Degrees & Programs

The Department of English offers undergraduate majors, minors and graduate programs with a focus on writing skills, liberal learning and critical and analytic thinking.

English courses at Towson give students an opportunity to study the myriad ways people use language in the world--to imagine, analyze, critique, argue, and persuade. 

Love to read? In our literature and creative writing courses, you'll encounter authors from British and American traditions like Shakespeare, Virginia Woolf, Emily Dickinson, and James Baldwin as well as many authors new to you. You'll also have the opportunity to read and discuss authors like Edwidge Danticat, Chinua Achebe, and Salman Rushdie, who write from and about English-speaking countries throughout the rest of the world. In the English Department, we consider translation to be an act of creation, and so you might even engage with Italian, French, Russian, or Korean writing, for example, that has been translated into English. 

Love to write? Consider taking a creative writing course in poetry, fiction, or creative non-fiction, where you'll read excellent examples in those genres and gets lots of practice creating your own. You might even want to join our courses that produce Grub Street, the award-winning student-produced literary magazine that is published annually. 

Love to make an impact in your community? Consider taking any one of our writing courses that we offer beyond creative writing. Learn how to write grants, spot and speka up against propoganda, write for the web, or try your hand at any number of written products that technical writers produce.

Combined, our English courses prepare you to be a thoughtful, articulate, and engaged citizen of your community and the world. 

Department programs include:

The flexibility of all our programs allows students to choose from a wide selection of courses within the department and there are even possibilities for coordinating a program with another academic department.

Undergraduate Programs

The undergraduate catalog has the most up-to-date requirements for the English major.

Be sure to look at the four-year plans for the literature and the writing tracks to see just how many electives you can take alongside a major in English.

Our degree options leave so much room for exploration, minors and even additional majors.

English Major

Towson University’s Department of English offers an undergraduate English major with concentrations available in writing, literature and secondary education. Students can also pursue an accelerated bachelor's-to-master's program, integrating undergraduate studies with a Master’s in Professional Writing. 

English Minor

TU’s English minor enhances students’ appreciation of literature and hones analytical and persuasive communication skills.

This flexible curriculum allows students to select from a wide range of departmental courses, complementing technical majors and aligning with employer-desired communication competencies.

Creative Writing Minor

The Creative Writing minor is a 24-unit program designed to enhance students' writing skills across poetry, fiction and non-fiction. It includes courses like Introduction to Creative Writing, Writing Poetry, Writing Fiction and Writing Creative Non-Fiction, complemented by literature courses.

Graduate Programs

Professional Writing (M.S.)

TU’s Master of Science in Professional Writing offers advanced study in writing theory, writing techniques, and editing, preparing students for careers in various sectors.

The program features five tracks:

  • creative writing
  •  journalistic writing
  • technical writing and scientific communication
  • teaching writing
  • writing for the nonprofit sector

Students who would rather design their own route through the program may choose “no track.”

Flexible evening classes accommodate working professionals. An accelerated bachelor's-to-master's pathway is also available.

Communicating Complex Information Graduate Certificate

Communicating Complex Information is a certificate designed to help graduates gain confidence in their writing and visual communication skills and prepare them for career advancement.

Accelerated Programs

Our accelerated English B.S./Professional Writing M.S. program allows you to take up to three (3) graduate courses that count towards your undergraduate degree in English and graduate degree in Professional Writing.

Admission to the Accelerated English B.S./Professional Writing M.S. program is limited and competitive. Students must be both pursuing the writing track in English and maintaining a 3.30 GPA.