English, Secondary Education, B.A.
North Carolina needs teachers. Students who major in English with High School Licensure receive excellent preparation through the University’s Department of English and the School of Education. Graduates go on to teach not only in North Carolina, but also in states with which North Carolina has reciprocal licensure agreements.
This Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) and North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) accredited program has an excellent placement record. It is designed for students who want to teach high school English, although majors often go on to graduate school in English or other professional schools such as law, medicine, or education.
The preparation for English education is rigorous so future teachers become well informed about theory and practice and concerned about diversity, community, and their ongoing professional growth. Graduates also experience success and flexibility in careers as diverse as writing, publishing, journalism, broadcasting and marketing, as well as educational administration, law, business, library and information science, health care, politics and more.
Additional guidance is available from the Director of English Education.
Overall Requirements
- 120 credit hours, to include at least 36 credits at or above the 300 course level.
- Minimum of 33 credits of English at the 200-level or above is required. 18 credit hours must be taken at the 300-level or above, excluding ENG 327.
- No requirement for the major may be met by a grade lower than C-.
Degree Program Requirements
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| University Requirements | ||
| General Education Requirements (MAC) | ||
| College of Arts and Sciences Additional Requirements (CIC) | ||
Major Requirements
In this 33 credit hour major, students take 21 credits (7 courses) from the 6 categories below. The remaining 12 credits leave room for students to pursue elective courses in a range of topics in literature, rhetoric, and creative writing. Courses must be taken at the 200-level or above. 18 credits must be taken at the 300-level or above, excluding ENG 327.
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Big Questions | 3 | |
These courses explore how the study of literature and rhetoric addresses significant philosophical, historical, and social issues. Each course will have its own question that will vary depending on the instructor. | ||
Select one of the following: | ||
| Big Questions in the Humanities and Fine Arts | ||
| Big Questions in Health and Wellness | ||
| Big Questions in Diversity and Equity | ||
| Big Questions in Global Engagement and Intercultural Learning | ||
| Historical Depth and Context | 3 | |
These courses emphasize how authors, rhetors, and texts participate in the historical dynamics of their time. Classes may focus on earlier writers and writings, longer spans of time, or an in-depth analysis of a particular historical moment. | ||
Select one of the following: | ||
| Postcolonial Literatures | ||
| Dante in English | ||
| Introduction to Chaucer | ||
| English Literature to 1500 | ||
| Shakespeare: Early Plays and Sonnets | ||
| Shakespeare: Later Plays | ||
| The Seventeenth Century | ||
| Topics in Pre-1800 Literature | ||
| The Romantic Period | ||
| The Victorian Period | ||
| English Literature from Victorian to Modern | ||
| The American Novel through World War I | ||
| The Restoration and the Eighteenth Century | ||
| Literary Study of the Bible | ||
| Early American Literature | ||
| American Romanticism | ||
| American Realism and Naturalism | ||
| English Drama to 1800 | ||
| Marginalized and Minoritized Writers | 3 | |
These courses focus on writers and rhetors from groups that have been marginalized, historically and in the present. | ||
Select one of the following: | ||
| Studies in Human Rights and Literature | ||
| Women in Literature | ||
| English Women Writers before 1800 | ||
| Early African American Writers | ||
| Topics in Native American and Indigenous Studies | ||
| African American Writers after the 1920s | ||
| Topics in Queer and Trans Studies | ||
| American Women's Writing | ||
| Feminist Theory and Women Writers | ||
| Theories and Methods | 3 | |
In these courses, students develop facility with critical tools for analysis, inquiry, interpretation, and research that they can use to approach many different types of texts. | ||
Select one of the following: | ||
| Topics in Theory and Method | ||
| Literary Theory | ||
| History and Theory of Rhetoric | ||
| Contemporary Rhetoric | ||
| Digital Rhetoric | ||
| World Literature | 3 | |
Select one of the following: | ||
| European Literary Classics: Ancient to Renaissance | ||
| Nonwestern Literary Classics | ||
| Topics in Global Literature | ||
| Topics in Non-Western Literature | ||
| Additional Requirements | 6 | |
| Linguistics for Teachers | ||
| The Teaching of Writing | ||
| English Elective Requirements * | 12 | |
Select 12 additional credits of ENG electives. | ||
Courses must be taken at the 200-level or above. At least 3 credits of ENG electives must be taken at the 300-level or above, excluding ENG 327. | ||
- *
Courses not used to fulfill core requirements above.
Secondary Subject Area Licensure Requirements
Besides completing the above courses in English, candidates for teaching licensure must meet additional requirements, including admission to teacher education (end of sophomore year) and to student teaching (junior year), successful completion of Praxis, and course work outside the English Department. For full current information about all requirements contact the School of Education Office of Student Services at 336-334-3410 and consult the UNC Greensboro Teacher Education Handbook.
Note: Admission to teacher education and student teaching in English requires a minimum grade point average of 2.75, overall and in the major.
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Secondary Subject Area Licensure Requirements | 27 | |
| The following courses must be taken in a specified sequence, terminating in student teaching in the spring semester of the senior year. See the online Secondary Education Handbook for more information. | ||
| Literacy in the Content Area | ||
| Measurement and Assessment in Teaching | ||
| Educational Psychology for the Secondary Grades | ||
| Human Diversity, Teaching, and Learning | ||
| Teaching Practices and Curriculum in English | ||
| Student Teaching: Secondary School | ||
| Student Teaching Seminar | ||
Strongly Recommended | ||
| Introduction to Instructional Technology for Educational Settings | ||
Electives
Select electives sufficient to complete the 120 credit hours required for degree.
Disciplinary Honors in English
Requirements
- A minimum of 12 credit hours as defined below.
- UNC Greensboro cumulative GPA of 3.30 or better or, for transfer students, cumulative GPA of 3.30 or better from all prior institutions.
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required | 3 | |
| Senior Honors Project | ||
| Select 9 credits of Honors course work, at least 6 of which must be in English. Honors course work may consist of any combination of the courses listed below: | 9 | |
| Honors Work | ||
Contract Honors courses in English at the 300 level or above | ||
Any other Honors course outside of the English department * | ||
- *
Taken for up to 3 credits.
Recognition
Students who complete the program will be recognized at a banquet held at the end of the spring semester. The designation “Completed Disciplinary Honors in English” and the title of the Senior Honors Project will be printed on the student’s official transcript.
Honors Advisor
Contact Dr. Karen Weyler at kaweyler@uncg.edu for further information and guidance about Honors in English. For further information, see the Honors Programs. To apply: https://honorscollege.uncg.edu/disciplinary-honors/disciplinary-honors-admissions/
Accelerated B.A. to M.A.
The Accelerated BA to MA in English requires 30-36 credit hours and is designed for those planning to pursue a doctorate; to teach in community colleges, technical institutes, or some undergraduate colleges; and to work in non-academic settings. Three plans of study beyond the core requirements are offered:
- Thesis Plan
- Teaching Composition Plan
- Careers in the Humanities Plan
Application and Admission
Qualified UNC Greensboro undergraduate students may apply for admission to the Accelerated Master's Program (AMP) in English. A cumulative undergraduate GPA of at least 3.5 based on at least 30 credits earned at UNC Greensboro is required. Applicants must have completed at least 60 credits and may not apply for admission to the AMP before the first semester of the junior year.
English has the following additional requirements for AMP applicants:
At least 15 credits of undergraduate English courses at the 200 level or above, with an earned 3.5 GPA in these courses.
Standard application requirements for the Master of Arts (M.A.) degree program, excluding GRE scores (i.e., undergraduate transcript(s), three letters of recommendation, statement of purpose, writing sample, and resume or cv).
AMP applicants must complete the Accelerated Master's Program information along with their application for admission to the English M.A. degree program. Students admitted to the AMP program may apply a maximum of 12 credits of graduate-level course work toward completion of both the undergraduate and graduate degrees, provided that they earn a grade of B (3.0) or better in each graduate course and fulfill graduate-level requirements.
Courses
Up to, but not more than, 12 credits of graduate courses may be double-counted. For a course to apply toward both degrees, the student must earn a grade of B (3.0) or better in the course and fulfill graduate-level requirements.
The M.A. degree requires 30-36 credit hours of graduate-level course work. If the maximum of 12 credits is double-counted toward both the undergraduate and graduate degrees, the student must complete a minimum of 18 credits of further graduate-level course work to complete the M.A. degree. No more than 9 credits at the 500 level may be counted toward the M.A. degree. Please see the University Catalog for a full description of the M.A. degree requirements.
The following courses have been identified as those that may be counted toward the B.A. and M.A. degrees. These courses have been chosen because they are well suited to AMP students and because they are offered frequently enough to provide students substantial opportunity to enroll in them. All courses that lead to the completion of the M.A. degree must be approved by the Graduate Program Director.
The following courses may be counted toward both the bachelor and master's degrees:
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ENG 549 | The Critical Canon and Contemporary Issues | 3 |
| ENG 601 | English Studies: Content, Methods, and Bibliography | 3 |
| ENG 642 | Topics in Pre-1800 Literature * | 3 |
| ENG 664 | Topics in Post-1800 Literature * | 3 |
- *
May be repeated twice for credit when topic or instructor varies.
Please consult with an advisor to determine how the courses taken at the graduate level will meet requirements in the bachelor's degree program. All degree requirements for the M.A. in English will remain the same.