English, Ph.D

The Ph.D. Degree Program normally entails four years of study. The admission requirement is an M.A. with marks of at least A- in two thirds of the applicant’s Masters level courses. In recent years, successful candidates typically achieved an average of A (at least 85%) in their upper-level undergraduate and M.A. coursework.The Graduate Studies Committee will give consideration to matching candidates’ proposed projects with the research expertise of available faculty members.

Program Requirements

Coursework

Ph.D. candidates will successfully complete six graduate courses: five one-term graduate courses in Year 1 of the program, and the Doctoral Seminar, in year 2. Up to two one-term courses may be taken outside the department, subject to the permission of offering departments.

Thesis Proposal

By March 1 of the first year of the program, students must identify an area of specialization and submit a 1,000-1,200-word preliminary thesis proposal (with bibliography) signed by a potential supervisor and reader for approval by the Graduate Studies Committee. With the guidance of their supervisory committee and their peers in the year 2 Doctoral Seminar, students will develop a detailed thesis proposal of 2,000 words and submit it by June 30 of the second year, along with signatures of their supervisory committee members, to the Graduate Studies Committee.

Comprehensive Examination

Students in the program are required to take a Comprehensive Examination in an area related to their intended field of research specialization. This examination, which takes place in the second year of study, consists of two papers, a Field Survey and a Topic Paper, which will be defended in an oral examination. The Field Survey should show broad expertise in the wider field of knowledge the candidate’s research will engage. The Topic Paper describes how the candidate’s dissertation intervenes in that field and the particular contribution it will make. A reading list for the Comprehensive Examination must be approved by all members of the supervisory committee during the first year of the program. Both papers are to be researched and written concurrently by the candidate, and each should be between 25 and 30 double-spaced pages in length. The Oral Examination of both papers will follow within 10 days of submission. The candidate’s performance in the Comprehensive Examination will be assessed on a pass/fail basis for the Field Survey, the Topic Paper, and the Oral Examination. Please check the English and Cultural Studies Requirement Handbook for additional details and due dates.

Doctoral Seminar

This course, completed in Year 2 of the programme, focuses on practical elements of research and other aspects of professionalization in literary and cultural studies. Required for PhD students; pass/fail.

Thesis

During the third and fourth year of the program, the candidate will write a scholarly thesis normally of between 200 and 250 pages (not including bibliography), and will defend it at an Oral Examination.