Literary Competence of Pre-Service English Teachers

English teachers are in demand today either in the field of education or other specializations. Literary competence gives paramount impact to be adept in English literature. The main purpose of this study was to determine the literary competence of Pre-Service English Teachers. Specifically, it sought to answer the respondents' level of literary competence and the respondents' literary competence in elements of poetry. Cross-sectional descriptive design was used with a 30-item literary competence test composing point of view, literary device, sound values, and structure. A researcher made questionnaire was administered to fifty respondents. The questionnaire underwent validation through pilot-testing. The results implied that most of the respondents were still in the developing level. It also revealed that they were least competent in structure as part of the elements of poetry. Therefore, the respondents lacked literary competence expected of a Pre-Service English teacher. It was recommended that an intervention scheme must be crafted and utilized to achieve literary competence