Welcome to the English Department.

The English Department is the largest department within the  College of Arts and Letters at Old Dominion University. We are dedicated to offering rigorous academic programs that prepare our graduates for advanced study and a range of professions in writing, journalism, analytic fields, linguistics, and teaching. Our courses encourage both the analysis and production of texts, and our degrees have emphases in a number of English fields:

• Composition and Rhetoric
• Creative Writing
• Journalism
• Linguistics
• Literature
• New Media
• Professional Writing
• Teaching of English

Our students have found positions as technical writers, journalists, and professional communicators in the technology-rich areas of Tidewater, Virginia and Washington, D.C., and many go on to pursue further graduate work in law, literature, creative writing, and rhetoric and composition. Our faculty  are dynamic, diverse, and highly-published scholars who stay at the cutting edge of their fields. Graduate students in our programs are eligible for a number of fellowships and assistantships, including Teaching Assistantships within our Writing Tutorial Services, the first-year composition classroom, distance education classrooms, and other locations around campus. Further, the Hampton Roads area boasts beautiful public beaches, rich cultural attractions, and close proximity to Washington, D.C. For information on specific programs, please consult other pages on this site or contact the individuals listed as program coordinators and directors.

Dr. Jeffrey H. Richards,
Chair Department of English
Batten Arts and Letters 5000
Old Dominion University
Norfolk, VA 23529

English Office (757) 683-3991