Undergraduate Student Resources & Awards

The Department of English offers academic and financial support, internships, advising and more to make the student experience as smooth and enjoyable as possible.

 

 

How to Declare a Major or Minor

The process for declaring a major is as follows:

  1. Download and fill out a Declaration of Major/Minor Form from the Undergraduate Advising website.
  2. Contact the English Department's director of undergraduate advising.
  3. Establish an ePortfolio, which is required for the major only.

 

 

Study Abroad

Many English majors spend a semester or more abroad, usually as juniors, and many venture outside England. Australia, Edinburgh and Dublin are increasingly popular destinations, and some students have studied in Anglophone Africa. Because we count the literatures of other languages as major electives, English majors have also enjoyed study abroad in France, Italy and other countries.

Visit the GW Office for Study Abroad for more information.

 

Departmental Awards

Each year, the Department of English awards multiple departmental prizes and honors to graduating seniors who have demonstrated academic excellence in their pursuit of the English or Creative Writing major. Prizes are also awarded to undergraduate students with the best creative works in poetry, drama, playwriting and literature.

  • The Academy of American Poets College Prize, awarded to talented student poets
  • The Alice Douglas Goddard Prize, awarded for highest average GPA in English
  • The Astere E. Claeyssens Prize in Playwriting, awarded for the best original work in playwriting
    The E. K. Cutter Prize for excellence in English
  • The DeWitt Clinton Croissant Prize, awarded for the best essay on drama or the theatre
  • The Vivian Nellis Memorial Prize, awarded to a graduating senior who has demonstrated excellence in creative writing
  • The Sylvia Speck Prize, awarded for exemplary academic achievement in English Literature
  • The Student Poetry Prize, awarded to GW undergraduate and graduate students for the best single poem

 

E-Major Listserv

The E-Major listserv is a source of important announcements and information relevant to the department.

Send this message: subscribe [email protected] Your-First-Name Your-Last-Name

(example: "subscribe [email protected] John Doe")

To this address: [email protected]

Please note that your message cannot contain any other text, such as your signature file. Any other text is interpreted as a command, the LISTSERV server will return errors.

If you are subscribed to this email distribution list and no longer wish to receive emails, send this message: unsubscribe [email protected]

To this address: [email protected] hermes.gwu.edu

 

GW Resources

  • Undergraduate Anthropology Advisors
    Find the faculty member assigned to your major or minor program.
  • Academic Commons
    Book peer tutoring or review sessions, research and writing help, step-by-step study strategies, language support and more.
  • GW Libraries
    Explore on-campus libraries and online research databases. Gelman Library also maintains a research guide specifically for political science. 
  • Language Center
    Sign up for English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses, practice with language meet-up groups, take a language exam or talk to someone about waiving language requirements.
  • Writing Center
    Make a free appointment to work with a writing consultant on your next project, from the brainstorming phase through drafting and revising.