Program Overview

English and Cultural Studies

English and Cultural Studies at McMaster combines long-standing commitments to traditional areas of English literary study, ranging from Medieval and Early Modern to contemporary British, American and Canadian literature, with expertise in interdisciplinary areas and themes, such as narratives of health, environmental humanities, and Indigenous literatures and cultures. Critical race studies, theories of gender and sexuality, and theories and literatures of decolonization and resistance also form core elements of our graduate programs.

Faculty of Humanities

Program Contact

Degree Options

Degree Options

English and Cultural Studies (MA)

Our vibrant graduate studies community fosters curiosity and critical thinking in the study and research of literature and cultural production. This MA combines exploration of literatures in English from all periods, with the study of critical theory and cultural studies.
Students apply for one of two program streams:

• Course-based with independent public humanities project
• Courses with major research project

Through student-oriented training in research and teaching, the program fosters a unique and valuable set of critical, analytical, and communications skills in our graduates. By teaching students how to think in creative and thoughtful ways, to write, speak, and listen carefully and critically, and to problem solve effectively, an English and Cultural Studies Master’s degree opens all kinds of doors to students – ones that might not be immediately obvious – in a volatile job market.

Length

1. 1 year

Required Credentials

• The minimum admission requirement is a four-year undergraduate degree with a major concentration in English Literature, Cultural Studies or a related discipline.

Type

• Course-based with independent project, Courses with major research project

Options

• Full-Time, Part-Time

Typical Entry

• September

Typical Deadline

• January 14

English and Cultural Studies (PhD)

This program combines exploration of literatures in English from all periods, with the study of critical theory and cultural studies. Our vibrant graduate studies community fosters interdisciplinary exchange and prioritizes opportunities for students to develop as researchers, teachers, and public intellectuals. The program is small enough for students to build strong relationships with peers and our faculty, while being large enough to support a wide range of research specializations.

With student-oriented professional training in research and teaching, the program fosters a unique and valuable set of critical, analytical, and communications skills in our graduates. Through advanced coursework, comprehensive examinations in the student’s area of specialization, dissertation research and writing, and focused training in professional development, our PhD graduates emerge as advanced, experienced critical thinkers, researchers, and communicators who make original contributions to knowledge across disciplinary borders in the humanities and social sciences.

Length

• 4 years

Required Credentials

• Master's degree English Literature, Cultural Studies or a related discipline.

Type

• Thesis

Options

• Full-Time, Part-Time

Typical Entry

• September

Typical Deadline

• January 14

Scholarships

• Alvin Irwin Ogilvie Graduate Scholarship
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $6,000
• Association of Canadian Universities for Northern Studies (ACUNS)
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: Varied values
• Bertram Scholarship
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: May 26, 2025
  • Amount: $20,000
• Buchanan’s Bounty Trust Book Prize
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• Canada Graduate Scholarships – Michael Smith Foreign Study Supplements
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: September 18, 2025
  • Amount: $6,000
• Canada-U.S. Fulbright Program
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount:
• CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC Canada Graduate Research Scholarships – Master’s (CGRS-M)
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: December 1, 2025
  • Amount: $17,500
• CSA Group Graduate Scholarship
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: March 31, 2024
  • Amount: $10,000
• Dr. Don Goellnicht Memorial Award
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• Dr. Don Goellnicht PhD Memorial Award
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• Dr. J. A. Campbell Young Investigator Award
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: April 30, 2023
  • Amount: $5,000
• Edna Elizabeth Ross Reeves Scholarships
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $2,500
• Fulbright Canada Student Awards
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: November 15, 2023
  • Amount: $6,000 - $15,000
• GSA Travel Award
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• H.G. Hilton Master’s Scholarship
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $10,000
• Harry Lyman Hooker Sr. Fellowships
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $28,000
• Harvey E. Longboat Graduate Scholarship
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: March 10, 2025
  • Amount: $15,000
• Health Research Postdoctoral Opportunities
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount:
• Iranian Student Memorial Scholarship
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• John Charles Polanyi Prize
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: December 2, 2024
  • Amount: $20,000
• Lyle Makosky Values and Ethics in Sport Fund
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: April 30, 2024
  • Amount: $2,000
• Mackenzie King Memorial Scholarships
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: February 2, 2026
  • Amount: $10,500
• Manulife Life Lessons Scholarship Program
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: March 31, 2023
  • Amount: $10,000
• Maple Leaf Centre for Food Security
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: February 23, 2024
  • Amount: $15,000
• Mary Buzzell Graduate Scholarship for Resilient Aging
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: December 1, 2024
  • Amount: $1,000
• McMaster Graduate General Bursary
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• McMaster Institute for Research on Aging (MIRA) Postdoctoral Fellowship
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $50,000
• MIRA Graduate Scholarship Program
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: November 25, 2024
  • Amount: $18,000
• MIRA Graduate Student Travel Awards
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: March 15, 2020
  • Amount: $500
• Mitacs-JSPS Summer Program
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: November 13, 2024
  • Amount: $6,000
• OGS for Indigenous Graduate Students
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: March 10, 2025
  • Amount: $15,000
• Ontario Graduate Fellowships
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $12,000
• Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) and Queen Elizabeth II Graduate Scholarships in Science and Technology (QEII-GSST)
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $15,000
• Ontario Graduate Scholarship – International
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $15,000
• Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation Scholarship
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: December 1, 2023
  • Amount: $70,000
• Rainbow Fund
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• Ronald Bayne Gerontology Award
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• Senior Women Academic Administrators of Canada Graduate Student Award of Merit
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $4,000
• SSHRC Canada Graduate Research Scholarships – Doctoral
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: September 28, 2025
  • Amount: $35,000
• SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: September 12, 2024
  • Amount: $45,000
• The Barkleys of Avonmore Scholarship
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• The Brooke and Irene Townsend Scholarship (Humanities)
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $2,000
• The Dr. Colin Webber Graduate Scholarship
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $1,600
• The Edna Howard Bursary
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• The Graduate Students Association Bursary
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• The Gwen George Graduate Bursaries
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• The H. Vincent Elliott Memorial Travel Bursary
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• The Howard P. Whidden Graduate Scholarship
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $10,000
• The James F. Harvey and Helen S. Harvey Travel Scholarships
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• The Lambda Scholarship Foundation Canada Graduate Award
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount:
• The Marion Northcott Schweitzer Academic Grant
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• The Myra Baillie Academic Grant
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $1,000
• The Robert John Morris Graduate Studies Bursary
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $
• The School of Graduate Studies Grant in Aid for Research Travel
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: March 7, 2025
  • Amount: $1,000 - $2,000
• Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship-Doctoral
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $50,000
• Wilson Leadership Scholar Award
  • Category: Internal
  • Deadline Date: March 28, 2022
  • Amount: $12,000 - $14,000
• Yates Scholarship
  • Category: Internal
  • Amount: $500