English Department

The English Department offers two bachelor’s degree programs: a major in English and a major in Creative Writing & Literature. Students in both majors choose from a rich variety of courses in literature, culture, and rhetoric that foregrounds learning from diverse perspectives.

English majors read, discuss, and write about poetry, fiction, nonfiction, dramatic literature, and theoretical texts in a collaborative learning environment with professors and peers. English courses introduce students to literary, linguistic, and textual practices across different periods and cultures. In these courses, students learn to write for and address different audiences within a range of contexts and media, including audio, visual, and print. In addition to the general English major, Wheaton offers concentrations for students who want to focus on a particular area, outlined below.

In creative writing courses, students learn to explore their own voices while developing and refining craft in poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and playwriting as they discover which literary genres most attract them. Via sharing works-in-progress in a supportive and rigorous workshop setting facilitated by their professors, Creative Writing & Literature majors create, perform, and publish original works as poets and essayists, fiction writers, playwrights, and journalists — all supported by two student-run literary magazines, Rushlight and Smudge, and three annual play festivals.

Wheaton’s English students have close relationships with their professors in smaller class settings, in research collaborations, and in individual conferences. They go on to become writers, editors, content creators, project managers, analysts, researchers, and more in nearly every profession from publishing and marketing to law and healthcare. They’re also well-prepared for law school or graduate study in English, Creative Writing, library science, and teaching.

Browse all English courses on the Course Catalog.