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Department of English

Bachelor of Arts in English and African American and African Diaspora Studies

Students on Summer 2019, Fall 2019, or Spring 2020 requirements ENGAAADBA
The Interdepartmental Bachelor of Arts in English and African American and African Diaspora Studies enables students to study historical, cultural, and social connections among Africans, African Americans, and other New World Black communities. In pursuing this major, students study poetry, fiction, and prose—theory, philosophy, and political writings—while exploring the shifting significance of race.

Requirements

The major requires at least 40 credit hours, including the requirements listed below.
  1. English Courses. 18 credit hours, of which at least 12 credit hours must be at the 300 level or above, from the list below:
    1. Introductory course. One (1) course:
      • ENG-L 260 Introduction to Advanced Study of Literature
    2. Introductory Genre course. One (1) course:
      • ENG-L 203 Introduction to Drama (must be approved for CASE Intensive Writing)
      • ENG-L 204 Introduction to Fiction (must be approved for CASE Intensive Writing)
      • ENG-L 205 Introduction to Poetry (must be approved for CASE Intensive Writing)
      • ENG-L 206 Introduction to Prose (Excluding Fiction) (must be approved for CASE Intensive Writing)
    3. Literary history courses. Three (3) courses:
      • ENG-L 310
      • ENG-L 312 Literary History 2: Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries
      • ENG-L 316
    4. Critical Practices. One (1) course:
      • ENG-L 371 Critical Practices
  2. African American and African Diaspora Studies Courses. 18 credit hours, of which at least 12 credit hours must be at the 300 level or above, from the list below:
    1. Introductory course. One (1) course:
    2. None
    3. African American History. One (1) course:
      • AAAD-A 355 African American History I
      • AAAD-A 356 African American History II
    4. African American Literature. One (1) course:
      • AAAD-A 379 Early Black American Writing
      • AAAD-A 380 Contemporary Black American Writing
    5. Electives. Three (3) courses:
      • AAAD-A 249 African American Autobiography
      • AAAD-A 283 Blacks in American Drama and Theatre, 1767-1945
      • AAAD-A 384 Blacks in American Drama and Theatre, 1945-Present
      • AAAD-A 479 Contemporary Black Poetry
      • AAAD-A 480 The Black Novel
      • AAAD-A 493 Senior Seminar in African American and African Diaspora Studies
  3. Major GPA, Hours, and Minimum Grade Requirements.
    1. At least 18 credit hours in the major must be completed in courses taken through the Indiana University Bloomington campus or an IU-administered or IU co-sponsored Overseas Study program.
    2. At least 18 credit hours in the major must be completed at the 300–499 level.
    3. Except for the GPA requirement, a grade of C- or higher is required for a course to count toward a requirement in the major.
    4. A GPA of at least 2.000 for all courses taken in the major—including those where a grade lower than C- is earned—is required.
    5. Exceptions to major requirements may be made with the approval of the department's Director of Undergraduate Studies, subject to final approval by the College of Arts and Sciences.