Loras College

Bachelor of Arts (BA) in English: Creative Writing

Dubuque, USA

DURATION

4 Years

LANGUAGES

English

PACE

Full time

APPLICATION DEADLINE

Request application deadline

EARLIEST START DATE

Jan 2025

TUITION FEES

USD 33,500 / per year *

STUDY FORMAT

On-Campus

* annual full-time rate

Introduction

The Creative Writing major at Loras College offers extraordinary depth and range, together with the kind of close, sustained faculty mentoring which is only possible at a small college. Students choose from introductory and advanced courses in Fiction, Poetry, and Creative Nonfiction, along with specialized courses in Screenwriting; Nature Writing; Fantastic Fiction; Writing for New Media; Writing as Social Action; Rhetoric & Political Engagement, Grant & Proposal Writing; and Revision, Editing & Publishing.

Our Creative Writing majors are introduced to rigorous critical reading in Literary Studies, sharpen their analytical skills in Literary Criticism, and choose several courses from the whole history of English and American literature, in all genres, and from selected courses in Irish, Canadian, Russian, and World literature. Many also choose a second major in English Literature to deepen their literary knowledge. (The Bauerly-Roseliep Scholarship is awarded each year to the graduating senior who most excels in both majors.) Students with an interest in writing for purposes of social and political engagement can also minor in Rhetoric & Public Writing.

Student Experience

Creative Writing majors are actively engaged on campus and beyond. A student editorial staff edits and publishes Catfish Creek: A National Undergraduate Literary Journal. Our students present their scholarly and creative writing on campus at the college’s annual Legacy Symposium, and, along with students from other colleges, at the annual Streamlines Undergraduate Language & Literature Conference. Many of our students also publish their writing in The Limestone Review, the college’s annual journal of scholarship and creative writing.

Many Loras English and Creative Writing students also land internships at local newspapers and publishing houses, including McGraw-Hill and Kendall Hunt. Many study abroad in Ireland for a semester in connection with the Irish Studies program, or write for and edit The Lorian (the Loras College newspaper). And many participate in the Loras Players theater troupe, including their annual performance of student-written one-act plays.

Every student will have an opportunity to have their work published in The Limestone Review. The top submissions are granted a $100 Alpha Award and entered in the Delta Epsilon Sigma national undergraduate writing competition.

Program Outcome

Student Learning Outcomes – English: Creative Writing

Demonstrate critical reading skills required to articulate a persuasive and insightful close reading and a persuasive and insightful formal or structural analysis of a literary text (Goal #1 is common to all Literature and Creative Writing majors).
Demonstrate the rhetorical skills required to make a persuasive and insightful written argument using evidence from a literary text. (Goal #2 is common to all Literature and Creative Writing majors).
Demonstrate the ability to write aesthetically interesting original works of creative writing.
Demonstrate, through their writings, a clear understanding of genre conventions and literary techniques, such as structure, plot, character, setting, point of view, dialogue, imagery, metaphor, symbolism, rhetoric, or prosody;
Demonstrate control of structure and form (unity, coherence, balance, emphasis)
Effectively revise and edit their own work for technical, stylistic, and grammatical effectiveness;
Orally articulate their composition and revision processes and explain how the study of literature and individual authors provide them with models and an understanding of literary conventions and traditions which inform their own writing.

Alumni Careers and Accomplishments

English is a valuable and marketable major. Students learn to write and speak well, to think critically, to collaborate with others, and to understand diversity. These skills are important in any career, and Loras English graduates work in a wide range of fields.

Career preparation flexibility is also enhanced by the ability to combine English with other majors and minors in a four-year program. Loras English graduates’ accomplishments include the following:

Nationally acclaimed, Tony-Award winning playwright
Correspondent for Los Angeles Times; head of National Public Radio News; Dean of Columbia Journalism
School Founder and executive director of Posada Community Center, Pueblo, Colorado
Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, John Carroll University
Nationally acclaimed, Shelley Memorial Award-winning poet
Vice President for Advancement, Lewis University
Principal, Johnsburg High School, Johnsburg, Illinois
Head of Legal Services, Dubuque, IA
Science Editor for msnbc.com
Earthforce, a nonprofit devoted to environmental education
Professor of English, Marietta College
Public Relations and Social Media Manager, Loras College
Content Producer at NogginLabs; Founder and Fiction Editor of Knee-Jerk literary magazine
Production Director and Managing Editor with Guerrero Howe Custom Media; Contributing Writer for
Paste Magazine and Alarm Press
National Fulbright Scholar; International Student and Scholar Advisor, UW-Platteville
Developmental Editor, McGraw-Hill

Other common careers: Law, business, advertising, teaching, academia, publishing, journalism, magazine writing and editing, public relations, library science, technical writing, and many more.

Career Opportunities

English Language Requirements

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