Ph.D. in English
Description
The Ph.D. in English literature is a specialist degree that prepares students for teaching in postsecondary education as well as for literary interpretation and scholarly pursuits. Upon completion of the degree, graduates should be aware of the richness inherent in literature written in English and to have honed to a high level both interpretive thinking and oral and written competencies.
Minimum Total Credit Hours: 54
Course Requirements
The requirements for the Ph.D. in English include 24 hours of coursework beyond the master's degree or 42 hours of coursework beyond the bachelor's degree (additional courses may be required by the Graduate Admission Committee on an individual basis); 18 hours of dissertation; successful completion of an Advanced Candidacy Examination (comprehensive); an approved dissertation prospectus; and successful oral defense of a dissertation. For students admitted to the doctoral program with a bachelor's degree, the M.A. may be awarded upon successful completion of the Ph.D. candidacy exam. All students pursuing coursework for the Ph.D. should expect to meet with the director of graduate studies at least once a year to discuss their progress. During the Advanced Candidacy Exam, the student's Advisory Committee will vote on whether to award an M.A. in passing and whether to approve the student's admission to candidacy for the doctoral degree. The coursework must include Eng 600 during a student's first fall semester. Coursework must also include 6 hours in English or American literature before 1800; 6 hours in English or American literature after 1800; and up to 6 hours in related disciplines outside traditional English department courses. Of those 6 hours, up to 3 can be independent study or directed reading. All coursework must be completed before a student may submit any section of the Advanced Candidacy Examination. Graduate instructors teaching in the composition program are required to complete Eng 617 (Teaching College English).
Students may receive a Ph.D. with specialization in Renaissance and Early Modern studies by completing 21 hours of graduate course work in Renaissance and Early Modern studies, including a minimum of 9 hours in the Department of English and a minimum of 9 hours outside the department, and submitting a dissertation on a Renaissance or Early Modern subject. With the exception of the 6-hour requirement in literature after 1800 and the 6-hour limit on graduate course work in related disciplines, students pursuing this specialization must also satisfy all other general requirements for the Ph.D. in English.
Advanced Candidacy: Admission to advanced candidacy follows the successful completion of the Advanced Candidacy Examination, which is both a written and oral examination. See the Department of English website for further detail.
Dissertation prospectus: Soon after admission to advanced candidacy, the candidate is expected to submit a dissertation prospectus to the Ph.D. committee and an outside (extradepartmental) examiner.
Dissertation: The candidate is required to complete a book-length research project that makes an original and significant contribution to the field of literary studies. Candidates must successfully defend their dissertation before the Ph.D. committee and the outside examiner.
Foreign Languages: Although there is no foreign language requirement for the Ph.D. per se, the members of the dissertation committee may, depending on the student's dissertation topic, require that the student demonstrate competence in one or more foreign languages.
Other Academic Requirements
Ph.D. Committee-Each student, working in collaboration with the director of graduate studies, puts together a Ph.D. committee, composed of three members of the Department of English graduate faculty. The student and his or her Ph.D. committee design an individual program of study. The responsibilities of the Ph.D. committee include setting, administering, and evaluating the Advanced Candidacy Examination process; evaluating the dissertation prospectus; supervising and approving dissertation work; conducting and evaluating the oral dissertation defense; and recommending the conferral of the degree. A fourth (extradepartmental) examiner works with the committee to evaluate the candidate's work from the prospectus stage forward.