Frequently Asked Questions

We offer two undergraduate majors: English and Narrative Studies. In the English major, there are two tracks to choose from, Literature and Creative Writing.

Learn more about the majors:

• English (BA)
• Narrative Studies (BA)

You can download requirements worksheets from the Undergraduate Forms page. These worksheets outline all the requirements for the majors.

To change your major to English or Narrative Studies (or add either as a double major), you should:

1. Review the requirements for the major:
   • English major requirements
   • Narrative Studies major requirements
2. Meet with a staff advisor in the English department (by appointment or drop-in). You’ll need a referral before you can schedule an appointment through Advise USC. If you haven’t received a referral yet, please email english@usc.edu to request one.
3. When you meet with an English advisor, they will help you determine if the major will fit within your course plan as well as answer any questions you may have about the requirements. They will also process your major declaration.

Contact your academic advisor and they will help you switch your emphasis. That way, the correct requirements appear on your STARS report and transcript.

No. All classes for your major in English or Narrative Studies must be completed for a letter grade.

Yes, our academic advisors are happy to meet with any current USC student who is interested in or has already declared one of our majors in the English department. You can schedule an appointment in Advise USC.

If you haven’t yet declared a major in the English department, you’ll need to be referred by your current academic advisor or email english@dornsife.usc.edu so that you can get access to make an appointment.

Staff advisors are always available to answer questions about your degree requirements and registration, guide you to opportunities and resources, help you develop your course plan, and answer more complex questions about topics like adding a second major or a minor, STARS report issues, etc. If you have a practical, nuts-and-bolts question about the major or minor, make an appointment to consult with a staff advisor on Advise USC.

Before registering for classes for the upcoming semester, majors will need to meet with either a staff advisor or a faculty member to have your advising hold lifted. We host Faculty Advising Week once per semester to give students a chance to meet with faculty on a walk-in basis, where you can talk about courses and build an ongoing relationship with faculty that can foster mentorship, research opportunities, and letters of recommendation.

If you have broader general questions or concerns about the program or about life after graduation, reach out to our Director of Undergraduate Studies anytime to make an appointment, or drop by DUS weekly office hours (posted in THH 404).

You may find a course at USC that you think you should count toward your major in Narrative Studies but isn’t already listed as an option.

You can use the Narrative Studies Course Substitution Proposal (found on Undergraduate Forms) to propose the substitution. You’ll need to submit the syllabus, the proposed major category, and an explanation.

Requests should be submitted and reviewed before you enroll in the course.

If you completed a course at another college or university that you think should count toward your major in English or Narrative Studies, we can review it for you.

You can use the Transfer Credit Request Form (found on Undergraduate Forms) to request major credit for the course. You’ll need to submit the syllabus, the proposed major category, and an explanation.

Keep in mind that:

• The course must be listed on your Transfer Credit Report (TCR). The English department only checks if the course fits the major. The Transfer Credit Office decides if the course is transferable in the first place.
• Only lower-division courses completed before your first semester at USC are eligible for major credit.

Yes, we encourage students to consider double majors in other departments.

Yes. Keep in mind that:

• A double major requires a minimum of 12 upper-division (300-level and above) courses.
• Only 12 units (3 courses) can “double count” for both majors.

Yes, but depending on your minor, you’ll need to make sure you have 16 unique units.

To add a minor in English or Narrative Structure:

1. Review the requirements for the minor:

1. • English minor requirements
   • Narrative Structure minor requirements
2. Meet with a staff advisor in the English department (by appointment or drop-in). You’ll need a referral before you can schedule an appointment through Advise USC. If you haven’t received a referral yet, please email english@usc.edu to request one.
3. When you meet with an English advisor, they will help you determine if the minor will fit within your course plan as well as answer any questions you may have about the minor requirements. They will also help you process the minor declaration.

Yes, our academic advisors are available to meet with any current USC student who is interested in or has already declared one of our majors in the English department.

All minors at USC require 16 units of course work that count only for the minor and not for any other major, minor, or GE requirement. For minors that require 20 units, such as English or Narrative Structure, a maximum of 4 units may be shared with another major, minor, or GE requirement.

No. All classes for your minor must be completed for a letter grade.

You can drop your minor by emailing our academic advisors at english@dornsife.usc.edu. Please email us from your official USC email address.

Most undergraduate classes in ENGL do not require department clearance (“d-clearance”) to register during the normal registration period. Any current USC undergraduate student may register for classes that are open registration.

D-clearance is generally required to:

• Add classes that are restricted to majors or minors.
• Add special classes that require an application (such as Maymesters and advanced creative writing workshops).
• Add classes after the start of the semester.

For steps to get d-clearance, see Courses & Registration.

Yes! We welcome students from all across the university to enroll in many of our classes, including lower-division GE courses and certain upper-division seminars and creative writing workshops. For more information, see Courses & Registration.

It is rare for prerequisites to be waived. Only the Director of Undergraduate Studies can authorize prerequisite waivers.

If you enroll in a course out of sequence (that is, you skip the prerequisite), you cannot earn credit for the skipped prerequisite course in a future semester.

ENGL-490 is a special course where you can pursue independent research in literature under the direction of a faculty member in the English department. Approval to complete an ENGL-490 project is granted only to students who have demonstrated the ability to do independent work in the discipline and have a minimum 2.0 GPA.

To register for ENGL-490, you’ll need to:

1. Find a faculty supervisor. Contact an English department professor (ideally one you’ve taken a class with before) to ask if they would supervise your ENGL-490 project.
2. Develop a project proposal. Create a project idea and, with the guidance of your faculty supervisor, outline your project using the ENGL-490 Contract for Independent Study template (found on Undergraduate Forms).
3. Get approval. You’ll need your faculty supervisor to sign off on the proposal. Then, you can request approval from the director of undergraduate studies.
4. Receive d-clearance. Once you have approval from both your faculty supervisor and the director of undergraduate studies, you’ll receive d-clearance to register.

We do not keep waitlists for undergraduate classes in the English department. We advise you to enroll in an alternative class and periodically check the Schedule of Classes to see if a spot has become available.

If not enrolling in the course will delay your graduation, please contact your academic advisor to discuss options.

We encourage students in the English department to study abroad! There are many programs to choose from and you can earn major or minor credit while abroad with approval.

Many students take two or three classes for their major (or one or two classes for their minor) while abroad. You can receive pre-approval for more classes that you plan to take for major or minor credit, in case some of the classes you selected for pre-approval are canceled or don’t fit into your schedule.

Certain courses, such as ENGL-240, ENGL-491, and ENGL-492, cannot be completed while abroad. Creative writing workshops are generally unavailable while abroad.

Here’s how to get pre-approval for major credit:

1. Browse the course offerings for your overseas program.
2. For courses that you want to count toward your major, send the following information to english@usc.edu (in a Word or Google document is fine):
   • Course names
   • Course descriptions (copied from the school’s website); please include whether course is lower- or upper-division
   • Proposed major requirements
3. We will review your proposed courses and once approval is granted, we can sign off on your Course Pre-Approval Form as an email attachment or during an appointment (schedule through Advise USC).

Sigma Tau Delta is the international English honor society for undergraduate students studying English and/or Narrative Studies. The USC chapter is known as Eta Omega.

Applications will be made available annually. Students applying to the society must complete at least two English courses before applying.

The English Honors Program is open to students majoring in English (both literature and creative writing tracks) or Narrative Studies. The program provides a unique opportunity to pursue in depth a critical project of your own design. If you are thinking about applying to graduate school or professional school (such as law school) you will find the program especially rewarding.

The Honors Thesis is a critical research project and typically runs upwards of 40 pages. Upon successful completion of your Honors Thesis, your USC transcript will record departmental honors.

You’ll need to apply in the fall of your senior year.

Applications are accepted in early fall. To apply, you must meet the following requirements:

Overall GPA: 3.0 minimum

Major GPA: 3.5 minimum

Courses completed: At time of application, you must have completed the following courses depending on your major:

• English (ENGL and CRWT) majors: All required lower-division ENGL courses, plus at least two USC upper-division (300-499) ENGL non-workshop major courses.
• Narrative Studies majors: At least five USC NARS major courses overall.

You must also be enrolled in (or have completed with a grade of at least A-) ENGL-491 or ENGL-492.

You should apply for admission to the progressive degree program during your junior (third) year of undergraduate study, or in certain cases during your senior (fourth) year of undergraduate study.

To apply, you must meet the following requirements:

GPA: 3.3 minimum

Total units completed: 64 minimum
Apply during your junior (or senior) year.

Preparatory courses: You must complete at least one English course before applying. You’re strongly encouraged to complete one of the following before your first semester in the program:

• ENGL-300 “The Art and Craft of the Essay”
• ENGL-310 “Editing for Writers”

Alternatively, you may enroll in one of those courses concurrently with your first semester of graduate courses.

No. Students pursuing bachelor’s degrees at USC in any major or school are eligible for admission into the program. Students who do not have a major in the Department of English should consider one of our minor programs.

You must complete at least one English course before applying. You’re strongly encouraged to complete one of the following before your first semester in the program:

• ENGL-300 “The Art and Craft of the Essay”
• ENGL-310 “Editing for Writers”

Alternatively, you may enroll in one of those courses concurrently with your first semester of graduate courses.

The program admits a small class of exceptional students each year.

Applicants will be emailed of admissions decisions in late spring.

No. The English department does not offer fellowships or teaching assistantships for master’s students in Literary Editing and Publishing.

Only current undergraduate students pursuing their bachelor’s degrees at USC are eligible to apply to the master’s degree program in Literary Editing and Publishing.

No classes will double count toward your bachelor’s degree and master’s degree. You will need to complete all the requirements for your undergraduate degree and your graduate degree.