FAQ on the Revised English Major

FAQ and Guide

For the 2025-2026 academic year, we have revised the English major to streamline the lower-division courses and to make joining the major easier for students who are already several hours into their college careers. Several of the introductory courses such as Reading Literature and Rethinking Literature have been dropped to help smooth out the onboarding process. 

There have been some questions about our revision to the English major for the 2025-2026 academic year. To address these, we've put together the following FAQ. If you have any questions beyond these, please reach out to the Undergraduate Studies director. 

Can I keep using my existing English major or do I need to switch to the new major since the courses I need aren’t offered anymore?

Yes, you can keep your old major. You are always able to keep the majors that are offered when you start a program. In cases where the courses are not offered anymore, you can simply substitute other courses to fill in the missing hours. For example, you can take Introduction to Literature instead of Reading Literature. To make a substitution, you just need to email the UGS Director at engladv@uark.edu with a substitution form and the courses you’ll be swapping. You can also schedule a meeting to go over your issues with the major.

Topical Studies disappeared from the catalog copy. Does that mean my concentration doesn’t exist anymore?

No! The Topical Studies concentration has simply been renamed Literature and Cultural Studies to describe what the course of study entails. The courses and focus are not markedly different at all.

How can I finish my non-revised English major if I can’t get into a Transatlantic survey? (They are only online and fill up quick)

You don’t have to! The Transatlantic surveys are only offered online currently as it takes a while to update Global Campus courses. Instead of taking those, you may simply take a new British or American literature survey with the new course numbers that best match your missing slots in the Transatlantic sequences.

I am on the old major and Workday is not showing my credits properly. Does that mean I can’t graduate on time?

No, Workday’s presentation doesn’t matter if you meet your catalog copy guidelines. The Workday student system is new and still being worked on, so there are going to be bugs, unfortunately due to the way it was rolled out in the university system. You can simply go to https://catalog.uark.edu and look for the catalog for your degree program. The year you started the program can be found in the Archives link if you are using an older version of the major. So long as you have met all the hour and slot requirements for the degree, you should be in a good position. However, if Workday causes you issues with applying for graduation please contact your advisor and the UGS director (engladv@uark.edu) for support.

I switched to the new major and now I have unused courses. Do they count for nothing now?

No, any of your old courses can be used in the new major. In cases where you have an issue with fit, please reach out to the UGS Director (engladv@uark.edu) to see about the best way to use some hours. For example, Transatlantic surveys can stand in for the new surveys.

Is there an easy way to see the difference between the old and new majors?

Yes, check out this chart below to show the equivalences:

 

Approved substitutions		2024 and older Catalog requirements
ENGL 26503	American 1700-1945	ENGL 20603 Or  ENGL 20703	1640-1865 1865-1945
ENGL 26603	English-language lit from 1945-Present	ENGL 20803	1945-Present
ENGL 26703	British Lit Beginnings - 17th	ENGL 20503	Beginnings to 1640
ENGL 26803	British Literature 1700-1945	ENGL 20703 Or ENGL 20603	1865-1945 1640-1865
ENGL 30000+	any	ENGL 11003	Reading Literature
ENGL 30000+	any	ENGL 20403	Rethinking Literature
ENGL 30000+	any	ENGL 310031	Approaches to Critical thinking1
1ENGL 31003 will no longer be required for concentrations in Rhetoric and Writing Studies or Creative Writing, but it will be required for all Literature and Culture Studies (formerly Topical) concentrations using the 2025 catalog version of the major.