The Department of English offers three distinct programs that allow students to individualize their studies while acquiring the breadth of knowledge and skills of the traditional English major. The curriculum provides courses in the history of British and American literature, in Anglophone literatures of other countries, in literary theory, and in expository as well as creative writing. These diverse courses reflect the interests of students and faculty and the expanding area of English literary study. Students use the concentration in English as a foundation for a variety of careers where the analytic, reading, and writing skills gained are especially valued, and as preparation for postgraduate work in literature. The department also regards its goals as helping students become readers of literature and culture throughout their lives.
Programs in England, Scotland, Australia, and around the world offer opportunities for study and travel that enrich a student's education. The Gertrude Vanderbilt and Harold S. Vanderbilt Visiting Writers series annually sponsors public lectures, readings, and other occasions where English majors hear and meet celebrated poets, novelists, and critics. Many majors write for and serve on the editorial boards of various campus publications including the Hustler paper, the Vanderbilt Review, a distinguished collection of creative writing, and Vanderbilt Lives, an annual publication of creative non-fiction by Vanderbilt Undergraduates. An English majors listserv alerts students to employment opportunities, internships, and study abroad programs in addition to those offered through Vanderbilt University.