English

Why Iowa?

Immerse yourself in the world of literature, books, and creative writing–in a college and community obsessed with the written word.

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Build a Foundation

If you love reading and writing, you belong at Iowa. Declare the English or English and Creative Writing major, and join a community dedicated to exploring–and creating–great literature.

Build a Foundation

Develop your literary scholarship. Hone your creative writing. Delve into book studies. Harness the digital humanities. Prepare for success in the academy, public service, education, and the literary arts and professions.

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Learn from Experts

Our faculty are creating the future of the English disciplines, inspired by our storied past. They advance scholarship and artistry in a welcoming academic community internationally recognized for literary excellence.

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Top Public University for Writing

Iowa's strength in writing reaches new level in annual U.S. News & World Report ranking

Kaveh Akbar's poem "Elegy for a Name" in the New Yorker

Monday, December 30, 2024

Kaveh Akbar's Martyr! on the New York Times 10 Best Books of 2024

Tuesday, December 10, 2024

Josephine Geiger-Lee rides on a blue car

English represented at Homecoming

Friday, November 8, 2024

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Sydney Mayes english and creative writing student

"Iowa City is the place to be– specifically the University of Iowa–if you want to be a writer and if you want to have access to incredible resources around writing. The reputation is insane."

- Sydney Mayes, English and Creative Writing major

Hear Sydney's "Why Iowa"

Upcoming Events

Nonfiction Writing Program Alumni Reading Series: Emily Mester

Monday, February 17, 2025 7:00pm

Prairie Lights Books

Emily Mester, alum of the Nonfiction Writing Program will read from her new debut essay collection American Bulk at Prairie Lights Books on Monday, February 17th at 7:00 p.m.

Krause Series in Contemporary Nonfiction: Dodie Bellamy

Friday, February 21, 2025 7:00pm

Nonfiction Writing House

The Nonfiction Writing Program presents a reading with Dodie Bellamy, NWP Bedell Distinguished Visiting Professor and author of numerous books including When the Sick Rule the World. Join us at the Nonfiction Writing House (530 N. Clinton St.) on Friday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m. for the reading, which is part of the Krause Series in Contemporary Nonfiction.

The Case for Medieval Realism: Sodom, Babylon and Cleanness

Monday, March 3, 2025 1:30pm to 3:00pm

English-Philosophy Building

Criticism Today presents Professor Larry Scanlon (Rutgers University) as he explores the power and relevance of medieval realism in literature. Drawing on ideas from theorists like Roland Barthes and Marxist thinkers Fredric Jameson and Anna Kornbluh, Scanlon will discuss how late medieval texts — especially the poem Cleanness and its retelling of the Sodom story — offer fresh insights into realism and culture.

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