The student's field of examination should be neither impossibly broad nor too narrow to provide a challenge. Likewise, a creative thesis of short stories on contemporary women's issues would require a field of more breadth than literature about eating disorders or contemporary short stories by women. It and Twelfth Night could lead to such fields as early modern drama, Renaissance literature, or the English comic tradition. The honors candidate should consult with the Departmental Honors Adviser during the application process and then, later, with the three committee members during the summer between junior and senior years to begin compiling a reading list of twenty to thirty texts for the field examination. That list will be finalized prior to the English 499 presentation, during which the committee will pose some preliminary questions on the field.
Students pursuing a creative thesis are subject to different standards.
Click here to review those standards. Application Deadlines Application must be initiated by mid-February and completed by May 15 of the junior year, ensuring those accepted sufficient time to begin reading for the thesis and field during the summer and to take English 498 and 499 during the senior year. But any student who passes the course will receive course credit.