Oct 13, 2024  
2015-2016 Undergraduate Bulletin 
    
2015-2016 Undergraduate Bulletin [ARCHIVED BULLETIN]

English (BA) and English and American Literature (MA), Dual-degree Program


*Not accepting applications at this time.*

Qualified undergraduate students may elect to enroll in a dual-degree program, combining their undergraduate bachelor’s degree in English with a Master of Arts in English and American literature. The dual-degree program requires the successful completion of 145 semester hours, including at least 112 semester hours at the undergraduate level and 33 semester hours at the graduate level. The dual-degree program can be completed in five years. Students who are admitted to the BA portion of the dual-degree program may substitute a maximum of 12 semester hours of graduate-level course work for an equal number of semester hours of undergraduate course work toward the completion of their bachelor’s degree.

Direct admission to the dual-degree program (BA and MA)


Students entering Hofstra as incoming freshmen may apply for direct admission to the dual-degree program. For those who choose to submit a standardized test score, an 1170 or better on the critical reading and mathematics sections of the SAT (or an ACT score of 25) is recommended.  Applicants must have an overall high school GPA of 3.5 (or be in the top 15 percent of their high school graduating class) in order to be considered for admission. Students admitted directly to the dual-degree program as incoming freshmen will be admitted automatically to the MA program at the end of their junior year through the standard graduate admissions process, provided that they fulfill the following requirements:

  1. Attain a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 at the time of application to the MA program and complete 75 semester hours of course work toward the BA in English.
  2. Maintain a minimum 3.5 GPA in the English major.
  3. Complete the first three years of the curriculum outlined below.
  4. Submit 1-2 letters of recommendation, at least one being from a Hofstra English professor.
  5. Submit a writing sample.

Admission requirements for currently enrolled Hofstra students


Qualified Hofstra students majoring in English may apply, through the Office of Graduate Admission, to the dual-degree program prior to successfully completing 75 semester hours of undergraduate course work. In order to qualify for admission to the dual-degree program, a student must have attained a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 at the time of application and a 3.5 in the English major. Students admitted to the dual-degree program should note that admission to the MA portion of the dual-degree program requires the fulfillment of the following requirements:

  1. Completion of 75 credits with a 3.0 overall GPA;
  2. Completion of 15 credits in English with at least 3 s.h. at Hofstra;
  3. Minimum GPA of 3.5 in the English major;
  4. Submission of 1-2 letters of recommendation, at least one being from a Hofstra English professor; and
  5. Submission of writing sample.

NOTE


Students must complete the BA before being permitted to take more than 12 semester hours of graduate courses for the MA program. Students in the combined program must maintain a 3.0 GPA overall and a 3.5 in the undergraduate major.

Undergraduate Program Requirements – Semester Hours: 39


39 semester hours in English and American literature as specified below.

1. Literary Analysis – Semester Hours: 6


2. Constructing Literature – Semester Hours: 9


3. ENGL 194 Junior/Senior Seminar - Semester Hours: 3


Majors must take ENGL 194 in their junior or senior year.

4. Pre-1800 Electives - Semester Hours: 6


In the final three semesters of undergraduate study, dual-degree candidates may, in consultation with the graduate director, substitute ENGL 291V and/or ENGL 291U for the equivalent number of semester hours of pre-1800 elective courses.

Chosen from the following:

5. Pre-1900 Electives - Semester Hours: 3


Chosen from the following:

6. General Electives - Semester Hours: 12


In the final three semesters of undergraduate study, dual-degree candidates may, in consultation with the graduate director, substitute up to 12 semester hours of graduate-level ENGL courses (listed below) for the equivalent number of semester hours of 100-level undergraduate general elective courses.

Note: The total number of graduate-level ENGL courses applied to undergraduate requirements may not exceed 12 semester hours.

  • ENGL 200 - The Analysis of Prose   Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 201 - Rhetoric Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 203 - Approaches to English Grammar Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 210 - 20th-Century American Fiction Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 250 A-Z - Independent Study Semester Hours: 1-3
  • ENGL 251 A-Z - Independent Study Semester Hours: 1-3
  • ENGL 252 A-Z - Independent Study  Semester Hours: 1-3
  • ENGL 261 - The American Renaissance, 1820-1860 Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 271A - Sources of the English Literary Tradition I: Studies in Chaucer, Spenser and Their Contemporaries.  Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 271B - Sources of the English Literary Tradition II: Studies in Chaucer, Spenser and Their Contemporaries Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 272 - Sources of the English Literary Tradition III: 17th- and 18th- Century English Literature Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 274 - Sources of the American Literary Tradition Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 291 A-Z - Special Studies Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 291U - Shakespeare Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 291V - Milton Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 292 A-Z - Special Studies Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 293 A-Z - Special Studies Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 294 A-Z - Special Studies Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 294U - Critical Theory Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 299 - Literary Research and Methods Semester Hours: 3

Graduate Program Requirements – Semester Hours: 33


Please contact Dr. Shari Zimmerman, director of graduate studies in English, for details about this program.

1. Required Course – Semester Hours: 3


  • ENGL 299 - Literary Research and Methods  Semester Hours: 3

      (See footnote*)

2. Distribution Requirements – Semester Hours: 6


6 s.h. (or two courses) in pre-1800 British or American Literature, chosen from the following:

  • ENGL 271A - Sources of the English Literary Tradition I: Studies in Chaucer, Spenser and Their Contemporaries. Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 271B - Sources of the English Literary Tradition II: Studies in Chaucer, Spenser and Their Contemporaries Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 272 - Sources of the English Literary Tradition III: 17th- and 18th- Century English Literature Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 291U - Shakespeare Semester Hours: 3
  • ENGL 291V - Milton Semester Hours: 3

Note


Under advisement of the graduate program director and when the topic pertains to pre-1800 British or American literature, students may register for 6 semester hours chosen from the following special studies courses:

  • ENGL 291-294 A-Z - Special Studies Semester Hours: 3 ea.

3. Electives – Semester Hours: 24


Among these eight electives (or 24 credits), students may take up to 3 semester hours of graduate creative writing course work, under advisement, and/or write a 3-credit master’s thesis (ENGL 301) under the direction of a faculty member of their choice.

Footnote*


*ENGL 299 should be completed during a student’s first year in the program.

Graduation Requirements


  1. Completion of all program requirements.
  2. A minimum grade point average of 3.0 in overall graduate course work.

The dual-degree program requires successful completion of 145 semester hours, including at least 112 semester hours at the undergraduate level and 33 semester hours at the graduate level.

Suggested Five-Year Sequence - Total Semester Hours: 145


First Year


FALL SEMESTER
Course
Semester Hours
WSC 001  3
Foreign Language 1 3
Humanities Distribution  3
Natural Sciences, Mathematics, Computer Science Distribution  3
Social Science Distribution: BH  3
Total 15

 

SPRING SEMESTER
Course Semester Hours
WSC 002  3
Foreign Language 2 3
ENGL 010  3
Natural Sciences, Mathematics, Computer Science Distribution  4
Social Science Distribution: BH  3
Total 16
TOTAL: 31 s.h.
 

Second Year


FALL SEMESTER
Course Semester Hours
ENGL 020  3
Foreign Language 3 3
ENGL 060  (fulfills Humanities LT) 3
Social Science Distribution: BH/HP  3
Natural Sciences, Mathematics, Computer Science Distribution  4
Total 16

 

SPRING SEMESTER
Course Semester Hours
ENGL 070  (fulfills Humanities LT) 3
Foreign Language 4 3
ENGL Pre-1800 Elective 3
Liberal Arts Elective 3
Interdisciplinary Distribution  3
Total 15
TOTAL: 62 s.h.

Third Year


FALL SEMESTER
Course Semester Hours
ENGL 080  3
ENGL 194  3
Liberal Arts Elective 3
Liberal Arts Elective 3
Cross-Cultural Distribution  3
Total 15
TOTAL: 75 s.h.
SPRING SEMESTER
Course Semester Hours
ENGL Pre-1900 Elective 3
ENGL Graduate Elective 3
English Elective 3
Liberal Arts Elective 3
Liberal Arts Elective 3
Total 15
TOTAL: 90 s.h.

Fourth Year


FALL SEMESTER
Course Semester Hours
ENGL 299 3
Liberal Arts Elective 3
Liberal Arts Elective 3
Liberal Arts Elective 3
Liberal Arts Elective 3
Liberal Arts Elective 2
Total 17

 

SPRING SEMESTER
Course Semester Hours
ENGL Graduate Elective 3
ENGL Graduate Elective 3
Liberal Arts Elective 3
Liberal Arts Elective 3
Liberal Arts Elective 3
Total 15

Awarding of BA Degree: 124 s.h.

Fifth Year


FALL SEMESTER
Course Semester Hours
Pre-1800 Graduate English Elective 3
Graduate English Elective 3
Graduate English Elective 3
Graduate English Elective 3
Total 12

 

SPRING SEMESTER
Course Semester Hours
Pre-1800 Graduate English Elective 3
Graduate English Elective 3
Graduate English Elective 3
Total 9

Awarding of MA degree: 145 s.h.