Program Overview

---

PhD English and American Studies / Overview

Overview

Our English and American Studies PhD programme offers the opportunity to undertake an in-depth piece of research in the area that most interests you.

Manchester has a strong tradition in research, and our current profile includes both traditional areas of research and new fields and methods.

Research in English and American Studies is conducted across both the chronological span and the theoretical range of the subject. Specific areas of international research excellence include:

• Old and Middle English
• Renaissance literature
• Romanticism
• Victorian literature and culture
• Contemporary literature
• Modern Irish and Scottish studies
• American studies
• Post-colonial and world literatures
• Cultural theory.

Entry Requirements

• Bachelor's (Honours) degree at 2:1 or above (or overseas equivalent); and
• Master's degree in a relevant subject – with an overall average of 65% or above, a minimum mark of 65% in your dissertation and no mark below 55% (or overseas equivalent)

Programme Details

Programme Options

| Full-time | Part-time | Full-time distance learning | Part-time distance learning
---|---|---|---|---
PhD | Y | Y | N | N

Programme Description

Our English and American Studies PhD programme offers the opportunity to undertake an in-depth piece of research in the area that most interests you.

Manchester has a strong tradition in research, and our current profile includes both traditional areas of research and new fields and methods.

Research in English and American Studies is conducted across both the chronological span and the theoretical range of the subject. Specific areas of international research excellence include:

• Old and Middle English
• Renaissance literature
• Romanticism
• Victorian literature and culture
• Contemporary literature
• Modern Irish and Scottish studies
• American studies
• Post-colonial and world literatures
• Cultural theory.

Fees

For entry in the academic year beginning September 2025, the tuition fees are as follows:

• PhD (full-time)
  UK students (per annum): £5,006
  International, including EU, students (per annum): £22,000
• PhD (part-time)
  UK students (per annum): £2,503
  International, including EU, students (per annum): £11,000

Scholarships/Sponsorships

There are a range of scholarships, studentships and awards to support both UK and overseas postgraduate researchers, details of which can be found via the links below.

To apply for University of Manchester funding, you must indicate in your application the competitions for which you wish to be considered. The deadline for most internal competitions, including AHRC NWCDTP and School of Arts, Languages and Cultures studentships is 13 January 2025.

All external funding competitions have a specified deadline for submitting the funding application form and a separate (earlier) deadline for submitting the online programme application form, both of which will be stated in the funding competition details below.

You will need to be nominated by your proposed supervisor for a number of our scholarships. Therefore, we highly recommend you discuss these funding opportunities with your supervisor first, so they can advise on your suitability and ensure you meet nomination deadlines.

For more funding information, visit our funding page or use our funding database to search for scholarships, studentships and awards you may be eligible for.

• AHRC North West Consortium Doctoral Training Partnership (NWCDTP) PhD Studentships 2025 Entry
• School of Arts, Languages and Cultures PhD Studentships 2025 Entry
• China Scholarship Council - The University of Manchester (CSC-UoM) Joint Scholarship Programme - Competition Closed for 2025 Entry
• Trudeau Doctoral Scholarships 2025 Entry
• Commonwealth PhD Scholarships (High Income Countries)
• Commonwealth PhD Scholarships (Least Developed Countries and Fragile States) - Competition Closed for 2025 Entry
• School of Arts, Languages and Cultures New Generation PhD Studentships 2025 Entry
• President's Doctoral Scholar (PDS) Awards 2025 Entry

Careers

Our English and American Studies PhD programme offers the opportunity to undertake an in-depth piece of research in the area that most interests you.

Manchester has a strong tradition in research, and our current profile includes both traditional areas of research and new fields and methods.

Research in English and American Studies is conducted across both the chronological span and the theoretical range of the subject. Specific areas of international research excellence include:

• Old and Middle English
• Renaissance literature
• Romanticism
• Victorian literature and culture
• Contemporary literature
• Modern Irish and Scottish studies
• American studies
• Post-colonial and world literatures
• Cultural theory.