Students who complete the major in Literature receive a thorough grounding in literary ideas and methods, competence in particular national literatures, as well as the ability to work across literatures and languages. By engaging literary texts appropriate to one of the country’s most diverse campuses, this major teaches both specialized knowledge and the skills to deepen and broaden knowledge of literature that is new or unfamiliar.

Careers in Literature

Graduates with a degree in literature enjoy careers in journalism, advertising or public relations, publishing, editing, grant writing, translating, teaching or working for a nonprofit business organization. Others continue to graduate school or law school. Students may also be certified to teach high school or middle school through the UT Dallas Teacher Development Center.

The University’s Career Center is an important resource for students pursuing postgraduate employment. Licensed counselors are available to provide strategies for mastering job interviews, writing professional cover letters and resumes and connecting with campus recruiters, among other services.

Literature at UT Dallas

The ideal graduate of the UT Dallas Literature program will be able to approach an English-language text from anywhere in the world with a set of intelligent questions and the capacity to produce equally intelligent answers to interpretative problems. By selecting a variety of courses from a variety of headings, students are able to combine courses in criticism and interpretation, in writing and translation, and in English and foreign languages. Students must successfully complete 120 hours to graduate, with 42 hours from the University’s core curriculum and 45 in the major.

To major in literature, it may be helpful to complete four units of language arts, including at least one unit of writing skills and three units of a single foreign language. Students may also want to take one or more Advanced Placement (AP) English courses in high school. Classes in creative writing may offer further preparation for a successful academic career in literary studies.

Marketable Skills

Review the marketable skills for this academic program.

About the Bass School

The Harry W. Bass Jr. School of Arts, Humanities, and Technology is a community of scholars, artists, and creative practitioners defined by their creativity, critical thinking, communication, and cross-cultural understanding. The Bass School cultivates skills in critical study and creative practice and fosters an incubative environment for the generation of new knowledge and new technological experiences.

Degrees Offered

Bachelor of Arts: History*, Latin American studies*, literature*, philosophy, visual and performing arts*

Master of Arts: Art history, history, history of ideas, humanities, Latin American studies, literature, visual and performing arts

Doctor of Philosophy History of ideas, humanities, literature, visual and performing arts

Minors Offered

If your academic focus leads you elsewhere at UT Dallas, but you would still like to pursue studies in the Harry W. Bass Jr. School of Arts, Humanities, and Technology, the following minors are available:

• Art history
• Asian studies
• Communication
• Creative writing
• Dance
• Film Studies
• History
• Latin American studies
• Literature
• Medical and scientific humanities
• Music
• Performing arts
• Philosophy
• Spanish
• Theatre
• Visual arts

Honors Thesis and Fast Track

The Harry W. Bass Jr. School of Arts, Humanities, and Technology honors thesis offers the opportunity for advanced creative and scholarly work and recognition. To earn Bass School honors, students must graduate with:

• A minimum of 30 graded, upper-division semester credit hours at UT Dallas.
• A GPA of 3.67 in a student’s major.
• The completion of an honors thesis or project evaluated by two faculty members with a grade of at least B+.

*Exceptionally well-qualified undergraduates who meet the requirements for admission to graduate school should consider the Fast Track program, which allows them to begin work on a master’s degree before graduation. Qualified seniors may take up to 12 credit hours of approved graduate courses during their senior year, which will apply to their undergraduate degree plans. For more information regarding Fast Track, contact an undergraduate academic advisor.

Additional Facts

Several faculty members have been awarded prestigious fellowships, including those from the Guggenheim, Fulbright, Alexander S. Onassis and Woodrow Wilson foundations. Others are recipients of the Füst Literary Award, as well as awards from the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The school’s centers further enhance students’ educational experience by bringing the concept of globalism to campus, by bringing world events into focus through research and by encouraging innovation and creativity.

The National Science Foundation recently awarded a major grant to the school’s Center for Values in Medicine, Science and Technology to study the mentoring and education that occurs in science laboratories.