Get news & events by emailStudents majoring or minoring in English or Comparative Literature have numerous opportunities to study outside the United States. From England to Italy to Japan, students can immerse themselves in a foreign culture while adding diversity to their undergraduate careers.
An undergraduate's best resource for spending academic time outside the country is the UNC Study Abroad Office. Below English majors/minors reflect on their experiences studying and living abroad.
Experiences
Semester at Lancaster University in Northern England
"As an English and Creative Writing student, it was
really cool to live in the land where pretty much everything I study took place. I got to visit The Globe, Beatrix Potter's house, and tour Jane Austen's Bath. My program was a direct exchange, so I got to live and go to class with British students. Lancaster has an excellent English and Creative Writing program, so I got to fulfill several major requirements while I was there. The creative writing classes were especially interesting because they were a lot less regimented than the program at UNC. While they included less constructive criticism, I was able to explore the organic process of writing more easily. I backpacked around Europe through six countries and eleven cities in four weeks. By the time I came back to the US I felt like a European Jack Kerouac. Studying abroad has been the most rewarding thing I have done in college, and I HIGHLY recommend the Lancaster program!"- Annie Josey
Class of 2012, English Major, Creative Writing Minor
Honors Summer Program in Rome
"Traveling to Rome this summer allowed me the unique opportunity to study the inspiration behind familiar literature. It's one thing to read Dante and Petrarch, but an entirely different to enter into discussion about the development of the Italian language as a means to further spread Florentine art throughout the region. The Rome program is an amazing one for any academic discipline, but humanities students are especially able to benefit because of the huge influence of the Renaissance on every facet of study."- Elizabeth Behar
Class of 2011, History Major and English Minor
"Before I lived in Rome for five weeks, the furthest out of the United States I'd ever been was Canada. For the first week it was mind-blowing to realize I was almost 5000 miles away from home. Studying abroad gives anunusual experience of the local culture: as
a student I felt I was seeing and doing so much more than I ever could have as a tourist. I did all the typical tourist activities, walked through the Colosseum, got lost in Pompeii, visited museums, swam at Italian beaches, went on tours. But I also shopped in Ita lian grocery stores, I lived in an Italian neighborhood, I ate in authentic trattorie, I learned the public transportation system. The literary arts course I took as part of the Honors Rome program perfectly complemented this unique experience of Italian culture."
- Katie Meyer
Class of 2013, English and Information and Library Science Major
Semester at Oxford University in England
"Classes are one-on-one tutorials with a professor, studying the area of your choice, and it was a great opportunity to enhance my reading and ability to craft an argument. I did tutorials on literary theory, Shakespeare's comedies, political literature 1930 to the present and Romanticism. Plus, it's a great place to take a garden stroll or have a pint and chat literature in the same place as Lewis Carroll, Tolkien, Erasmus... the list goes on. I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for an academically-focused study abroad or anyone who wants to focus their writing skills."
- Erin Becker
Class of 2011
Class of 2011
Two programs offer specific opportunities for English majors/minors to study abroad.
Summer Program in Oxford
For five weeks, students engage in an intensive study of Shakespeare and his plays. Below, see a student perspective on the Honors London Program.
"When you live in the United Kingdom, history simply oozes from everything you glimpse. You are confronted directly with the landscapes and circumstances that inspired the greatest
of all English writers. It is without doubt the most empowering experience you can have as a student of the language...Our program had lots of time built in for travel and I was able to canvass much of the island during my stay—from Brighton, Hastings and Bath, to the Lake District, Wales and Scotland. I can honestly say that my brief visit to Canterbury has inspired me to enroll in a Chaucer class next semester. There's no telling what new literary doors you will decide to open once you've crossed the Atlantic and explored Britain for yourself! Doing so changed my life utterly. I'm already planning many, many return trips and I believe there is no end to what Britain can teach me."
- Cindy Scott
Class of 2011, Multimedia Journalism & English double Major/Geography Minor
of all English writers. It is without doubt the most empowering experience you can have as a student of the language...Our program had lots of time built in for travel and I was able to canvass much of the island during my stay—from Brighton, Hastings and Bath, to the Lake District, Wales and Scotland. I can honestly say that my brief visit to Canterbury has inspired me to enroll in a Chaucer class next semester. There's no telling what new literary doors you will decide to open once you've crossed the Atlantic and explored Britain for yourself! Doing so changed my life utterly. I'm already planning many, many return trips and I believe there is no end to what Britain can teach me."
- Cindy Scott
Class of 2011, Multimedia Journalism & English double Major/Geography Minor
UNC-NUS Joint Degree Program in Singapore
UNC undergraduates can spend between 2 and 4 semesters studying in Singpore to acquire a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from the National University of Singapore.
