Undergraduate Program Requirements

[Note: Students who declared the major in 2024 or earlier have a slightly different set of requirements, outlined on this worksheet.] 

Clarifications  

• While a single course can cover more than one distribution requirement, no course can be used to cover more than one genre or geographical category.
• Up to two Barnard English courses can count identically to Columbia English courses; additional Barnard coursework must be approved by the DUS. Please check with the DUS to determine which distribution requirements each Barnard course fulfills.
• Students from the TCD dual-degree program have a different set of requirements, namely: any seven literature courses, of which up to two may be in a related field (e.g. comparative literature, creative units, etc.), while the remainder must be English.

Fulfillment of the English major requires the completion of at least TEN courses in the Department of English and Comparative Literature, with a grade of C- or higher. 

One of the ten courses used to fulfill the English major must be ENGL2000/2001: Approaches to Literary Study (see "The Introduction to the Major", above.) Students may take this course in any year, although majors are urged to take it as early as possible, preferably in the freshman or sophomore year. It does not fulfill any distribution requirements.

Of the remaining nine courses, two may be taken outside the English and Comparative Literature Department (please consult the “Options and Restrictions” section). Courses taken within the department, however, must satisfy the following distribution requirements: 
 

PERIOD DISTRIBUTION

Four courses with the following distributions:

• Two courses dealing primarily with literature from before 1700 (Restriction: only one course in Shakespeare may be used towards this requirement.)
• One course dealing primarily with literature from 1700 to 1900
• One course dealing primarily with literature from 1900 to the present 
   

GENRE DISTRIBUTION

One course in each of the following three generic categories: 

• Poetry
• Prose fiction/Narrative
• Drama/Film/New Media
   

GEOGRAPHY DISTRIBUTION

One course in each of the following three geographical categories: 

• British/ Irish
• American
• Comparative/Global

In addition, students must take one course focused on Ethnicity/Race. 

CAPSTONE

This requirement may be fulfilled either by taking a 4000-level seminar in the department or by writing and submitting a Senior Essay.

NOTE:

A single course may fulfill more than one distribution requirement.  For example, a single lecture in medieval poetry would fulfill the following three requirements:  the period distribution "pre-1700", the genre distribution "poetry", and the geographical distribution "British/ Irish." This does not, however, reduce the total number of required courses.

Course Distribution Lists for the current term are available on the website and can be found in hard copy in the department office. An archive of past courses, and the distribution requirements they fulfill, can also be found on the same Course Listings webpage. For any courses not listed, including those taken at other institutions, please consult the DUS. 

Undergraduates matriculating in Fall 2023 or later will have the option of minoring in English (this will replace the concentration for those matriculating in 2024 or later). The English Minor will consist of ENGL2000 (Approaches to Literary Study) plus four additional Columbia English courses (carrying the designation ENGL or CLEN), in any area. Credit for transfer courses, summer courses, and Barnard courses should be determined in consultation with the DUS. 

Fulfillment of the English concentration requires the completion of at least EIGHT courses in the Department of English and Comparative Literature, with a grade of C- or higher. 

One of the eight courses used to fulfill the English concentration must be the introductory course ENCL2000/2001: Approaches to Literary Study (or its predecessor, ENGL3001/3011: Literary Texts, Critical Methods.)

Of the remaining seven courses, two may be taken outside the English and Comparative Literature Department (please consult the “Options and Restrictions” section). Courses taken within the department, however, must satisfy the following distribution requirements: 
 

PERIOD DISTRIBUTION

Two courses dealing primarily with literature from before 1800
Restriction: only one course in Shakespeare may be used toward this requirement
 

GENRE DISTRIBUTION

One course in two of the following categories (two total): poetry, prose fiction/narrative, drama/film/new media
 

GEOGRAPHY DISTRIBUTION

One course in two of the following literatures (two total): British/ Irish, American, Global/Comparative

 

NOTE:

A single course may fulfill more than one distribution requirement.  For example, a single lecture in medieval poetry would fulfill the following three requirements:  the period distribution "pre-1700", the genre distribution "poetry", and the geographical distribution "British/ Irish." This does not, however, reduce the total number of required courses.

Course Distribution Lists for the current term are available on the website and can be found in hard copy in the department office. An archive of past courses, and the distribution requirements they fulfill, can also be found on the same Course Listings webpage. For any courses not listed, including those taken at other institutions, please consult the DUS. 

Courses that DO NOT count toward the major/concentration:

• Core classes such as University Writing (ENGL C1010 or F1010), Lit Hum, and AHUM 1399/1400.
• Courses taken Pass/Fail, or receiving a grade lower than a C-; note, however, that the first course taken in the department can be taken P/F, and can count toward the major or concentration, so long as it is not Approaches to Literary Study. 

Courses that DO count toward the major/concentration:

• English Department courses used to satisfy the Global Core requirement
• BARNARD ENGLISH COURSES: Up to two Barnard English courses can count identically to Columbia English courses, in terms of credit toward the major/minor/concentration; additional Barnard coursework must be approved by the DUS. Contact the DUS to determine which distribution requirements a Barnard course might fulfill.
• Up to two courses offered through Creative Writing, comparative literature (these will have course numbers beginning with CL), and foreign language departments (if they are upper-level courses concentrating on literature, rather than language proficiency). Important: courses taken outside English do not fulfill any distribution requirements; note, however, that Comparative Literature courses with the designation CLEN are in fact English Department courses; there is, therefore, no limit to how many can be taken, and they do fulfill distribution requirements
• Up to two summer classes
• The Senior Essay, or an independent study course (although there is no limit to the number of independent studies you can take in the department, only one of these can count toward the major or concentration). NB: the senior essay involves two one-semester courses but for the purposes of the English major counts as only one course.
• Transfer and Study Abroad credits (in consultation with the DUS)