English, Humanities and Social Sciences Area of Concentration, Associate of Arts
This area of concentration is designed to help students transfer to colleges and universities that offer a baccalaureate degree with a major in English. Beyond the General Education requirements and other degree, program, and elective requirements, this concentration should be considered in light of the requirements of the selected transfer institution. Students should consult with a transfer coordinator or an advisor for information about specific requirements.
Because four-year institutions vary widely in their requirements, it is strongly recommended that students who wish to pursue studies in English speak with an advisor from the Counseling Center and the English department head before registering for courses. This sequence of courses should be adjusted to meet the requirements of the transfer institution.
Program objectives
Upon successful completion of this area of concentration, students will be able to:
- understand basic grammatical structure of sentences;
- identify and correct commonly made sentence errors;
- demonstrate the ability to formulate well-reasoned arguments;
- demonstrate the ability to evaluate arguments;
- understand the stylistic differences between academic writing and professional writing;
- apply a variety of strategies for revising texts to accomplish specific communication objectives and to meet the needs of specialized audiences;
- apply the appropriate writing style to a variety of formats, including business letters, resumes, manuals, proposals, and technical reports;
- identify the cultural, historical, and literary influences on works studied in a discrete body of literature;
- assess the ways in which the selected literature reflects and also contributes to its particular historical moment and cultural context;
- analyze the ways in which issues of race, gender, and class shape works of literature;
- write a well-informed literary analysis using appropriate terminology and textual support;
- access, evaluate, and apply relevant literary criticism found both in a variety of formats; and
- engage in critical/collaborative discussion about a text's relevance to life today and whether and how contemporary readers can benefit from it.
