The mission of the SDSU Department of English and Comparative Literature is to

• Advance understanding of human experience through the study of literature and culture.
  
• Promote highly disciplined methods of interpretation and analysis that contribute to greater imagination and cultural insight in addressing local and global issues.
  
• Prepare students from diverse backgrounds to read and interact with a range of textual forms, from print to digital; interpret, understand, and create meaning; and write effectively in a variety of forms.
  
• Support the work of faculty as teachers, scholars and artists in building new knowledge and creating new articulations of human experience.
  
• Educate future teachers of literature and creative writing at elementary, high school, and college levels, and prepare students for careers in editing, writing, and publishing.

Our goal is to teach undergraduates how to

(BA in English & Comparative Literature)

• Read critically across multiple media.
  
• Demonstrate the capacity for sustained, meaningful writing within disciplined professional forms.
  
• Situate texts within historical and cultural contexts.
  
• Articulate the value of aesthetic experiences in human culture.
  
• Engage imaginatively and thoughtfully with diverse literary and cultural perspectives.
  
• Negotiate complex issues of personal and global significance.

(BA in English & Comparative Literature, Single Subject Major)

• Read critically across multiple media.
  
• Demonstrate the capacity for sustained, meaningful writing within disciplined professional forms.
  
• Situate texts within historical and cultural contexts.
  
• Articulate the value of aesthetic experiences in human culture.
  
• Engage imaginatively and thoughtfully with diverse literary and cultural perspectives.
  
• Negotiate complex issues of personal and global significance.
  
• Meet California state standards for teacher preparation.