English Program Expansion

An expansion to the English program was proposed and approved earlier this month by the Board of Governors, adding a 4-year Minor option for degrees.

BU President Deborah Poff proposed the addition to the English program at the January 3rd BOG meeting. The reasoning being that “ The current 3-Year Minor in English does not adequately serve the needs of students taking a 4-Year Honours Major or a 4-Year Major.” The English department has among the highest enrolment at BU, with Dr. Poff saying that there can be “upwards of 70 minors and 40 majors in a given year” with a high retention rate, and that these include students from Manitoba as well as parts of Ontario and Saskatchewan and beyond. A 4-Year Minor in English would “...add substance to the English program at Brandon University as well as to the 4-Year Honours BA and the 4-Year BA; thereby enhancing the province’s education sector.”

Enrolment in the 4-Year Minor is expected to be around 30 or more in a given year, which would include many that would normally enrol in a 3-year Minor. According to the proposal, existing financial and technological resources are sufficient for the new degree.

The 4-Year Minor’s current requirements will be a minimum of 24 credit hours, including 6 from introductory courses, 9 credit hours at the 300/400 level, and 3 credit hours each from 3 subsections, similar to the other current English degrees.