English and Literary Studies BA

The English and Literary Studies major at Ramapo College: Read Your World, Write Your Life.

English and Literary Studies majors are ready to embark on any number of exciting careers and graduate studies. English and Literary Studies students excel in the areas of publishing, government, business, law, and science—wherever articulate and creative expression is valued. The study of literature is also an excellent preparation for elementary or secondary teaching.

Ramapo’s English and Literary Studies majors make valuable connections in the community and professional world through coursework, internships, cooperative education, and service learning. They thrive in the worlds of publishing, writing, law, journalism, diplomacy, public relations, higher education, and library sciences.

Visit our Success Stories page and meet our graduates and current students.

The English and Literary Studies major does more than prepare students for the working world; it fosters thoughtful, informed, engaged individuals. Students develop the critical thinking, reading, research, and writing skills essential in our increasingly interconnected world. As literary critic M. H. Abrams writes, the study of literature "shows you possibilities you haven’t thought of. It enables you to live the lives of other people than yourself." Our students engage their imaginations through the study of literary texts that contain the history of our world.

The program balances American, British, world literatures, and creative writing through survey, seminar, and workshop courses. Students study genre, form, period, and theme; they develop skills in reading, criticism, and writing. Courses emphasize the interdisciplinary and multicultural dimensions of literature and life, firing the imagination and promote critically critically informed global citizens.

Besides English and Literary Studies, students may pursue the track in teacher education and concentrate in Creative Writing or Specialized Studies. Our students also edit Trillium, the College’s literary magazine. The Literature Club visiting writers series and Ramapo’s chapter of the national English Honor Society are ways our students engage our program on campus.

The College’s liberal arts mission is central to the English and Literary Studies program, the heart of which is the focus on interdisciplinarity, multiculturalism, and global connectivity.

"Literature is the most astonishing technological means that humans have created, and now practiced for thousands of years, to capture experience." - Stephen Greenblatt

An program and a program are also offered.

Goal 1: Read diverse literary works and be able to articulate their aesthetic qualities, and historical and human insights.

Outcome 1: Students will practice close reading.

Outcome 2: Students will demonstrate understanding of the interconnectedness of authors, literary traditions, theoretical approaches, and forms.

Goal 2: Develop an understanding of the formal, historical, and theoretical aspects of literature and the English language.

Outcome 3: Students will write well and creatively.

Outcome 4: Students will perform literary research accessing primary, secondary, and visual source materials in various ways, including electronic databases.

Outcome 5: Students will speak effectively in scholarly and creative contexts.

Outcome 6: Students will apply the tools of digital humanities to the study of literature.

Outcomes for the Creative Writing and Specialized Studies concentrations:

Outcome 1: Students will be proficient in key aspects of craft in the production of particular genres of Creative Writing, including Poetry, Fiction and Personal Essay.

Outcome 2: Students will demonstrate ability to provide critique of peer work that includes particular craft terminology.