Programme Specification for the 2024/5 academic year
BA (Hons) English with Study in North America
1. Programme Details
| Programme name | BA (Hons) English with Study in North America | Programme code | UFA3EGLEGL06 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Study mode(s) | Full Time Part Time |
Academic year | 2024/5 |
| Campus(es) | Streatham (Exeter) |
NQF Level of the Final Award | 6 (Honours) |
2. Description of the Programme
The English programme offers you the opportunity to study a wide and exciting range of modules in literature and creative writing. Adopting both critical and creative approaches, the programme seeks to develop your understanding of a wide range of genres and literatures in English. Modules are taught by staff with expertise in literature from the Middle Ages to the present and in creative writing practices in poetry, prose and screen-writing. The programme moves from an initial foundation year towards greater choice and a higher degree of specialisation in the latter years. You will develop to the stage where, in your final year, what you study, how you approach it, and how you communicate what you have found are closely aligned with the practices of the research-active academics who teach you during seminars.
Our programmes at Exeter encourage you to ask challenging questions about the nature of literary and other texts. When you read Troilus and Criseyde and Jane Eyre, you will be prompted to ask not only what they mean, but also how they make those meanings. Who were they written for? How do they compare with other works of the same or different periods? How do they relate to the historical and social conditions in which they were produced? At the end of three years, you will have acquired a wide and detailed knowledge of English. You will also have developed into the sort of independent, self-motivated researcher who is ready for postgraduate study and for a broad range of graduate employment.
Your BA English with Study in North America programme is a 3 year programme of study at National Qualification Framework (NQF) level 6 (as confirmed against the FHEQ). The first and third years are Exeter based, while the second year is based at a partner institution in North America. These include Louisiana State University, University of Pittsburgh, Iowa State University, College of William and Mary, University of Victoria, Carleton University, Vassar College, University of Toronto.
Advice and guidance on your programme can be sought from your personal tutor and programme director. All staff offer regular office hours that you can drop into without a prior appointment for this purpose.
3. Educational Aims of the Programme
A central aim of the English with Study in North America (ESNA) programme is to give you experience of cultural diversity by introducing you to North American culture and to the different educational practices of North American universities. The educational aims of the year abroad are set by the host institution.
The programme aims to:
- Enable you to develop independent critical thinking and judgement
- Engage you imaginatively in the process of understanding and analysing complex and sophisticated literary and non-literary texts
- Introduce you to a wide range of teaching programmes with broad historical coverage, content and methodology.
- Promote an understanding of verbal and visual creativity and the formal and aesthetic dimensions of texts.
- Promote an understanding of North American literature and culture.
- Promote a sense of the complex social, cultural, and aesthetic interactions between the production and reception of literary and non-literary texts.
- Encourage you to acquire the critical tools necessary to reflect upon the production and reception of literary and non-literary texts.
- Provide an intellectually stimulating and satisfying experience of learning and studying, whilst encouraging a sense of the distinctive social and cultural importance of English language, literature and culture.
- Provide a basis for further study in Englishor related disciplines, and for teachers of English at all levels.
- Provide experience of North American culture.
- Provide insights into North American educational practices.
- Provide an opportunity to compare North American and British approaches to literary, filmic, and cultural study.
- Develop a range of subject specific, academic and transferable skills, including high order conceptual literacy and communication skills of value in graduate employment and to enable you to develop your career paths through these means
4. Programme Structure
5. Programme Modules
The following tables describe the programme and constituent modules. Constituent modules may be updated, deleted or replaced as a consequence of the annual programme review of this programme.
https://www.exeter.ac.uk/study/studyinformation/modules/?prog=english
You may take optional modules as long as any necessary prerequisites have been satisfied, where the timetable allows and if you have not already taken the module in question or an equivalent module.
You may take elective modules up to 30 credits outside of the programme in years 1 and 3 of the programme as long as any necessary prerequisites have been satisfied, where the timetable allows and if you have not already taken the module in question or an equivalent module.
Stage 1
90 credits of compulsory modules, 30 credits of optional modules
Compulsory Modules
| Code | Module | Credits | Non-condonable? |
|---|---|---|---|
| EAS1032 | Approaches to Criticism | 30 | No |
| EAS1035 | Beginnings: English Literature before 1800 | 30 | No |
| EAS1038 | The Poem | 15 | No |
| EAS1040 | Academic English | 15 | No |
Optional Modules
| Code | Module | Credits | Non-condonable? |
|---|---|---|---|
| EAS SH Stage 1 Option Modules 2024-5 | |||
| EAS1035 | Beginnings: English Literature before 1800 | 30 | No |
| EAS1037 | The Novel | 15 | No |
| EAS1041 | Rethinking Shakespeare | 15 | No |
| EAS1042 | Write after Reading | 30 | No |
| EAS1044 | Imagine This: Prompts for Creative Writing | 15 | No |
| EAS1016 | Digital Cultures: Narrative, Creativity, Industry | 15 | No |
Stage 2
Year Abroad in North American Institution - 120 credits of compulsory modules
You will take the number of modules usually required of students in an academic year at the host university. Two must be in North American literature and/or culture, and at least 75% of your studies must be in English or American literature and culture. The marks for the year's work will count as 120 credits towards the degree result. For each of the two semesters spent abroad, the average of the semester's marks will be treated as a single 60-credit module mark.
Compulsory Modules
| Code | Module | Credits | Non-condonable? |
|---|---|---|---|
| EAS2110 | North American Study Term 1 | 60 | No |
| EAS2111 | North American Study Term 2 | 60 | No |
Stage 3
Subject, to taking 120 credits overall: 60 credits of compulsory modules, 60 credits of optional English modules. Of the 60 credits of optional English modules, at least 30 must have substantial North American content.
a - You must select one of the following. Either EAS3003 Dissertation, or EAS3122 Creative writing Dissertation, or EAS3510 Dissertation by Collaborative Project (you cannot choose more than one module from this group).
b - You must select one of the following. Either EAS3195 Acts of Writing From Decolonisation to Globalisation, or EAS3179 Life and Death in Early Modern Literature, or EAS3234 Citizens of the World
c - You must select at least one module from this group of modules with substantial North American content.
Compulsory Modules
| Code | Module | Credits | Non-condonable? |
|---|---|---|---|
| EAS3003 | Dissertation [see note a above] | 30 | No |
| EAS3122 | Creative Writing Dissertation [see note a above] | 30 | No |
| EAS3510 | Dissertation by Collaborative Project [see note a above] | 30 | No |
| EAS3195 | Acts of Writing: From Decolonisation to Globalisation [see note b above] | 30 | No |
| EAS3179 | Life and Death in Early Modern Literature [see note b above] | 30 | No |
| EAS3234 | Citizens of the World [see note b above] | 30 | No |
| EAF3501 | American Independent Film [See note c above] | 30 | No |
| EAF3515 | Something to See: War and Visual Media [See note c above] | 30 | No |
| EAS3421 | Picturing the Global City: Literature and Visual Culture in the 21st Century [See note c above] | 30 | No |
| EAS3252 | Poison, Filth, Trash: Modernism, Censorship and Resistance [See note c above] | 30 | No |
| EAS3500 | American Counterculture in Literature [See note c above] | 30 | No |
Optional Modules
| Code | Module | Credits | Non-condonable? |
|---|---|---|---|
| English Final Stage Option Modules 2024-5 | |||
| EAS3128 | Writing the Short Film | 30 | No |
| EAS3131 | Advanced Critical Theory | 30 | No |
| EAS3181 | Visual and Literary Cultures of Realism | 30 | No |
| EAS3182 | Encountering the Other in Medieval Literature | 30 | No |
| EAS3191 | Writing for Children and Young Adults | 30 | No |
| EAS3198 | The Death of the Novel | 30 | No |
| EAS3219 | Virginia Woolf: Fiction, Feeling, Form | 30 | No |
| EAS3225 | 'Reader, I Married Him': The Evolution of Romance Fiction from 1740 to the Present | 30 | No |
| EAS3237 | The Rise of Science | 30 | No |
| EAS3245 | The 21st Century Museum | 30 | No |
| EAS3252 | Poison, Filth, Trash: Modernism, Censorship and Resistance | 30 | No |
| EAS3311 | Piracy in Early Modern Literature, 1570-1730 | 30 | No |
| EAS3408 | Poetry and Politics | 30 | No |
| EAS3414 | Jane Austen: In and Out of Context | 30 | No |
| EAS3415 | The Development of British Childrens Literature | 30 | No |
| EAS3416 | Feeling Bodies: Emotions in Early Modern Literature and Culture, 1500-1700 | 30 | No |
| EAS3417 | Sex, Scandal and Sensation in Victorian Literature | 30 | No |
| EAS3420 | Staging Space: Dramatic Geography and Audience Experience | 30 | No |
| EAS3421 | Picturing the Global City: Literature and Visual Culture in the 21st Century | 30 | No |
| EAS3502 | Shakespeare and Crisis | 30 | No |
| EAS3503 | Migration, Literature and Culture | 30 | No |
| EAS3501 | Fiction Matters | 30 | No |
| EAS3100 | Hardy and Women Who Did: the Coming of Modernity | 30 | No |
| EAS3500 | American Counterculture in Literature | 30 | No |
| EAS3504 | Surrealism and its Legacies | 30 | No |
| EAS3228 | Romance from Chaucer to Shakespeare | 30 | No |
| EAS3509 | From Pen to Printed Page: Exeter's Literary Archives | 30 | No |
| EAS3511 | 'Mad': cultures, histories, phantasies, imaginaries of mental distress | 30 | No |
| EAS3312 | Adventures in Technique (Poetry) | 30 | No |
| EAS3196 | Charles Dickens: Novelist, Journalist and Reformer | 30 | No |
6. Programme Outcomes Linked to Teaching, Learning and Assessment Methods
Intended Learning Outcomes
A: Specialised Subject Skills and Knowledge
| Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) On successfully completing this programme you will be able to: | Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) will be... | |
|---|---|---|
| ...accommodated and facilitated by the following learning and teaching activities (in/out of class): | ...and evidenced by the following assessment methods: | |
1. Identify English as a broad subject discipline* | A1-7 are acquired through lectures, seminars, workshops, study groups, tutorials and other learning activities throughout the programme. The degree of specialisation of subject knowledge increases during the programme, culminating in the dissertation modules. Option modules at stage 3 are most closely related to the research specialism of the staff teaching the module. The precise method of teaching varies according to each module. On team-taught modules you will normally engage in both lectures and seminar groups. In smaller options you will normally spend most of your contact time in seminar groups and workshops. As well as these contact hours, some modules will include regular film screenings. Stage 3 students writing their dissertation or final project will meet their supervisor for a number of one-on-one tutorial sessions. Your understanding is further developed through engagement with assessments, following guidance from tutors and lecturers and through feedback on work submitted. A 2, A3, and A4 are specifically introduced in the level 1 module, ‘Beginnings: English Literature before 1800’, and reinforced in the range of option modules available in levels 1, 2, and 3, culminating in the dissertation modules EAS3003,EAS3122 and EAS3510. A5, A6, and A7 are introduced specifically in the level 1 module ‘Approaches to Criticism’ and applied throughout the programme. This module provides plenty of opportunities to gain a firm grounding in literary and cultural theory. A5 is also directly addressed in ‘The Poem’, which is partly dedicated to developing stylistic and formal terminology and analytical skills. A8 is strongly developed during stage 2, which you will spend in a North American University, as well as during stage 3, in which you are obliged to select one option module in a relevant subject. For Stage 2, the teaching and learning methods are those employed by the host North American university NOTE: * The Department understands ‘English’ to include film and creative writing as well as a range of literatures in English. It also recognises the complex relationship of English to other disciplines and forms of knowledge. | Assessment of skills A1-7 will be through a range of essays and other written assessments, oral presentations, exams, log-books, web-based assessments, and a dissertation or final project.Essays, exams and presentations are especially significant within the programme because they assess each of the skills, A1-7. Outcome A6 is especially associated with creative writing logbooks. A1- A6 are also demonstrated in the completion of the dissertation or final project. The assessment criteria explicitly recognise the skills outlines. For Stage 2, the assessment methods are those employed by the host North American university |
Intended Learning Outcomes
B: Academic Discipline Core Skills and Knowledge
| Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) On successfully completing this programme you will be able to: | Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) will be... | |
|---|---|---|
| ...accommodated and facilitated by the following learning and teaching activities (in/out of class): | ...and evidenced by the following assessment methods: | |
9. Apply critical skills in the close reading and analysis of texts. | B9-18 are developed through lectures, workshops, study groups, tutorials and other learning activities throughout the programme. Your skills are further developed through engagement with assessments, following guidance from tutors and lecturers and through feedback on work submitted. Outcomes B9, B12, and B18 will be specifically introduced in core module, ‘The Poem’, as well as in options ’Digital Creativity’ and ‘The Novel’. B10, B16, and B17 are introduced especially in core level 1 modules ‘Approaches to Criticism’ and ‘Academic English’, and B11 is initially addressed in core level 1 module ‘Beginnings: English Literature before 1800’. B9-12 and B16-18 are reinforced B13-15 are specifically introduced in core module, ‘Academic English’. This module ensures that you have a firm grasp of the range of academic skills that are required of you during the programme. These outcomes are developed across the range of option modules during level 3, culminating in the substantial, independent research skills demonstrated within the dissertation or final project. B19 is developed during the programme because the second stage is spent studying English within a North American University. For Stage 2, the teaching and learning methods are those employed by the host North American university. | Assessment of B9-18 will be through a range of essays and other written assessments, oral presentations, exams, log-books, web-based assessments, and a dissertation or final project. The assessment criteria explicitly recognize the skills outlined. B9-12 and 16-18 are developed throughout the programme in critical essays and presentations on each module. In level 1, B13-15 especially are assessed as a 10% component of each written assessment. B13-15 are also supported by peer- and self-assessment which is introduced at Level 1 to encourage you to become familiar with the Department’s assessment criteria and marking scheme, and to develop a reflective, critical attitude towards your own acquisition of skills. All Level 1 modules also have 10% for class participation included within their assessment profile. The Department also makes use of formative developmental feedback provided following informally assessed essays and other exercises. Although not contributing to the final degree award, these assignments are important for the opportunity they give you to practice all of your core academic skills and to receive developmental feedback. In addition, the programme teaching team makes use of assignments which are primarily formative in emphasis, but which have some evaluative significance (EG counting 10% towards the final module mark). For Stage 2, the assessment methods are those employed by the host North American university
|
Intended Learning Outcomes
C: Personal/Transferable/Employment Skills and Knowledge
| Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) On successfully completing this programme you will be able to: | Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) will be... | |
|---|---|---|
| ...accommodated and facilitated by the following learning and teaching activities (in/out of class): | ...and evidenced by the following assessment methods: | |
20. Apply advanced literacy and communication skills in appropriate contexts including the ability to present sustained and persuasive written and oral arguments cogently and coherently. | C20-28 are developed through lectures, workshops, study groups, tutorials, work experience and other learning activities throughout the programme. In level 1, key skills C20-25 and C27-28, especially associated with writing, are introduced to students directly in ‘Academic English’ and in all other modules. In level 3, the completion of the dissertation or final project marks the ability to complete a substantial project calling extensively upon these skills. Your skills are further developed through engagement with assessments, following guidance from tutors and lecturers and through feedback on work submitted. Outcomes C21 and C24 are introduced especially in the core module ‘Approaches to Criticism’. C23 is introduced especially in ‘Beginnings: English Literature before 1800’. More generally, research, analytical, organizational, and team work skills C21-26 are consolidated throughout the range of core and option modules in levels 1 and 3. C11 and C12 are developed within the programme by the experience of living and studying in another country during stage 2. For Stage 2, the teaching and learning methods are those employed by the host North American university. | The backbone of assessment in English remains the formal essay, alongside other forms of written project. Substantial work is invested, especially in Levels 1 and 2, in developing your ability,knowledge and experience of writing skills. The Modules ‘Academic English’ and ‘Beginnings: English Literature before 1800’ both include a wide variety of written assessments designed to foster skills of effective writing and argumentation (outcomes C20, C25, and C27-28). Outcomes C21-25 are also strongly developed in the course of the portfolio of assessed essays and other written work produced in levels 1, 2, and 3. These assessments work on the principle of offering formative feedback to support the development of your written work within as well as between modules. Feedback on one assignment is intended to inform the next piece of work on the module; the next piece of work on the programme, or the future learning of graduates who will be lifelong learners. All Level 1 Single Honours students will have undertaken an assessment and received feedback within the first six weeks of the programme. C27-28 are also accomplished in the course of ‘real-time’ formal assessments such as presentations and end of module exams, which occur at levels 1 of the programme and on some modules at level 3. Outcome C26 is associated especially with the range of group presentations taking place in modules during all three levels. Group presentation assessment brings into focus an important range of skills for students, including sharing workloads, responsibility for tasks, team-working, collaborative and communicative skills. Individual contributions to group work are also assessed individually, most often in the form of a reflective presentation report. In addition, aspects of team-based written assessments are introduced in the core level 1 module, ‘The Poem’. For Stage 2, the assessment methods are those employed by the host North American university. |
7. Programme Regulations
Assessment of the year in North America in the context of the programme as a whole is conducted by converting your cumulative Grade Point Average into a University of Exeter Department of English grade, a grade which covers the entire second year, following the completion of your year abroad. This is done using a conversion table, published on the English Study Abroad website, which is subject to annual review. Both the process of this review and individual grade conversions are decided on by a working party comprising the Overseas Student Tutor, the Exams officer, and one member of staff with extensive knowledge of the North American education system. The recommendations of this working party then have to be ratified by an external examiner. The Overseas Student Tutor is present at the Department board of examiners’ meeting to address and answer any queries about North American grades converted from your second year.
Failure to complete one or more courses taken at a North American university successfully will be dealt with according to the same principles as failure in Exeter modules, except that:
- The Department reserves the right to devise alternative forms of assessment where the arrangement of deferred/referred assessment at a North American university is impracticable.
- In the case of a failed referred assessment, repeat study in North America will not be an available option; In all calculations, “30 credits” shall be taken as the equivalent of 25% of the credits taken at the North American University.
Classification
Full details of assessment regulations for all taught programmes can be found in the TQA Manual, specifically in the Credit and Qualifications Framework, and the Assessment, Progression and Awarding: Taught Programmes Handbook. Additional information, including Generic Marking Criteria, can be found in the Learning and Teaching Support Handbook.
8. College Support for Students and Students' Learning
You will attend Department welcome sessions on arrival, and will have access to University Student Information pages http://www.exeter.ac.uk/students/service
Support for your learning in the Department of English is accomplished in a number of learning environments including lectures, seminars, workshops, student study groups, tutorials, supervisions, and Virtual Learning Environments and other IT resources. The precise method of teaching varies according to each module. Lectures are usually one hour long, and offer a forum for all students on a given module to participate in learning together. Seminar groups (and workshops which are often used in creative writing modules) are usually approximately 15-20 students, and constitute a ‘learning group’.
Seminars and workshops are the core focus for learning and teaching, and attendance is compulsory. Seminar leaders will structure a semester’s work, sometimes in the form of a seminar plan which details weekly reading and preparation tasks; sometimes in negotiation with the group during the first meeting. Seminars offer a crucial learning resource, not just in terms of the structured work under the guidance of your seminar leader, but also in terms of the learning group. Within seminars, you engage routinely in dialogue in order to develop and negotiate conclusions with others. The module ‘Academic English’ experienced during level 1 offers a range of skills and techniques chosen to support individual performance throughout the degree programme. You are strongly recommended to apply these ideas within each ‘learning group’ attached to your modules throughout the Programme. You are encouraged to share ideas, questions, support and information with their ‘learning group’. In addition to seminar groups, the Department makes use of Study Groups in certain modules across all three years, including the core level 1 modules ‘Approaches to Criticism’ and ‘Beginnings: English Literature before 1800’. In such modules, each seminar group divides into two or more Study Groups (typically of around 6-8 students), which then meet for weekly meetings of approximately one hour of independent learning activity. The groups are self-organising, although tutors may provide some direction in the form of particular tasks or questions to address, and may some weeks require feedback from the group in a particular form (e.g. a seminar presentation, or report to be posted online). Ideally, Study Groups take place after the texts for the week have been read, and following the week’s lecture, and provide an opportunity for you to develop ideas, and generate questions, to be taken forward to your seminars.
Other support for students includes the following:
1.Year in North America
As a way of providing guidance to you about the learning opportunities available during your year in North America, in the year before your time overseas you are given several induction sessions by academic staff, and particularly the Overseas Student Tutor to advise you on the nature of the learning opportunities and courses available during your year abroad. Exeter academic staff with personal experience of the available exchange destinations regularly offer their advice and expertise. Also available is the English Study Abroad website, which offers information and an online discussion forum. You will be registered on this forum, and this is one forum in which students returning from study abroad are able to advise those about to depart.
Guidance is also regularly offered on progression through the programme as a whole, and the practicalities of studying in another country. Much of this is done by the International Office, who provide advice and factsheets on overseas institutions including information on location, term dates and accommodation. Advice is also provided to assist in applying for a visa and the applications procedure to North American universities during the year preceding your year abroad. From 2002, all first year ESNA students have been placed with the Overseas Student Tutor as their personal tutor, allowing for a concentration of experience in offering pastoral care for students registered on this degree. 2. Personal Tutor System
The Department provides a Personal Tutor System based on the principles contained in the TQA Manual Code of Good Practice for Personal Tutor Systems. You are assigned a Personal Tutor who will be available for discussion of any problems or queries throughout the degree. Following an initial compulsory meeting with the Personal Tutor in Induction Week, you are required to see your Personal Tutor to discuss your progress, assessment results and feedback and anything that has been of concern, at least once a term. If necessary, a record will be made of any exceptional circumstances, difficulties or achievements, which are important to your personal record. Personal Tutors all have three office hours a week for you to use for appointments or as drop in sessions. The Personal Tutor Scheme is overseen by the Student Support Tutor reporting to the Head of Department.
3. Student Support Tutor
In 2002 a student support tutor / Department disability representative was created, who coordinates inhouse support for students, and is able to refer you to other sources of support within the University.
4. Recording of Achievement
The Department ensures that a full record of your attendance of seminars and marks are maintained over the duration of your participation in the programme.
9. University Support for Students and Students' Learning
Please refer to the University Academic Policy and Standards guidelines regarding support for students and students' learning.
10. Admissions Criteria
Undergraduate applicants must satisfy the Undergraduate Admissions Policy of the University of Exeter.
Postgraduate applicants must satisfy the Postgraduate Admissions Policy of the University of Exeter.
Specific requirements required to enrol on this programme are available at the respective Undergraduate or Postgraduate Study Site webpages.
11. Regulation of Assessment and Academic Standards
Each academic programme in the University is subject to an agreed College assessment and marking strategy, underpinned by institution-wide assessment procedures.
The security of assessment and academic standards is further supported through the appointment of External Examiners for each programme. External Examiners have access to draft papers, course work and examination scripts. They are required to attend the Board of Examiners and to provide an annual report. Annual External Examiner reports are monitored at both College and University level. Their responsibilities are described in the University's code of practice. See the University's TQA Manual for details.
14. Awarding Institution
University of Exeter
15. Lead College / Teaching Institution
Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS)
16. Partner College / Institution
Partner College(s)
Not applicable to this programme
Partner Institution
Not applicable to this programme.
17. Programme Accredited / Validated by
0
18. Final Award
BA (Hons) English with Study in North America
19. UCAS Code
Q310
20. NQF Level of Final Award
6 (Honours)
21. Credit
| CATS credits | 360 |
ECTS credits | 180 |
|---|
22. QAA Subject Benchmarking Group
[Honours] English
23. Dates
| Origin Date | 21/01/2005 |
Date of last revision | 08/06/2021 |
|---|
