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Department of English

Graduate Course Descriptions

Summer 2026

All English graduate courses for Summer 2026 are online and full-term (June 1st-August 7th)

ENGL 7/8530 - Field Experience/Practicum in ESL
Experience in observing and teaching, peer teaching, and work with an English as a Second Language (ESL) specialist. Grades of S, U, or IP will be given. May be repeated for a maximum of 6 credit hours when topic changes.

ENGL 7/8532 - Principles of Skills Assessment in ESL | Dr. Emily Thrush | Online
Application of theories of teaching second language skills with emphasis on testing in a second language.

ENGL 7/8533 - Methods & Techniques in ESL K-12 | Dr. Lyn Wright | Online 
Techniques and resources for working with children and adolescents for whom English is a second language. May be repeated for a maximum of 6 credit hours when topic changes.

ENGL 7/8538 - Cultural Issues in ESL | Dr. Ronald Fuentes | Online 
Impact of culture on non-English language background speakers as well as the particular aspects of U.S. culture and traditions needed for successful acculturation.

Fall 2026

Need more info?
For the most up-to-date list of classes offered, visit the dynamic schedule. For questions about classes, consult our graduate advising page or contact the listed instructor. To see what we'll be offering in future semesters, visit our two-year course rotation template. Interested in studying literature, taking a writing workshop, improving your writing skills, or brushing up your teaching skills, but don't want to pursue a degree? You should apply as a Non-Degree Seeking Student.

Jump to: 

Click on each course title to read the professor's full course description; click on each thumbnail image to view the course flyer.

Applied Linguistics:

ENGL 6533 - ESL/EFL in Multicultural Settings | Dr. Rebecca Adams | Online
Approaches to working with ESL or EFL students in multicultural settings. Upon completion of this course, students will be able to engage with bilingual and translanguaging practices for equitable teaching, articulate classroom management plans that address social justice and advocacy concerns for diverse learners, discuss the importance of cross-cultural issues in teaching mathematics, sciences, and literacy, and more! 

ENGL 7/8507 - Empirical Methods in Linguistic Research | Dr. J. Elliott Casal | Online
Develop research questions and hypotheses, prepare language surveys, use linguistic databases, perform qualitative and quanitative analysis of linguistic data, use computational tools, and prepare findings for presentation, and publication of research on the study of language use.

ENGL 7/8510 - Gender and Language | Dr. Lyn Wright | Wednesdays 1-4pm
Study of gender as a variable as it intersects with language use in a variety of contexts, including professional, legal, medical, and classroom settings.

ENGL 7/8511 - Survey of Linguistics | Dr. Leah Windsor | Online
Introduction to the nature of language with emphasis on basic principles of English phonology, morphology, and syntax; emphasis on collecting and analyzing linguistic data for research purposes.

ENGL 7/8531 - Theory & History of ESL | Dr. Emily Thrush | Online
Survey of relation of linguistic principles to second language acquisition.

ENGL 7/8533 - Methods & Techniques in ESL K-12 | Dr. Ronald Fuentes | Tuesdays at 5:30pm
Techniques and resources for working with children and adolescents for whom English is a second language. May be repeated for a maximum of 6 credit hours when topic changes.

ENGL 7/8535 - ESL Grammar | Dr. Emily Thrush | Online
Grammatical systems and strategies of Modern English; analysis of English structures that tend to cause difficulty for ESL/SESD speakers.

ENGL 7/8590 - Applied Theory of Linguistics | Dr. Sage Graham | Thursdays at 5:30pm
Intensive study of specialized areas in English linguistics.

Creative Writing: 

ENGL 7472 - Forms of Poetry | Dr. Emily Skaja | Tuesdays at 5:30pm
ENGL-7472 is a graduate course devoted to the intensive study of poetic forms. As poets, we are both scholars and practitioners of a craft, so our efforts to explore the relationship between form and content will be part critical and part creative. Together, we will study and practice a wide variety of formal strategies—not only traditional forms like the sonnet, the villanelle, and the ghazal, but also contemporary and experimental forms like the prose poem, the Golden Shovel, and the Duplex. We will approach each form with attention to its history, using our analysis of the texts as a guide for creative practice, and we will challenge each other to discover the psychology and utility of each form as we consider how to involve formal innovation in our own creative work. May be repeated up to 6 hours with change of topic/course content and approval of Program Coordinator.

ENGL 7485 - Literary Arts Programming | Prof. Courtney Santo | Wednesdays at 5:30pm
Development of skills involved in planning and administering community arts events and organizations; further training in the skills of author interviewing and book reviewing. May be repeated for a maximum of 6 credit hours.

ENGL 7602 - Fiction Workshop | Prof. Courtney Santo | Mondays at 5:30pm
Emphasis on the examination and the discussion of fiction written by students.

ENGL 7603 - Poetry Workshop | Dr. Emily Skaja | Thursdays 5:30-8:30pm
ENGL-7603 is a graduate-level workshop devoted to the creation, revision, and critical analysis of poetry. Students will submit original work and improve their craft through dedicated practice and intensive study. Analyzing contemporary collections of poetry, the students will work to understand how the poet is using figurative language, form, music, and arrangement to create intricate layers of meaning. The workshop is a constructive community environment where students are invited to encourage and challenge one another as they refine their work. 

Literary & Cultural Studies:

ENGL 7/8000 - Literary Research: How to Do Things with Literature | Dr. Donal Harris | Thursdays at 5:30pm
This course offers a selective introduction to recent initiatives in the professional study of literature. Our goal is to acclimate new MA and PhD students to the expectations of graduate-level research and writing, with an eye toward the types of professional practices that will mostly likely be expected of an individual with a PhD in English. We have three related course objectives: 1) a primer on trends in contemporary criticism and literary theory; 2) a practicum on developing and then executing graduate-level scholarship; 3) an overview of what types of research recent English PhDs have produced, and how they use their degrees. NOTE: This course is required for Literature majors and should be taken in the first year of graduate study.

ENGL 7/8264 - 18th Century British Literature | Dr. Darryl Domingo | Tuesdays at 5:30pm
Study of drama, fiction, poetry, and essays from Restoration and eighteenth-century Britain.

ENGL 7/8335 - African American Literature 1989-Present | Dr. Ladrica Menson-Furr | Wednesdays at 5:30pm
Survey of African American writing from 1989 to the present, situated in relation to recent developments in theory and other arts as well as contemporary cultural and political contexts.

ENGL 7/8392 - American Poetry | Dr. Kathy Lou Schultz | Mondays at 5:30pm
Intensive study of American poetry.

ENGL 7/8469 - African American Women Writers | Dr. Shelby Crosby | Tuesdays at 5:30pm
Examines the variety of ways black women writers have reclaimed the creative power of agency, emphasizing areas of difference as well as continuity within the African American literary tradition; combines considerations of context, both historical and political, with rigorous textual and theoretical analyses.

Writing, Rhetoric, & Technical Communication: 

ENGL 6618 - Document Design | Dr. Chloe Robertson | Online
Theories of visual and written communication, focusing on the interrelationship between visual and verbal elements; practice in effective design using layout and graphics software; working on client projects in a collaborative setting.

ENGL 6620 - Digital Rhetoric and Writing: AI and Big RhetorTech | Dr. Scott Sundvall | Online
This course will examine the theoretical and practical implications of digital rhetoric and writing within the context of (generative) artificial intelligence.  

ENGL 7/8003 - Theory/Practice Teaching Composition | Dr. Katherine Fredlund | Mondays 1-4pm
Designed for graduate assistants teaching English 1010. Emphasis on the ways and techniques of teaching rudiments of English composition on college level. Each graduate teaching assistant in the Department of English must enroll in English 7003-8003 before or concurrent with first teaching assignment.

ENGL 7/8350 - Rhetorical Theory: Truth and/or Consequences | Dr. Scott Sundvall | Wednesdays at 5:30pm
This seminar will provide a historical survey of rhetorical theory, particularly as it relates to the question of (post-)truth.