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Literature

The Literature Major is ideal for those who love to read and write. In lively conversations with fellow students and dedicated professors, you will analyze and discuss the forms of artistic expression that matter most to you: stories and poems, fiction and nonfiction, novels and material culture, plays and films. We offer courses on everything from graphic novels to popular and YA fiction. Our classes will challenge and amaze you, even as you become a better writer and thinker.

Program Highlights

  • 36-credit hour major with a flexible curriculum, making it easy to major or double major.
  • Excellent preparation for diverse careers in an ever-changing job market.
  • Nationally recognized faculty who provide individualized feedback on your writing and creative work. Professors James Bromley and Michele Navakas just received fellowships from Folger Library and the National Endowment for the Humanities, respectively.
  • Exciting and engaging courses in fiction, poetry, drama, and film that span cultural traditions, authors, and periods, from the classic to the cutting-edge, including many small, seminar-style special topics courses. We think you should love what you read—and read what you love!
  • Connections with Pre-Law and Education programs.
  • Beyond Bachelor Hall, Gutsche, and Lit Unplugged speaker series on post-graduation careers.

Opportunities

After Graduation

Miami Literature majors have enjoyed substantial career success. Our students find that the coursework and academic rigor of a BA in Literature prepares them for a number of career paths. Many graduates join the workforce right away and go into fields like teaching and publishing; editing and writing; film and social media; publicity and marketing; consulting and management; and library science and law.

Some students go on to pursue graduate degrees in the humanities, while others enter professional schools in fields like law, medicine, library science, and business. A number of recent literature graduates have placed into top ten law schools (Columbia, University of Pennsylvania) as well as prestigious English graduate schools (Johns Hopkins, Brown, Stanford).

As you explore your path after graduation, be sure to consult with many resources, including your professors, and resources like Miami’s Center for Career Exploration and Success and Internship and Job Resources for Literature.

Literature Blog

Learning Outcomes

Popular Writing Outcomes:

  1. Demonstrates that topic that is of interest to a non-specialist audience, is original, and complex;
  2. Chooses details of type and amount appropriate for a non-specialist audience;
  3. Deploys organization that is patterned on style of popular press;
  4. Patterns writing on the style of popular press, with shorter sentences, clear and readily understandable;
  5. Produces writing that is virtually free of mechanical errors.

Academic Writing Outcomes:

  1. States a clear, contestable thesis that is significant for a specialized audience;
  2. Clear, accurate and appropriate forms of evidence are presented for the argument, and evidence is drawn not only from the literal sense of the text;
  3. Writing is organized logically and purposefully; argument is coherent and focused with transitions between sections of the argument;
  4. Clear and precise connections established between the text and context, whether historical, political, or theoretical;
  5. Ideas are expressed clearly and cogently; writing is virtually error free with regard to mechanics and MLA formatting.