Hampton University

Bachelor of Arts degree in English with concentration in Film Studies

The Department of English and Foreign Languages offers outstanding opportunities for students thinking of careers in such varied fields as higher education, law, creative writing, business, government, and middle/secondary school teaching. In recent years, our majors have held many undergraduate fellowships before winning admission to the most selective post-graduate programs and law schools in the country, including Yale, Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, and the University of Virginia. Students in our Interdisciplinary Cinema Studies Program have secured internships in studios like Universal and Spike Lee’s 40 Acres and a Mule before going on to pursue graduate study and a career in film. Many of our majors take advantage of the Advanced Studies in England Program to spend a summer or a semester in Bath, England and take courses taught by Oxford professors.

The English major provides a rich, humanistic education that prepares graduates for success in many different fields. Students may choose from four distinct course sequences: English Arts, a relatively traditional curriculum oriented to the study of literature; Creative Writing, which covers fiction, poetry, and nonfiction; Secondary Education, which prepares students for teaching roles in secondary education; and Film Studies, which helps students to prepare for careers in film. All of the sequences reflect Hampton’s historical identity. For example, students may choose courses in African American English, African American Literature, Caribbean Literature, and African Literature, as well as such traditional offerings as Shakespeare, American Literature, English literature, and Literary Criticism.

The Film Studies concentration is for those interested in writing for film, television, or other media and for students interested in film criticism or filmmaking. Cinema Studies offers a number of stimulating film-related courses. Recently, for example, students enrolled in a course in scriptwriting focused on adapting the work of novelist Omar Tyree. At the end of the course, their work was critiqued in person by Mr. Tyree.

Study Abroad Opportunities

The Department of English and Foreign Languages has had an ongoing relationship with the Advanced Studies in England (“ASE”) program for over a decade. The program offers US students the opportunity to study for a semester, year, or summer in Bath, England. The Department of English and Foreign Languages also offers the Dr. Margaret Lee Scholarship to help with travel expenses associated with the program.