Department of English
In the Department of English, we teach students how to think critically and creatively, and we conduct research to advance knowledge about culture, language, and the written word. Our graduate and undergraduate curricula emphasize deep research skills and unbounded creativity, preparing students for successful careers in academia, business, law, and other professions, as well as nonprofit work, teaching, writing, publishing, and the arts. Courses refine students’ oral and written communication skills, teaching them to be precise, clear, and inventive stylists.
The study of literature and language is at the core of each undergraduate major, providing a common, foundational knowledge about the cultural contexts in which texts and linguistic artifacts are produced, interpreted, and circulated. Individual undergraduate majors (English, creative writing, technical and scientfic communication, and professional and technical writing) provide specialized approaches to textual and linguistic critique and invention. Students graduate with enhanced capacities to understand both their cultures and the experiences of others, through varied experiences of collaboration and textual border-crossing that are inherent in our curriculum.
Classes in the English department are small. Students spend quality time with our award-winning faculty and have opportunities for individual and team-based research experiences. The department supports a number of internships. We invite visiting writers and scholars to speak every semester, and each spring students share their work at an undergraduate research conference and a student-run literary festival. Our undergraduate students publish in various Virginia Tech magazines, and graduate creative writing students serve as editors for two national journals.
Graduate programs in the Department of English include a general M.A. in English, an M.F.A. in Creative Writing, and a Ph.D. in Rhetoric and Writing.
Circle of summer field with the word Summer. 2025 Summer Semester Look Book. Department of English logo.
News and Stories Spotlight
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Category: academics An operatic novel meets ballet in ‘Tetra Nova’ , articleWords and ballet come together for Sophia Terazawa, assistant visiting professor in the Department of English, with the launch of her debut novel. A collaboration with the Roanoke Ballet Theatre brings a world steeped in drama, movement, and occasional silences to the Moss Arts Center.
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Category: campus experience Caroline Blom wins first place at Giovanni-Steger Poetry Prize ceremony , articleBlom, a sophomore majoring in English literature and professional and technical writing, won first place and $1,500 for her poem “How to Get a Happy Life."
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Category: impact Expert analyzes what makes true crime stories so captivating , articleFans of the genre known as “true crime” have no shortage of books, television shows, and movies to choose from. Virginia Tech English Department instructor Ingrid Johnson, who is teaching a course on the subject this semester with 500 students enrolled, answered questions about the public’s fascination with this genre and the broader societal implications.
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Category: academics Katrina Powell honored as Alumni Distinguished Professor , articleSince joining Virginia Tech in 2006, Powell has strived to bring awareness to issues of social justice and displacement through her teaching and research.
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Category: impact Experts explain Signal, cybersecurity, and how a journalist was sent high-level military intelligence , articleA journalist was inadvertently added to a group chat on the encrypted app Signal between high-level U.S government officials planning a military operation. Virginia Tech cybersecurity and social platform experts France Bélanger, Aaron Brantly, Jimmy Ivory and Anthony Vance explain what Signal is, how it works, and how such a breach of national security could happen.
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Virginia Tech Global Distinction Research team studying technology implementation in health care awarded new round of Destination Area 2.0 funding , articleFeaturing faculty from four Virginia Tech colleges, the transdisciplinary group aims to use their research to improve patient outcomes and clinician experience.
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