The English Department provides students with introductory and advanced courses in creative writing and literatures in English from a wide variety of cultural and historical contexts. English majors and minors take a range of courses that allow them to explore diverse authors and periods, experiment with written forms, develop critical thinking and writing skills, access new creative techniques, and prepare for graduate degrees and careers in a variety of professions. A major must choose one of two different emphases, literature or creative writing; both emphases require the same set of foundational courses which are designed to develop literary skills and enhance awareness of the ways history and literature intersect. The six remaining courses offer the student great flexibility to design a program that meets her individual goals and interests as a writer and scholar; these six courses should be chosen in close consultation with the major advisor to help prepare her for the senior thesis in creative writing or literature. Students are asked to begin planning for their thesis in the second semester of their junior year; we offer the creative writing and literature thesis courses each semester, so seniors can choose in which semester they want to complete their thesis requirement. Thesis projects for creative writers can range from a collection of experimental poetry to the first chapters of a historical novel; literature students can choose to to do research and analysis on a particular genre, writer, or theme.

Workshops in creative writing are offered in poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and writing for young adults. In literature, we offer a regular rotation of courses from ancient myth to the 21st century in both British and American contexts; each semester we offer special topics classes like African American poets since 1965, Science Fiction, The New York School, and Pop Fiction. Students may also take courses in journalism (offered through the department) and book art.

The classes in the English Department are small and rely on discussion among the students. We have a lively community-oriented population who get involved in the literary activities at Mills. The Place for Writers and the Contemporary Writers Series support our curriculum with publishing workshops and author presentations. Students also have the opportunity to learn about publishing first hand by working on our undergraduate literary magazine, The Walrus. Visiting writers come to campus to interact with students and give readings. Recent visitors include Tamim Ansary, Dave Eggers, Barbara Guest, Daniel Handler, Tayari Jones, Anne Lamott, Khaled Mattawa, Claudia Rankine, William T. Vollman, Tobias Wolff, and Al Young.

Our faculty are published writers and critics, and each year we enhance our program by having important visiting writers teach some of our courses. Our most recent distinguished writers include: Daniel Alarcón, Justin Chin, Cristina Garcia, Robert Grenier, Ginu Kamani, Victor LaValle, and Micheline Aharonian Marcom.

The department also offers graduate work leading to a master of arts in English and American literature or a master of fine arts in creative writing. For information on these graduate programs, see the Graduate Catalog.