What comes to mind when you think about studying English? Do you think: grammar and spelling and books by dead white men? Do you think: dead-end jobs and vows of poverty? Do you think: boring, antiquated and irrelevant?

Then you haven’t attended an English class at MSU Denver.

At MSU Denver we are out to change the stereotypes of what it means to study English. Offering a well-rounded, diverse curriculum that will ask you to think harder, write better and read wider than you ever have before, you will encounter works across genders, genres, cultures and ethnicities that will expand your mind and your world.

You will also have the chance learn outside the classroom. Complete an internship at a local magazine. Travel to India to study Bollywood cinema. Present your research at a national conference. These are just a few of the ways you can build on the analytical, creative and communication skills you will develop as a MSU Denver English major.

Better yet, as an English major, you can study what you love while amassing a resume and portfolio you can take with you into graduate school, law school and compelling careers in fields such as digital media, marketing, advertising, law, education, publishing, fundraising and many more.

Learn about MSU Denver’s generous scholarships for English students.

Program Options

MSU Denver’s English program offers the choice of four concentrations and several minors so you can customize your English degree to your goals.

B.A. in English without a Concentration (Open Major)

Explore widely in this flexible concentration that allows you to individualize your degree with classes in literature, linguistics, professional writing, creative writing and cinema studies.

B.A. in English with a Concentration in Literature

Develop strong analytical and communication skills by studying a wide range of British, American and World literary works.

B.A. in English with a Concentration in Writing 

Evolve as a writer through the study and practice of professional/scholarly writing (composition and rhetoric), creative writing (fiction, poetry, screenwriting and nonfiction) or a mixture of both.

B.A. in English with a Concentration in Secondary School Teaching

Prepare to become a passionate advocate of the written word and a licensed secondary school teacher.

Minors in English (Emphases in Writing or Literature)

Minor in Cinema Studies

Minor in Rhetoric, Composition and Professional Writing

Benefits of Earning Your Degree at MSU Denver

The English degree program at MSU Denver offers you opportunities to stretch intellectually, creatively and professionally through internships, student teaching, the Sigma Tau Delta Honors Society and the following:

• MSU Denver’s Annual Writing Contest
• Writing Center Internships
• Annual Undergraduate English Conference
• Metrosphere Arts and Literary Magazine
• Indian Cinema Study Abroad Course
• Student Organizations

Faculty

Chereka Dickerson

Assistant Professor Chereka Dickerson teaches African American literature and Black women writers. She is in the process of completing her Ph.D. dissertation in U.S. minority and women’s literature.

Cynthia Kuhn

Professor Cynthia Kuhn is the author of the Lila Maclean Mystery Series. Her debut novel, “The Semester of Our Discontent,” received the 2017 Agatha Award for best first mystery.

Jason Miller

Professor Jason Miller is a fiction writer, screenwriter and Pushcart-Prize nominee whose work has been published in the Starry Night Literary Review, Literary Potpourri, Ink Pot #2, Burning Word and Outsider Ink among others.

Learn more about MSU Denver English faculty.

Featured Alumni

“I’ve had wonderful professors who’ve inspired me to continue my education and get the best out of my education.”

Janet Hernandez, MSU Denver ’17, is the first student in MSU Denver history to receive a Fulbright Scholarship. During her Fulbright year she will teach English and Spanish to elementary school children in South Korea.

Read more about Janet.

Facilities and Resources

Adjacent to downtown Denver, MSU Denver’s campus is within walking distance from the city’s many cultural and entertainment attractions such as the Denver Public Library, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts Complex, Denver Art Museum and the Colorado History Museum.

The MSU Denver Department of English also houses the MSU Denver Writing Center, a writing-help resource for all MSU Denver students.