This track is also appropriate to non-traditional students who wish to develop their creative writing skills. Students in the writing track will study under published authors of fiction, poetry and non-fiction. Internships and practicum experiences in writingand the teaching of composition and literature are also available to students pursuing careers in college teaching. The English department is committed to mentoring students both inside and outside the classroom. An especially prominent element of the ACU graduate English program is the opportunity to participate in a unique spiritual and intellectual community, both informal and formal.
Students enjoy a number of informal opportunities to meet, discuss, and share ideas.
In addition, graduate students are invited to participate in campus-wide programs such as graduate chapel and the Graduate Students Association. Students are often invited to attend professional meetings with the faculty, to present papers at meetings alongside their professors, and to work closely with their professors on research and writing assignments. Opportunities to work in the department's writing lab and to conduct independent research are also available by special permission. The English faculty at ACU considers the study of literature and writing to be a crucially important professional and intellectual activity. Our students must not only know the classic and canonical literary texts, but they must also be engaged in the vigorous debates concerning the meaning and value of literature in contemporary culture.