Whether your passion is to create, communicate, advocate, or investigate; whether you know exactly where you’re headed or crave inspiration and critical tools to help you forge your path, an English degree can help you get there.
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Course Descriptions
Every semester, the English Department offers an expansive range of courses in literature, creative and professional writing, speech communication, linguistics, film, comics, digital media and more!
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Writers' Series
The English Department is proud to host world-class, award-winning, and bestselling authors each year as part of the Fall Literary Festival, the Open Book, and the Shark’s Parlor Reading series.
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Faculty Books
Our faculty are nationally and internationally renowned writers and scholars. Whether you are interested in Shakespearean drama, rhetorical theory, or the history of southern cooking, there is something for you on the English Department bookshelf.
Department News
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English’s Alex Millen researches class and empire
Alex Millen, assistant professor of English at the University of South Carolina, researches the literary and cultural history of imperial Britain, focusing on class politics, democracy and the novel during the Age of Empire.
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Jiménez wins Penn/Faulkner Award
Assistant Professor Claire Jiménez won the 2024 Penn/Faulkner prize, one of the most prestigious literary awards in the country, for her debut novel "What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez".
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Luke Hodges, English Dept alumnus and producer
Luke Hodges, English department alumnus, has co-produced a documentary called Cashing Out, about a controversial AIDS-era industry where dying gay men sold their life insurance policies to investors.
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Dr. Dianne Johnson-Feelings’ books honored
Dr. Dianne Johnson-Feelings’ picture books“ Indigo Dreaming” and “H is for Harlem” garner prestigious awards!
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Madden receives Carolina Trustees Professorship
English professor Ed Madden uses writing to connect people and amplify overlooked voices. For his achievements in teaching, research and service, he received the 2025 Carolina Trustees Professorship in Humanities and Social Sciences.
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English gradudate lends talents to arts scene
Arts and humanities graduate Emily Moffitt is making the arts more accessible in Columbia by curating inclusive exhibitions, supporting local artists and connecting the community.
