing encourage students to develop their talents in theatrical performance and creative writing.

Westfield State University offers students a fully-equipped professional theater, access to the campus television and radio station, a weekly college newspaper, the latest computer equipment, and a literary magazine publishing outstanding student writing. A popular and successful feature in the department is its internship program whereby students gain valuable on‑the‑job experience with television and radio stations, newspapers, a professional theater, business organizations, and social services agencies.

Recent graduates majoring in English have accepted positions as teachers, reporters and editors, television staff members, theater directors, and corporate public relations officers. Some graduates have entered management training programs; others have gone on to graduate or professional schools.

Internship

Writing Concentration students are required to complete one 3-credit internship in English, ENGL 0380  , which provides supervised work experience in a non-classroom context and setting.  Taken during the Junior or Senior year, students apply skills learned in the program in occupational settings with real-world consequences.  Through the Internship, students may elect to complete up to 12 credits for on or off-campus work experience.  Work experience gained through the Internship typically culminates in a more competitive post-graduate job placement or graduate school acceptance rate.  For Writing Concentrations majors it is a critical part of their preparation for entering the workforces, 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.

Programs

Courses

    Composition, Writing, and LiteratureTheatre ArtsPage: 1 | 2

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