Offering programs leading to the Bachelor of Arts and the Master of Arts degrees, the department provides courses that build on the traditional study of British and American literary history while encouraging students to further explore literary theory and criticism, world literatures and transnational critical paradigms, children’s literature, creative writing, rhetoric and composition, interdisciplinary cultural analysis, and the history and structure of the English language. For linguistics and literature courses ranging from general education through upper division major courses, preference will be given to applicants whose training and experience fills existing gaps in the department, including in the areas of African American Literatures, Transpacific Literatures, and Creative Writing.