English and American Literature (PhD)
Program Overview
English and American Literature (PhD)
The Department of English warmly welcomes qualified applicants who wish to pursue advanced study towards a graduate degree. We are a large department and value historical coverage of the field that has traditionally been the study of English and American literature: we also encourage innovative approaches to that study, and have an expansive sense of the topics it might cover. We teach in all areas and currently have particular research clusters among our faculty and graduate students in Medieval and Renaissance, modernist, post-colonial, Latino/Latina, American and African American literatures. We maintain close ties with the Department of Comparative Literature, with which we jointly organize a certificate in Poetics and Theory and an Advanced Certificate in Comparative Approaches to the Literatures of Africa, the Middle East, and the Global South (CALAMEGS), and with the Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, while we also participate in offering an Advanced Certificate in Digital Humanities. In addition, our graduate students originate, organize and receive funding for their own working and reading groups, which currently include African American and African Diasporic Working Group; Critical Theory and Medievalisms; Cultures of War and the Post-War; Creative Writing; Digital Culture/s; the Eighteenth- and Nineteenth-Century British Literature Working Group; Politics of Empowerment; Postcolonial, Race and Diaspora Studies Colloquium; Nonhuman(isms) Working Group; University On the Edge/ (re)Thinking the University; and the Organism for Poetic Research.
Program Description
The program requires the completion of 72 credits, and offers a concentration in Medieval and Renaissance Studies.
Taxonomy Codes
- NYSED: 08252
- HEGIS: 1502.00
- CIP: 23.1404
Admissions
All applicants to the Graduate School of Arts and Science (GSAS) are required to submit the general application requirements, which include:
- Academic Transcripts
- Test Scores (if required)
- Applicant Statements
- Résumé or Curriculum Vitae
- Letters of Recommendation, and
- A non-refundable application fee.
Dual Degree
The English Department offers a dual degree with the NYU School of Law: English PhD/Law JD.
Program Requirements
The program requires the completion of 72 credits, and offers a concentration in Medieval and Renaissance Studies.
Course List
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ENGL-GA 3006 | PhD Proseminar: Studies in Advanced Literary Research | 4 |
| ENGL-GA 3002 | Guided Research II (in preparation for Doctoral Examination) | 4 |
| ENGL-GA 3972 | Dissertation Seminar I (in preparation for submission of the dissertation proposal) | 4 |
| ENGL-GA 3981 | Dissertation Seminar II (consisting of oral defense of the Dissertation Proposal and beginning of writing and research of dissertation) | 4 |
| ENGL-GA 3985 | Pedagogy Colloquim (taken during the first semester in which teaching is anticipated) | 4 |
| ENGL-GA 3980 | Workshop on Professional Practices (must be taken in the student's third year of program) | 4 |
| Historical Period Course: Pre-1800 | 4 | |
| Historical Period Course: Post-1800 | 4 | |
| Other Elective Credits | 40 | |
| Total Credits | 72 |
Concentration in Medieval and Renaissance Studies
The concentration in Medieval and Renaissance Studies is interdisciplinary in nature and creates a framework and community for diverse approaches to the study of the Middle Ages and Renaissance.
Concentration Requirements
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MEDI-GA 1100 | Proseminar in Medieval & Renaissance Studies | 4 |
| MEDI-GA 2000 | Medieval & Renaissance Workshop (taken twice, for a total of 4 credits) | 4 |
| Select one approved Medieval and Neo-Latin and Early Vernaculars | 4 | |
| Select one approved Medieval and Renaissance Media: Visual and Material Cultures course | 4 | |
| Select one approved course in Medieval or Early Modern topic | 4 | |
| Total Credits | 20 |
Additional Program Requirements
Language
Students must demonstrate language proficiency beyond the English language. This requirement may be satisfied either before or after matriculation at NYU by demonstrating either (a) advanced proficiency in one language by completing the sixth term of an acceptable college language course with a grade of B or better or by passing a language examination at a comparable level of proficiency or (b) proficiency in two languages by completing the equivalent of four semesters of acceptable college work.
Doctoral Examination
The Doctoral Examination consists of major and minor field examinations. These two fields are centered on reading lists to be drawn up by the student in conjunction with the faculty members who serves as the major and minor field examiners, respectively.
Dissertation Defense, Submission and Approval
PhD students must defend their completed dissertation as the final step towards the doctorate degree. The defense committee consists of five members, typically consisting of the three members of the student’s Dissertation Committee and two external readers who have relevant academic expertise in the dissertation field and topic.
Departmental Approval
All Graduate School of Arts & Science doctoral candidates must be approved for graduation by their department for the degree to be awarded.
Sample Plan of Study
| 1st Semester/Term | Credits | |
|---|---|---|
| ENGL-GA 3006 | PhD Proseminar: Studies in Advanced Literary Research | 4 |
| Historical Period Course: Pre-1800 | 4 | |
| General Elective | 4 | |
| Credits | 12 | |
| 2nd Semester/Term | ||
| Historical Period Course: Post-1800 | 4 | |
| General Elective | 4 | |
| General Elective | 4 | |
| Credits | 12 | |
| 3rd Semester/Term | ||
| General Elective | 4 | |
| General Elective | 4 | |
| General Elective | 4 | |
| Credits | 12 | |
| 4th Semester/Term | ||
| General Elective | 4 | |
| General Elective | 4 | |
| General Elective | 4 | |
| Credits | 12 | |
| 5th Semester/Term | ||
| ENGL-GA 3001 | Guided Research I (this course is taken in the Summer) | 4 |
| ENGL-GA 3002 | Guided Research II (this course is taken in the Summer) | 4 |
| Credits | 8 | |
| 6th Semester/Term | ||
| ENGL-GA 3972 | Dissertation Seminar I | 4 |
| ENGL-GA 3985 | Pedagogy Colloquim | 4 |
| Credits | 8 | |
| 7th Semester/Term | ||
| ENGL-GA 3981 | Dissertation Seminar II | 4 |
| ENGL-GA 3980 | Workshop on Professional Practices | 4 |
| Credits | 8 | |
| Total Credits | 72 |
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the program, graduates will:
- Attain a wide range of knowledge in history and criticism of literature in English, while being acquainted with different theories and modes of query.
- Develop expertise in chosen fields of specialization and to identify and pursue original research questions in these fields, locating them persuasively and comprehensively within and against relevant scholarly literature(s).
- Conduct original research and produce substantial work as a contribution to the area(s) of chosen expertise and the discipline of English at large.
- Develop expertise and acquire experience to allow graduates access to careers for which doctoral training in English is essential or highly desirable.
Policies
NYU Policies
University-wide policies can be found on the New York University Policy pages.
Graduate School of Arts and Science Policies
Academic Policies for the Graduate School of Arts and Science can be found on the Academic Policies page.