Best English Language and Literature colleges in the U.S. 2025
"The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go." ― Dr. Seuss, I Can Read with My Eyes Shut!
About 40,000 years ago, the first human wrote down a story — albeit it was a simple depiction on a cave wall, but an idea and message was delivered to other humans even centuries later all the same. Since then, throngs of talented writers have put ink to paper, fingers to typewriter, and hands to keyboard to fill our libraries with works of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, essays, and prose, both long and short. Authors filled pages upon pages with writings that captured moments in history, truths of human nature, ideas of what the future held. Those insights, those tastes of cultures and classes and past zeitgeists are waiting to be remembered and experienced. And you can discover them and live vicariously through the words of our Western world’s greatest authors — as an English language and literature major.
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Brown University offers 3 English Language and Literature, General degree programs. It's a large, private not-for-profit, four-year university in a midsize city. In 2023, 83 English Language and Literature, General students graduated with students earning 77 Bachelor's degrees, 3 Master's degrees, and 3 Doctoral degrees.
English Degree Program
Study among 15,000 others at Duke University. Natural beauty surrounds the university, like the Duke Forest that covers 7,000 acres or the Sarah P. Duke Gardens where you can stroll with a good book in your hand — or one of your book assignments. At one of the top English departments in the country, you’ll learn to read, think, and write, and the interconnectivity of those activities. The department’s website states, “To explore these literatures in this department then is to pay the most precise and rigorous attention to forms of address: who is saying what to whom? Why just this word, right there, right now?” The program includes critical reading, inquiry, thought, and debate. According to the website, “English ‘labs’ are libraries, museums, classrooms, conference rooms, even hallways, cafes, and campus quads — any place where thinking or conversation occurs.” They emphasize conferences, working groups, seminars, speaker series, and literary readings. In the program, you’ll practice your judgment, because responses to literature is personal, and you’ll explore aesthetic and ethical judgments. When you’re finished, you’ll be more articulate and more self-aware.
Northwestern University offers 4 English Language and Literature, General degree programs. It's a very large, private not-for-profit, four-year university in a small city. In 2023, 65 English Language and Literature, General students graduated with students earning 46 Bachelor's degrees, 15 Master's degrees, and 4 Doctoral degrees.
Tufts University offers 3 English Language and Literature, General degree programs. It's a large, private not-for-profit, four-year university in a large suburb. In 2023, 46 English Language and Literature, General students graduated with students earning 42 Bachelor's degrees, 3 Doctoral degrees, and 1 Master's degree.
Johns Hopkins University offers 3 English Language and Literature, General degree programs. It's a very large, private not-for-profit, four-year university in a large city. In 2023, 18 English Language and Literature, General students graduated with students earning 9 Bachelor's degrees, 8 Doctoral degrees, and 1 Master's degree.
University of Notre Dame offers 3 English Language and Literature, General degree programs. It's a large, private not-for-profit, four-year university in a large suburb. In 2023, 53 English Language and Literature, General students graduated with students earning 43 Bachelor's degrees, 6 Master's degrees, and 4 Doctoral degrees.
University of Southern California offers 3 English Language and Literature, General degree programs. It's a very large, private not-for-profit, four-year university in a large city. In 2023, 42 English Language and Literature, General students graduated with students earning 17 Doctoral degrees, 15 Bachelor's degrees, and 10 Master's degrees.
Boston College offers 3 English Language and Literature, General degree programs. It's a large, private not-for-profit, four-year university in a small city. In 2023, 109 English Language and Literature, General students graduated with students earning 84 Bachelor's degrees, and 25 Master's degrees.
University of Virginia-Main Campus offers 3 English Language and Literature, General degree programs. It's a very large, public, four-year university in a midsize suburb. In 2023, 191 English Language and Literature, General students graduated with students earning 150 Bachelor's degrees, 30 Master's degrees, and 11 Doctoral degrees.
Columbia University in the City of New York offers 4 English Language and Literature, General degree programs. It's a very large, private not-for-profit, four-year university in a large city. In 2023, 169 English Language and Literature, General students graduated with students earning 87 Bachelor's degrees, 34 Certificates, 28 Master's degrees, and 20 Doctoral degrees.
Find local colleges with English Language and Literature majors in the U.S.
List of all English Language and Literature colleges in the U.S.
| School | Average Tuition | Student Teacher Ratio | Enrolled Students | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Brown University Providence, RI | 12 : 1 | 11,516 | |
|
Duke University Durham, NC | 12 : 1 | 17,112 | |
|
Northwestern University Evanston, IL | 15 : 1 | 23,203 | |
|
Tufts University Medford, MA | 15 : 1 | 13,274 | |
|
Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD | 21 : 1 | 30,362 | |