Combined Pathway

BA English: Literature, Media, and Culture/MA English: Literature, Media, Culture

Purpose and Justification of establishing the Combined Pathway

The purpose of a combined pathway in Literature, Media, and Culture (LMC) is to provide   talented and ambitious undergraduate students an opportunity to do more advanced work earlier in their academic career and thus improve their post-graduation outcomes. The Combined Pathway program will help students further refine and master skills in reading, writing, and interpretation. The students we hope to attract are ready to engage in deeper and more sustained engagement with literary texts. Many of our majors have completed advanced IB and AP credits in high school English. This prepares them to move more quickly into graduate courses which provide opportunities for more focused work. Combining a few graduate courses into the undergraduate curriculum allows talented students to build both breadth and depth. Those interested in pursuing careers in a number of areas such as teaching, editing, publishing, journalism, and media will be better positioned to compete in the job market. Similarly, for those interested in pursuing a doctoral degree in English or an advanced degree in Law, the combined pathway track serves as evidence of high motivation, discipline, and interpretive and analytical capacities.

We are confident that there is student interest in this option. Many of our best students express an interest in pursuing graduate degrees. A Qualtrics survey of our majors with 75 or more credit hours, which constituted a total of 104 students, revealed that 87 percent of respondents were very interested in continuing their education. Of those, 30 percent planned to continue their English studies specifically at FSU, while 52 percent were still undecided and may consider Florida State University. Most relevant was that 61 percent expressed interest in a Combined Pathway program in LMC, while 41 percent said that they were very interested in applying to the LMC graduate program in general. Overall, the survey indicates that there is sufficient interest from students. Anecdotal evidence also supports these findings.

Admission Criteria and Operating Procedures

Eligibility for Admission to the Combined Pathway in Literature, Media, and Culture at Florida State University:

  • completed a minimum of 60 hours toward their undergraduate degree (beginning of junior year).
  • a minimum 3.50 cumulative GPA and 3.75 GPA in the major.

Application and Admission Process for the BA portion of the pathway:

  1. In the Fall semester of their junior year, interested students will submit an application by October 1.
  2. The application materials must include:
  • completed application form (can be found on Department of English website)
  • cover letter describing interest in the Combined Pathway
  • a writing sample
  • one recommendation letter from an LMC faculty member.
  1. Admission into the program will be determined by a subcommittee consisting of LMC program faculty and the program director. This selective program is only open to the most motivated, well-prepared, and high-achieving students. Successful applicants must reflect the highest standards of undergraduate study. Students must also demonstrate evidence of an ability to do higher level study in Literature, Media, and Culture.
  2. Accepted students will be notified by October 20.

Application and Admission Process into the MA portion of the pathway:

Students who intend to continue in the pathway must apply separately to the English MA program in LMC. This would occur in the second semester of the Combined Pathway program (typically fall of their senior year – 90 or more credit hours).

  1. Admission to the MA program is competitive and not guaranteed.
  2. Pathways students must earn an A- (3.75) or above in their graduate LMC courses to be eligible.
  3. Information about the application process to the MA is available at english.fsu.edu/graduate-studies/info-prospective-students#degree.
  4. Students accepted into the MA portion of the pathway will be notified in early spring of their senior year, typically February 15.
  5. Students in the Pathway program will not receive graduate assistantships or tuition waivers.

Advising:

  1. Combined Pathway students will meet with the department’s Senior Academic Program Specialist (APS) at least once a semester for the duration of the undergraduate portion of their degree in order to make sure that they are on track for completing the BA requirements while enrolling for the requisite graduate courses.
  2. The Senior APS will monitor enrollment in the program and keep students notified of course requirements, enrollment windows, and application deadlines.
  3. Each student will be assigned an advanced graduate student mentor upon entry into the pathway. The student will choose a faculty member as chair of their Capstone committee.
  4. Once accepted into the MA portion of the pathway, students will continue working with the APS and their chosen faculty advisor.

Curriculum

The student will start doing coursework in the Combined Pathway program after completing 60 undergraduate hours. At this point in their progress toward the BA degree, the student will have completed all or most of their core required courses in LMC (ENG2012 Intro to English Studies, ENG3014 Understanding Theory, LIT3112 Literary History I, and LIT3124 Literary History II). Once accepted into the Combined Pathway program, students are normally expected to take at least one but no more than two graduate courses for combined credit in each of their last three semesters as undergraduates. The students should work with their advisors to try to fill some historical requirements while still an undergraduate:

1) ENL5227 Studies in Renaissance Literature, which could satisfy our graduate requirement in pre-1660, 1660-1800, or pre-1800.

2) ENG5049 Studies in Critical Theory.

3) LIT5517 Studies in Gender in Literature

(2) and (3) might satisfy any of our historical requirements and/or our alterity requirement, depending on the course content for the particular section and semester. The student will need to work with our APS and our department administrators (Program Director and Associate Chair of Graduate Studies) to determine which requirements are met.

A student may substitute another graduate course for one of these courses with the permission of the Associate Chair of Graduate Studies if a seminar offered in a particular semester is important for the student’s course of study.

Our Associate Chair of Graduate Studies keeps close track monitoring to make sure that the courses designated to fulfill particular historical and alterity requirements provide the necessary material and context. Courses that fulfill our historical and alterity requirements are frequently offered in our graduate curriculum and are so designated each semester on our website, depending on the particular content (english.fsu.edu/graduate-courses).

To complete their undergraduate degree, undergraduates normally take 12 courses (36 credit hours). Pathway students will finish their major by taking:

— at least three graduate courses as electives, chosen from those listed above (our students ordinarily have three electives in our major).

— four required core courses: ENG 2012 Introduction to English Studies, ENG 3014 Understanding Theory, LIT 3112 Literary History I, and LIT 3124 Literary History II.

— four distribution electives, one in “Understanding Genres,” one in “Pre-1800,” and two in “Diversity.” Instead of taking two “Diversity” electives, undergraduates in the Pathways program may substitute one of their “Diversity” electives with a graduate course that meets the “Alterity” requirement.

— ENG4934, a “Senior Seminar,” our undergraduate Capstone.

To complete their MA, students in the Pathway program must take 11 courses (33 credit hours) including:

— Gateway theory course: Issues in Literary and Cultural Studies (ENG 5079).

— One course pre-1660.

— One additional course pre-1800.

— One additional course 1660-1900.

— Two courses in an Area of Concentration.

The student chooses one from a list of possible Areas of Concentration that includes:

  • Medieval and Early Modern Literary and Cultural Studies (through 1660)
  • Literary and Cultural Studies of the Long 18th and 19th centuries
  • Literary and Cultural Studies of the Long 20th and 21st centuries
  • African American, African, and African Caribbean Literature and Culture
  • Film and Media
  • History of Text Technologies
  • Theory

(courses that belong to these concentrations are clearly marked on our website each semester)

— One literature course whose chief organizing principle is alterity (i.e., a course that focuses on race, class, gender, ability, sexual orientation, or ethnicity).

— Four courses are electives.

— Capstone (5835)

Additionally, students must demonstrate proficiency in a foreign language for an MA.