English Department at UNLV

Richard Harp, Chair

Welcome to the Department of English at UNLV, which offers programs that are nationally recognized for their excellence.

Under the mentorship of a distinguished, prize-winning faculty, the undergraduate major invites students to study literature, writing and rhetoric. The department is particularly notable for the breadth and scope of its offerings in these areas. The Bachelor of Arts degree prepares students for graduate study and other professional programs such as law as well as for careers in business or teaching or technical and professional writing. The English major is also at the heart of liberal education in helping students discover, analyze and write about ideas and themes which are important to them and to society, as well as inviting them to read and appreciate “the best that has been thought and said” through the centuries.

The department sponsors a number of prestigious journals, including the Ben Jonson Journal (Edinburgh University Press), Interim, a long-established and well known literary journal, and the Far West Popular Culture Review. Students participate in editing all these journals. In addition, the Black Mountain Institute, one of the West’s leading literary institutes, publishes the award-winning journal “Witness,” which our students also help to edit.

The department’s graduate programs have become quite successful in a relatively brief amount of time. The Master of Fine Arts Creative Writing International program received outstanding recognition last year when it was rated by The Atlantic Monthly one of the five best “unique/innovative” programs in the country. The Schaeffer Assistantship program also admits one or two students each year to study for the PhD with a creative dissertation.

The department also reaches out in a number of ways to the university as a whole. For example, it serves the UNLV College of Education’s Certificate program for secondary school teachers. For the university, the department provides core curriculum courses in Freshman Composition, World Literature, and for the Multicultural and International requirements. A Professional Writing Certificate program is also available.

The English Department at UNLV is growing and thriving in all these vital language fields. Our faculty, students, and publications are winning prizes. We promise to continue to strive to be counted among the very best while at the same time reaching out to serve our greater community and city of Las Vegas—surely one of the most vital and dynamic settings for higher education anywhere.

We would welcome any inquiries about study opportunities in our department. Please call (702) 895-3533 or email me at the address below.