Graduate Programs
Background Requirements for Majors and Minors in English
For clear admission to the graduate program (i.e., as a degree-seeking student in English), a student must have a GPA of 3.0 on a 4-point scale during the last sixty credit hours of undergraduate work and in upper-level undergraduate English courses, as well as acceptable scores on the Graduate Record Exam (General Test). Although students may be granted probationary admission with a GPA below 3.0, no students may be granted probationary admission with a GPA below 2.7.
Ordinarily, an English major with an undergraduate degree from an accredited college is eligible to pursue graduate study in English; however, any student with fewer than 24 semester hours of undergraduate credit in English will need to complete additional work to establish a background for graduate study.
Students may be admitted to a graduate minor in English after admission to the graduate school in another department and evaluation of the student's academic background by the Director of Graduate Studies in English.
Graduate Major in English (MA in English)
Emphasis in this comprehensive, 36-hour degree program is upon the study of literature in its historical contexts, on theories of criticism and of linguistic analysis, and on the analysis of literary works. The program also stresses writing along with preparation for teaching and other professions.
In pursuing the MA, the graduate student should attempt to maintain a balanced programs of courses in American, British, and World Literature. A 400- or 500-level course in linguistics is required of all students who have had no similar undergraduate course, and students must take at least one course in literature written before 1600. In addition, all students are required to take the Bibliography and Methods of Research course during their first year of graduate study. Beyond these requirements, each student develops a plan of study in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies, who will be as flexible as possible in matching departmental standards and strengths with the student's particular interests and abilities.
Thesis and non-thesis options are available in the MA program. Students should consult with the Director of Graduate Studies to determine which option best suits their needs and goals. No minor or electives outside of the English department are permitted in a thesis program; in a non-thesis program, a student may, with the consent of the Director of Graduate Studies, take 3-6 hours outside the Department of English provided that these courses involve a related subject of study.
Additional Requirements for the Graduate English Major
All graduate students working toward the MA degree in English must fulfill the language requirement by presenting two years of undergraduate credit in a single foreign language or by passing a departmental reading examination in an ancient, classical, or modern foreign language.
To fulfill the university requirement of a final comprehensive examination for a Master's degree, a non-thesis student must either pass a departmentally administered, written, six-hour comprehensive examination (the more commonly chosen option) or submit a score of 550 or above on the Graduate Record Examination in Literature to be taken during his/her last semester of course work. For detailed instructions governing the comprehensive examination process, click here.
Graduate Minors in English and Creative Writing (for non-English MAs)
A student pursuing a graduate degree in an area outside the Department of English may take a first minor in English. The minor in English consists of nine or more semester hours of English as approved by the Director of Graduate Studies.
Likewise, a student pursuing a graduate degree in an area outside the Department of English may minor in creative writing. This minor consists of nine or more hours in graduate creative writing courses. There is no thesis or public reading requirement, nor are the particular requirements for English MA students applicable. Enrollment in graduate creative writing courses and pursuit of the minor requires the consent of the Director of Graduate Studies.
Graduate Assistantships
A limited number of two-year graduate assistantships are awarded each year for study beginning normally in the fall semester. Interested applicants should be prepared to submit a departmental assistantship application, three letters of recommendation, a letter of application, and academic transcripts. For preferential consideration, all materials must be submitted by the priority deadline, 31 March.
Assistantship Applications are available here. For additional information, students should contact either the Chair of the Department or the Director of Graduate Studies.
Graduate Assistants assist faculty and receive pedagogical training in composition during their first year in the program; some work as assistants to the editor of RE:AL. Selected Graduate Assistants may also have the opportunity to tutor in the Academic Assistance and Resource Center or the Athletics Department for additional compensation. Experienced Graduate Assistants who have received training in Freshman Composition by working closely with a faculty member and who have completed eighteen graduate hours of course work in English have the opportunity to teach sections of Freshman Composition. Graduate Teaching Assistants are required to take the graduate course in Composition Theory and Pedagogy during their first year of coursework in the program.
Graduate Faculty
Professors
| Mark Emil Sanders, Ph.D. in English, University of Nebraska-Lincoln | |
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Modern Poetry; Poetics; Creative Writing; 19th Century British Poetry; Great Plains Literature |
Associate Professors
| Norjuan Q. Austin, Ph.D. in English, Illinois State University | |
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Children's and young adult literature; African-American literature; English Literature |
| Marc S. Guidry, Ph.D. in English, Louisiana State University | |
| Medieval British literature; Linguistics | |
| Michael Given, Ph.D. in English, Southern Illinois University | |
| British Modernism; Irish literature | |
| Steven Marsden, Ph.D. in English, Texas A&M University | |
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American romanticism; Early American literature |
| Michael J. Martin, Ph.D. in English, Illinois State University | |
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Contemporary American literature; Young adult literature; Composition |
| Christine McDermott, Ph.D. in English, Purdue University | |
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Late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century British and American literature; Creative writing; Journal editing |
| John McDermott, Ph.D. in English, University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee | |
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Creative writing; Twentieth-century American and British prose and drama |
| Kenneth Untiedt, Ph.D, in English, Texas Tech University | |
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Folklore; Technical writing; American literature |
| Kevin R. West, Ph.D. in Comparative Literature, Indiana University | |
| World literature (European emphasis); Medieval literature; Literature and religion | |
Assistant Professors
| Andrew Brininstool, M.F.A., University of Houston | |
| Creative writing | |
| Ericka Hoagland, Ph.D. in English, Purdue University | |
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Postcolonial Literature and Theory, Science Fiction, Travel Writing |
| Denise Millstein, Ph.D, in English Literature, Louisiana State University | |
| 19th Century British Literature, Romantic and Victorian; Gender Studies and Queer Theory | |
| Christopher Sams, Ph.D. in Romance Linguistics from the University at Buffalo, SUNY | |
| Linguistics | |
| Jessica Sams, Ph.D. in Linguistics, University of Colorado at Boulder | |
| Linguistics | |
| Elizabeth Tasker, Ph.D. in English, Georgia State University | |
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Restoration literature |
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Ronald Tumelson, Ph.D. in English, University of Alabama |
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Shakespeare; Renaissance British Literature |
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