university of alberta phd english

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Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Thesis-based program

Program overview.

Build on your intellectual curiosity and foundational understanding of English Literature to become an expert in your field. Develop an original and focused area of research and proceed to the dissertation to develop original creative or critical work (or a hybrid of both). The University of Calgary's graduate program in English boasts the longest-running program in Canada with a creative PhD thesis option, attracting national and international acclaim. All students pursuing an English doctoral degree will learn from highly accomplished faculty in several traditional and emerging fields. Our creative writing faculty members include a Canada Research Chair in Creative Writing. The program is ideal for students seeking academic careers and advanced training in research, writing and pedagogy. It provides a foundation for a range of careers requiring articulate, thoughtful, creative and innovative thinkers with strong research and communication skills. The creative stream and critical dissertation stream are equally rigorous; all students undertake a range of courses and field of study exams, and defend their thesis work orally.

Prospective students are encouraged to inquire with the department about their minimum funding policy.

Completing this program

• Core course: Graduate Pro-seminar on critical skills and professional issues in graduate-level literary study.
• Thesis: Students will be required to submit and defend an original dissertation.
• Language requirement: Demonstrated proficiency in a language other than English.
• Examinations: Students will complete oral and written field of study examinations, and a thesis proposal.

Specializations

• Literature in English (a Creative Writing option is available within this specialization)

Academic or post-secondary teaching, research, editing, publishing, archival work, educational software and technology, college, university and government administration and policy; communications, technical and creative writing; digital and online publishing, non-profits and NGOs, freelance writing.

A PhD in English is usually considered a final degree.

Students are required to prepare a thesis and successfully defend in an open oral defense.

Six courses and a Graduate Pro-Seminar course

Learn more about program requirements in the Academic Calendar

Classroom delivery

Time commitment.

Four years full-time; six years maximum

A supervisor is required, but is not required prior to the start of the program

See the Graduate Calendar for information on  fees and fee regulations,  and for information on  awards and financial assistance .

Virtual Tour

Explore the University of Calgary (UCalgary) from anywhere. Experience all that UCalgary has to offer for your graduate student journey without physically being on campus. Discover the buildings, student services and available programs all from your preferred device.

Supervisors

Learn about faculty available to supervise this degree. Please note: additional supervisors may be available. Contact the program for more information.

Karen Bourrier

Michael Clarke

Faye Halpern

Clara A.B. Joseph

Derritt Mason

Suzette Mayr

Murray McGillivray

Rain Prud'homme-Cranford

Admission requirements

A minimum grade point average of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale at the graduate level.

Minimum education

A completed four-year undergraduate program (or equivalent), and a completed Master’s degree. At least one of the degrees must be in English Literature. In exceptional circumstances, degrees in a closely related discipline may meet admission requirements.

Work samples

A 5-10 page sample of critical writing; for creative writing applicants, an additional 10-page sample of creative writing.

• A statement of intent

Reference letters

Test scores, english language proficiency.

An applicant whose primary language is not English may fulfill the English language proficiency requirement in one of the following ways:

• Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL ibt)  score of 97.
• International English Language Testing System (IELTS)  score of 7 (minimum of 6.5 in each section)
• Pearson Test of English (PTE)   score of 75, or higher (Academic version).
• Canadian Academic English Language test (CAEL)  score of 70 (minimum 70 in each section)  
• Academic Communication Certificate (ACC)  score of A- in each course.
• Cambridge C1 Advanced or Cambridge C2 Proficiency  minimum score of 200.

For admission on September 1:

Canadians and permanent residents - apply by Dec. 15  |  submit all supporting documents by Jan. 10

International students - apply by Dec. 15  |  submit all supporting documents by Jan. 10

If you're not a Canadian or permanent resident, or if you have international credentials, make sure to learn about international requirements

Are you ready to apply?

Learn more about this program, department of english.

Social Sciences Building Room 1148

2500 University Drive NW

Calgary, AB, T2N 1N4

Contact the Graduate Program Administrator

Visit the departmental website

University of Calgary 2500 University Drive NW Calgary, AB, T2N 1N4

Visit the Faculty of Arts website

Related programs

If you're interested in this program, you might want to explore other UCalgary programs.

Course-based MA

Thesis-based MA

Thesis-based MFA

Educational Research

Thesis- based EdD

Thesis- based MA

Course-based MEd - Int

Course-based MEd - Spec

Thesis-based MSc

Languages, Literatures and Cultures

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Programs to Consider

Related career(s), university of alberta - faculty of graduate studies & research, program information, admission requirements.

* The entrance grade may change from year to year. Please contact the school for further information. * We make every attempt to provide accurate information on prerequisites, programs, and tuition. However, this information is subject to change without notice and we highly recommend that you contact the school to confirm important information before applying.

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English and Film Studies, MA, PhD

University of Alberta , Canada

• Study options for English and Film Studies
• About English and Film Studies
• Entry requirements for English and Film Studies
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Other courses at University of Alberta

Photos from university of alberta, videos from university of alberta, location of university of alberta, study options for this course, about english and film studies, ma, phd - at university of alberta.

The Department of English and Film Studies (EFS) offers graduate work leading to the Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy degrees in English language, literature, and culture.

Research in EFS embraces a wide array of scholarly explorations dedicated to the understanding, elucidation, and production of literary and cultural texts, broadly conceived. Scholars in EFS engage in ground-breaking research across four broad zones of inquiry: literary history, print culture, critical and cultural theory, and screen cultures.

The University's libraries hold the equivalent of nearly 9,000,000 volumes, ranking second in Canada and in the top twenty in North America, and subscribe to over 100,000 electronic journals, and to 1100 databases. Over 100,000 rare books, and significant archival material, are held in the Special Collections.

Learn more about English and Film Studies, MA, PhD - at University of Alberta

Entry requirements

For the MA program, the Department's minimum admission requirements are a BA in English (or its equivalent) with a minimum GPA of 3.3 in courses in English, and with an admission GPA of at least 3.0 on the 4-point scale from the University of Alberta, or an equivalent qualification and standing from a recognized institution. The admission GPA will be calculated on the last *60 of graded coursework completed, or on the equivalent of the last two years of full-time graded coursework. The graduate committee uses the two GPA benchmarks as part of its decision process.

• at least *54 in English courses,
• at least *27 in a breadth of courses representing the major historical periods [Old and Middle English, Early Modern, Restoration and Eighteenth Century, Nineteenth Century, and Twentieth Century literature and culture] and in Canadian, American, Indigenous, and postcolonial literature and culture, and
• some grounding in literary and cultural theory.

For the PhD program, the Department's minimum admission requirements are an MA in English (or its equivalent) with a minimum GPA of 3.5 in courses in English, and with an admission GPA of at least 3.0 on the 4-point scale from the University of Alberta, or an equivalent qualification and standing from a recognized institution. The admission GPA will be calculated on the last *60 of graded coursework completed, or on the equivalent of the last two years of full-time graded coursework. The graduate committee uses the two GPA benchmarks as part of its decision process.

Where applicable, applicants must meet the minimum English Language Requirement.

Fees, Funding and Scholarships at University of Alberta

The University of Alberta offers a wide ranges of scholarships to international students. You will be evaluated for these scholarships when you apply for admission. Your eligibility will be based on your high school admission average at the time of your admission offer. We'll assess you for a match to the following three schoolarship. If you are eligible for an admission-based scholarship we will contact you directly!

• International Admissions Scholarship-up to $5,000
• Regional Excellence Scholarship- up to $5,000
• Gold Standard Scholarship- up to $6,000

You can also apply for our prestigious application based scholarships. Each year we award twenty five, $120K President's International Distinction scholarships. 

To find out more about scholarships click here . 

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• Doctor of Philosophy in English (PhD)
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Go to programs search

The UBC English Graduate Program, one of the most vibrant and wide-ranging in Canada, has been awarding the M.A. degree since 1919. Students may earn the degree in each of two areas: English Literature and English Language. Indeed, the UBC English Department is one of the few departments in North America to offer a language program in addition to its literary programs.

English Language

The English Language program includes specializations in history and structure of language, discourse and genre analysis, and history and theory of rhetoric. Faculty members in the Language program teach and supervise research in descriptive linguistics, historical linguistics, cognitive linguistics, functional grammar, semantics, pragmatics, discourse analysis, stylistics, genre studies, and history and theory of rhetoric. Students in the English Literature program can take advantage of Language graduate courses; recent offerings include courses on reported speech and its rhetorical versatility across genres; the uses of classical rhetoric for contemporary critical practice; and cognitive approaches to the language of literature. By the same token, Language students can take advantage of the wide variety of Literature courses our department offers.

English Literature

The English Literature program includes specializations across the periods, genres, and major figures of British, North American and World Literature in English. Current research initiatives on the part of faculty include such diverse topics as the ecocritical study of Renaissance drama; the triumph of transport in Romantic poetry; the impact of radio and television on modernist poetics; the politics of post-identity in Asian American literature, and the role of war and its traumatic shocks in twentieth-century Canadian, U.S. and British literature. Graduate students can also choose to work across disciplinary fields, taking advantage of UBC's outstanding interdisciplinary programs in Medieval Studies, Canadian and U.S. Studies, Studies in Sexuality, and Science and Technology Studies, among others.

For specific program requirements, please refer to the departmental program website

What makes the program unique?

The Graduate Program of the Department of English is a vibrant community of more than 50 graduate faculty and 100 graduate students. An active graduate caucus, extensive campus resources, and such local resources as departmental research seminars, a graduate reading room, and a dedicated graduate program office, ensure that our students are well-supported in a collegial atmosphere throughout their programs. A pedagogy training program prepares our students to teach both during and after their programs.

The research expertise of professors in affect theory, anticolonial writing, and modernist studies drew me to UBC English. The close links of UBC's Department of English to the Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice (GRSJ) and Science and Technology Studies (STS) laid the foundation for interdisciplinary threads to emerge in my research.

Fiana Kawane

Quick Facts

Program enquiries, admission information & requirements, 1) check eligibility, minimum academic requirements.

The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies establishes the minimum admission requirements common to all applicants, usually a minimum overall average in the B+ range (76% at UBC). The graduate program that you are applying to may have additional requirements. Please review the specific requirements for applicants with credentials from institutions in:

• Canada or the United States
• International countries other than the United States

Each program may set higher academic minimum requirements. Please review the program website carefully to understand the program requirements. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission as it is a competitive process.

English Language Test

Applicants from a university outside Canada in which English is not the primary language of instruction must provide results of an English language proficiency examination as part of their application. Tests must have been taken within the last 24 months at the time of submission of your application.

Minimum requirements for the two most common English language proficiency tests to apply to this program are listed below:

TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language - internet-based

Overall score requirement : 104

IELTS: International English Language Testing System

Overall score requirement : 7.5

Other Test Scores

Some programs require additional test scores such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Test (GMAT). The requirements for this program are:

The GRE is not required.

Prior degree, course and other requirements

Document requirements.

IELTS = 7.5 overall band score with no component less that 7.0.

2) Meet Deadlines

3) prepare application, transcripts.

All applicants have to submit transcripts from all past post-secondary study. Document submission requirements depend on whether your institution of study is within Canada or outside of Canada.

Letters of Reference

A minimum of three references are required for application to graduate programs at UBC. References should be requested from individuals who are prepared to provide a report on your academic ability and qualifications.

Statement of Interest

Many programs require a statement of interest , sometimes called a "statement of intent", "description of research interests" or something similar.

Supervision

Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.

Instructions regarding thesis supervisor contact for Doctor of Philosophy in English (PhD)

Citizenship verification.

Permanent Residents of Canada must provide a clear photocopy of both sides of the Permanent Resident card.

4) Apply Online

All applicants must complete an online application form and pay the application fee to be considered for admission to UBC.

Research Information

Program components.

The English program now offers the opportunity to participate in the PhD Co-op program.

Tuition & Financial Support

Financial support.

Applicants to UBC have access to a variety of funding options, including merit-based (i.e. based on your academic performance) and need-based (i.e. based on your financial situation) opportunities.

Program Funding Packages

From September 2024 all full-time students in UBC-Vancouver PhD programs will be provided with a funding package of at least $24,000 for each of the first four years of their PhD. The funding package may consist of any combination of internal or external awards, teaching-related work, research assistantships, and graduate academic assistantships. Please note that many graduate programs provide funding packages that are substantially greater than $24,000 per year. Please check with your prospective graduate program for specific details of the funding provided to its PhD students.

Average Funding

• 16 students received Teaching Assistantships. Average TA funding based on 16 students was $11,126.
• 10 students received Academic Assistantships. Average AA funding based on 10 students was $6,645.
• 23 students received internal awards. Average internal award funding based on 23 students was $21,501.
• 8 students received external awards. Average external award funding based on 8 students was $27,112.

Scholarships & awards (merit-based funding)

All applicants are encouraged to review the awards listing to identify potential opportunities to fund their graduate education. The database lists merit-based scholarships and awards and allows for filtering by various criteria, such as domestic vs. international or degree level.

Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA)

Many professors are able to provide Research Assistantships (GRA) from their research grants to support full-time graduate students studying under their supervision. The duties constitute part of the student's graduate degree requirements. A Graduate Research Assistantship is considered a form of fellowship for a period of graduate study and is therefore not covered by a collective agreement. Stipends vary widely, and are dependent on the field of study and the type of research grant from which the assistantship is being funded.

Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA)

Graduate programs may have Teaching Assistantships available for registered full-time graduate students. Full teaching assistantships involve 12 hours work per week in preparation, lecturing, or laboratory instruction although many graduate programs offer partial TA appointments at less than 12 hours per week. Teaching assistantship rates are set by collective bargaining between the University and the Teaching Assistants' Union .

Graduate Academic Assistantships (GAA)

Academic Assistantships are employment opportunities to perform work that is relevant to the university or to an individual faculty member, but not to support the student’s graduate research and thesis. Wages are considered regular earnings and when paid monthly, include vacation pay.

Financial aid (need-based funding)

Canadian and US applicants may qualify for governmental loans to finance their studies. Please review eligibility and types of loans .

All students may be able to access private sector or bank loans.

Foreign government scholarships

Many foreign governments provide support to their citizens in pursuing education abroad. International applicants should check the various governmental resources in their home country, such as the Department of Education, for available scholarships.

Working while studying

The possibility to pursue work to supplement income may depend on the demands the program has on students. It should be carefully weighed if work leads to prolonged program durations or whether work placements can be meaningfully embedded into a program.

International students enrolled as full-time students with a valid study permit can work on campus for unlimited hours and work off-campus for no more than 20 hours a week.

A good starting point to explore student jobs is the UBC Work Learn program or a Co-Op placement .

Tax credits and RRSP withdrawals

Students with taxable income in Canada may be able to claim federal or provincial tax credits.

Canadian residents with RRSP accounts may be able to use the Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP) which allows students to withdraw amounts from their registered retirement savings plan (RRSPs) to finance full-time training or education for themselves or their partner.

Please review Filing taxes in Canada on the student services website for more information.

Cost Estimator

Applicants have access to the cost estimator to develop a financial plan that takes into account various income sources and expenses.

Career Outcomes

51 students graduated between 2005 and 2013. Of these, career information was obtained for 47 alumni (based on research conducted between Feb-May 2016):

Sample Employers in Higher Education

Sample employers outside higher education, sample job titles outside higher education, phd career outcome survey, career options.

Upon completion of their graduate degrees, students can expect further mentoring and support in the job search process. Former doctoral students of the UBC English program have obtained permanent positions at universities and colleges in Canada and abroad; recent appointments have included the University of Alberta, Simon Fraser University, Wilfrid Laurier University, the University of Victoria, the University College of the Fraser Valley, Kwantlen University, the University of British Columbia Okanagan, the Université de Moncton, Montana State University, and Whitman College. Our doctoral students have also been very successful in securing post-doctoral fellowships in Canada and the US.

Alumni on Success

Stephen Ney

Job Title Lecturer

Employer The University of British Columbia

Enrolment, Duration & Other Stats

These statistics show data for the Doctor of Philosophy in English (PhD). Data are separated for each degree program combination. You may view data for other degree options in the respective program profile.

ENROLMENT DATA

Completion rates & times.

• Research Supervisors

Advice and insights from UBC Faculty on reaching out to supervisors

These videos contain some general advice from faculty across UBC on finding and reaching out to a supervisor. They are not program specific.

This list shows faculty members with full supervisory privileges who are affiliated with this program. It is not a comprehensive list of all potential supervisors as faculty from other programs or faculty members without full supervisory privileges can request approvals to supervise graduate students in this program.

• Al-Kassim, Dina (Critical identity, ethnic and race studies; English language; Gender, sexuality and education; Human rights, justice, and ethical issues; anti-colonial; Artistic and Literary Movements, Schools and Styles; Artistic and Literary Theories; Arts and Cultural Traditions; Arts, Literature and Subjectivity; comparative literature: Arabic, English, French; feminist; Gender Relationship; Identity and Transnationality; Philosophy, History and Comparative Studies; postcolonial; psychoanalysis; queer theory; sexuality; Subjectivity)
• Anger, Suzy (Victorian Literature, Literature and Philosophy, Victorian Literature and Psychology, Victorian Literature and Science, Hermeneutics)
• Antwi, Phanuel (critical black studies; settler colonial studies; black Atlantic and diaspora studies; Canadian literature and culture since 1830; critical race, gender, and sexuality studies; and material cultures; )
• Badir, Patricia (English language; Canadian Modernism; Early Modern Drama; Early Modern Literature and Religion; Medieval Drama; Shakespeare; Shakespeare in Canada)
• Bain, Kimberly (History, theory, and philosophy of the African diaspora; Race, gender, environmental and medical racism; Anthropocene; Black arts and letters)
• Briggs, Marlene (war and conflict; cultural transmission and reception of the First World War (1914-1918) in modern and contemporary British literature )
• Britton, Dennis (early modern English literature; history of race; Critical Race Theory; Protestant theology; history of emotion)
• Burgess, Miranda (English language; Arts, Literature and Subjectivity; British and Irish Romanticism; history of feeling (affect, emotion, sensation); history of literary form; history of media and mediation; poetics; riparian and oceanic studies)
• Cavell, Richard Anthony (English language; Media and Society; Media Influence on Behavior; Media Types (Radio, Television, Written Press, etc.); media studies; media theory)
• Chapman, Mary Ann (Arts and Cultural Traditions; Arts and Literary Policies; Arts and Technologies; Arts, Literature and Subjectivity; Social Determinants of Arts and Letters; Artistic and Literary Marginality; Artistic and Cultural Heritage; Artist or Author Social Identity; Artistic and Literary Movements, Schools and Styles; Artistic and Literary Theories; Literary or Artistic Work Analysis; Literary or Artistic Work Dissemination or Reception Contexts; Literary or Artistic Works Analysis; Writing and Literary Experimentation; Poetry; Novel and Short Story; Essays; Gender Relationship; Audiences and Mass Media; Media and Democratization; Media and Society; Media Influence on Behavior; Civil and Social Responsibilities of Media; Stereotypes; Electoral System; Printing Art; Persuasion Strategies; Social Movements; Publics; Performance and Theatrical Productions; Social Networks; American Literature; Asian American Literature; Asian Canadian Literature; Suffrage; Public Pedagogy of the Arts; Public Humanities)
• Dalziel, Pamela (Victorian-literature, Victorian-culture, visual-representation, illustration, gender-studies, religion, interdisciplinary-studies, textual-criticism, scholarly-editing, Thomas-Hardy, Charles-Dickens, George-Eliot )
• Dancygier, Barbara (Linguistics, grammar)
• de Villiers, Jessica (Linguistics)
• Deer, Glenn (discourse studies, the rhetoric of power in narrative fiction, and postmodernism and Canadian Literature)
• Dick, Alexander (Literary or Artistic Work Analysis; Philosophy, History and Comparative Studies; Artistic and Literary Theories; Arts, Literature and Subjectivity; British Romanticism; Scottish Enlightenment; Literature and Economics; Literature and the Environment; Literature and Science; Scottish Literature)
• Dollinger, Stefan (English language; Language Contact and Linguistic Changes; Linguistic Variation and Society; Lexicography and Dictionaries; Language Interactions; Language Rights and Policies; Bilingualism and Multilingualism)
• Earle, Bo (British Romanticism, Critical Theory, Philosophy and Literature)
• Echard, Sian (English language; Literary or Artistic Work Analysis; Literary or Artistic Work Dissemination or Reception Contexts; Modes and strategies of dissemination; Poetry; Media Types (Radio, Television, Written Press, etc.); Anglo-Latin literature; Arthurian literature; History of the Book; John Gower; Manuscript studies; Medieval literature)
• Frank, Adam (American literatures; American literature and media, affect theory, modernism, science and technology studies)
• Frelick, Nancy (Renaissance literatures; Literature and critical theory)
• Gaertner, David (Indigenous literatures; Media, visual and digital culture; Critical identity, ethnic and race studies; Indigenous Literature; Digital storytelling; Digital Humanities; Speculative fiction; Reconciliation; New Media; Indigenous Cyberspace)
• Guerin, Ayasha
• Guy-Bray, Stephen (Renaissance poetry)
• Hill, Ian (rhetoric, persuasion, argumentation, technology, weapons, interrogation, political economy, war rhetoric, conflict rhetoric, dissent, mass movements )
• Ho, Janice (English language; twentieth- and twenty-first century British literature and culture; British and transnational modernisms; postcolonial and world Anglophone literatures; contemporary fiction; histories and theories of the novel; human rights studies; infrastructure studies)

Doctoral Citations

Sample thesis submissions.

• The Arthur of the March of Wales
• Stories of lands, bodies and dreams : a Tmixᵂcentric literary theory
• "Token" in medieval and early modern English theatre and theology
• Who hears the listeners : decolonizing the process of dialogue in First Peoples’ literatures
• Stage and street : the cultural history of the early modern Thames
• Inheritances : negotiating kinship in Indigenous and other modernisms
• Voices on trial : the consequences of female speech in medieval romance
• Time and metaphor : reading and writing the computus in the British Isles, 600-1400
• The play of conscience : theological, jurisprudential and poetic iterations in English dramaturgy, 1515-1604
• Telling animals : a histology of Dene textualized orature
• Scorching irony : anti-hypocrisy in antebellum U.S. literature
• The lyric selfie : mediating race and subjectivity in poetry from print to Web 2.0
• The turn to sacred address in transnational HIV/AIDS writing
• Leaky bodies reclaimed : biofluids, contagion, and Victorian England’s strange intimacies
• Romantic improvement : the infrastructural poetics of agricultural capitalism

Related Programs

Same specialization.

• Master of Arts in English (MA)

Further Information

Specialization.

English offers two areas: English Language and English Literature

The English Language program includes specializations in history and structure of language, discourse and genre analysis, and history and theory of rhetoric. Faculty members in the Language program teach and supervise research in descriptive linguistics, historical linguistics, cognitive linguistics, functional grammar, semantics, pragmatics, discourse analysis, stylistics, genre studies, and history and theory of rhetoric.

The English Literature program includes specializations across the periods, genres, and major figures of British, North American and World Literature in English. Current research initiatives on the part of faculty include such diverse topics as the ecocritical study of Renaissance drama; the triumph of transport in Romantic poetry; the impact of radio and television on modernist poetics; the politics of post-identity in Asian American literature, and the role of war and its traumatic shocks in twentieth-century Canadian, U.S. and British literature.

UBC Calendar

Program website, faculty overview, academic unit, program identifier, classification, social media channels, supervisor search.

Departments/Programs may update graduate degree program details through the Faculty & Staff portal. To update contact details for application inquiries, please use this form .

Leah Alfred-Olmedo

My choice to pursue my PhD at UBC was based on relationships, both within the university and without. I have a generative and supportive relationship with my supervisor, with other members of the English faculty, and with other graduate students at UBC. I feel that UBC works to foster and support...

Veronika Larsen

I completed my MA at UBC in 2021, and my time on campus has been quite wonderful. I decided to study at UBC largely because of the expert faculty members that I have learned from, and that I believe I can learn much more from. Members in my department continue to offer support from diverse...

Sydney Lines

I had been to Vancouver once before and loved the weather (I'm allergic to the sun). I was impressed by the UBC Arts PhD Co-op Program. My department often ranks among the top 20 in the world. But the truth is I did not believe I’d get into UBC, and I only applied three days before the deadline as...

Olivia Dreisinger

I grew up an hour outside of Vancouver and completed my undergraduate degree at UBC. It was a wonderful experience and I am thankful to return to this university and to remain close to my family. The English faculty is also one of the few departments to have health and medicine rhetoricians,...

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MA in Literature in English

The MA in English at the University of Calgary offers the opportunity to complete a range of graduate courses. You may undertake an independent research project in either the one year course-based MA or the two year thesis-based MA.

Master of Arts (MA), course-based in English

View degree requirements

Master of Arts (MA), thesis-based in English

Understanding graduate studies.

Get important information about what you need to do before you begin your grad studies.

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Ready to start your application? Get the information you need to apply today.

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What is thesis-based study?

Pursue independent research guided by a supervisor who shares your research interests. If you want to advance your knowledge or expand your expertise in a specific field or research area, our thesis-based programs are for you.

What is course-based study?

Ideal if you're seeking to advance your career, our course-based programs offer research, project and group work components in a wide variety of delivery methods.

What is a supervisor?

A supervisor is a faculty member who oversees your research and the development of your thesis.

Explore faculty by research specialty

Course-based versus Thesis-based

The course-based MA degree is an intensive program designed to be completed in a year and specifically for students interested in moving into PhD studies relatively quickly. The thesis-MA degree takes two years, has a slightly slower pace, and can often be the “terminal degree”. Students holding a course-based and thesis-based MA are equally admissible to the PhD degree.

Master of Arts (MA), thesis-based

Thesis-based programs require that you pursue independent and original research culminating in a thesis. You will work under the supervision of a faculty member whose expertise matches your research area.

View program information

Master of Arts (MA), course-based

In a course-based program, all degree requirements are fulfilled by completing courses. These may include courses that involve a project, such as a major research paper or group project.

Creative Writing option

You may be permitted to submit a substantial work of poetry or fiction as a creative project for either the course-based or thesis-based MA in English.

Admission requirements

You must meet the  minimum entrance requirements  set by the Faculty of Graduate Studies. Graduate programs in English also have the following requirements:

MA degree admission requirements

• A completed four-year undergraduate program, or equivalent, with a Major in English Literature or in a closely related discipline;
• A minimum admission grade point average of 3.3 on a 4 point scale over the final 60 units (10 full-course equivalents);
• A Statement of Intent (no more than 400 words);
• A sample of critical writing, 5-10 pages;
• For creative writing applicants, an additional sample of 5-10 pages of creative writing;
• For applicants whose primary language is not English, proof of English language proficiency must be provided in one of the following ways: TOEFL score of 105 (internet-based test) or 600 (paper-based); IELTS score of 7.5 with no section less than 7.0 (academic version), MELAB score of 86, PTE score of 75;
• Two academic references

Have you made your final decision and you're ready to apply?

What you'll need

The Faculty of Graduate Studies has detailed instructions about the application process.

Read admission steps and requirements

Do you have everything?

You are responsible for ensuring your application is complete and all documents are received by the deadline. 

Graduate supervisor

The Department of English does not require you to confirm a supervisor prior to admission.

Begin your application

First  create an eID . You must have one to access the online application.

Once you begin, remember to click 'Save & Continue' often to ensure your application is saved.

Online application

Graduate program contacts

Contact us for any questions you may have about the programs we offer in the Department of English.

Graduate Program Advisor

Ask me about graduate program advising

Lori Somner

[email protected]

Associate Head (Graduate Program)

Ask me about graduate degree requirements

Morgan Vanek

[email protected]

Creative Writing Coordinator

Ask me about the Creative Writing Program

Clara A.B. Joseph

[email protected]

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PhD Program

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Our Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in English allows you to structure a course of study that aligns with your specific research interests in English language or literature.

The PhD degree requirements in English at UBC Vancouver are based on residency and coursework, the candidacy process, and a dissertation. We expect students to complete the degree within five to six years.

Program Overview

All PhD students are considered full-time and are not eligible to undertake their degree on a part-time basis.

• Students who enter the PhD program having already earned an MA must remain in residence in the Lower Mainland (Vancouver area) for two winter sessions of PhD study (roughly two years).
• Students who have been permitted to transfer via fast-track from the UBC English MA program to the UBC English PhD program require at least one winter session of residence in the Lower Mainland following the transfer.
• Under normal circumstances, the PhD should be completed in five years, although UBC allows up to six years.

For more information about the program completion time, including rules about leaves of absence, registration, and employment status, please consult the graduate handbook.

Students entering the PhD program with first-class MA degrees in English will normally take 15 credits of coursework at the 500 level.

Students transferring from the MA to the PhD or entering the PhD directly from an honours BA will be asked to take a minimum number of credits determined by the Graduate Committee.

All PhD students are required to take the Research Methods course, ENGL 500B. This pass/fail course introduces students to the forms and protocols of PhD research. It counts towards the 15 credits required for admission to candidacy.

PhD programs are individually planned in consultation with the Chair of the Graduate Program.

For detailed information about coursework such as how to take courses at other western universities under the Western Dean's Agreement, how to sign up for a Directed Reading course (ENGL 547), and rules about taking courses outside the English department, please consult the graduate handbook.

Doctoral candidacy process

In addition to coursework in the first year of the program, the candidacy process includes the field list and oral examination, the candidacy paper, and the prospectus.

Graduate students and supervisors should consult the graduate handbook for a convenient year-by-year summary and detailed step-by-step explanation of the candidacy process for PhD students.

Field list and oral examination

In consultation with the Pro tem committee, the student will prepare a general field list of primary and secondary material designed to ensure that they have sufficient knowledge of their field of interest. The Pro tem committee will examine knowledge of this field list in a two-hour oral examination.

Candidacy paper

After the field examination, the student will begin working with the Pro tem committee to develop an individually focused research topic or question that allows the student to conceptualize the thesis.

The student will then write a 20-25 page paper based on this topic.

With the completion of the field examination and qualifying paper, the Pro tem committee is dissolved. Then the student, in consultation with the graduate chair, invites an appropriate faculty member to supervise their prospectus and thesis.

Together, the student and supervisor establish the full committee, which generally consists of the candidate's supervisor and two other Department of English Language and Literatures members.

The thesis prospectus, prepared in consultation with the supervisory committee, is then submitted to the Graduate Committee for approval.

Candidacy review

Students who achieve a minimum of 85% GPA in their courses at UBC and who pass all stages of their candidacy exams will automatically be recommended for advancement to candidacy. For other students, a conference on their progress may be deemed necessary by the graduate chair in consultation with their supervisor.

For detailed information about the field list and oral examination, candidacy paper, prospectus and candidacy review, please consult the graduate handbook.

Second language requirement

All new PhD students must demonstrate a reading knowledge of a second language relevant to their particular area of research. In consultation with the Pro tem supervisor, the graduate chair will determine whether a student has already met the second-language requirement.

Students who have not met the requirement may do so by completing an approved language or literature course (it may be possible to do this as an auditor), or by passing an examination, provided that an examiner acceptable to the department is available.

While only one language is required, students should, of course, consider the scholarly and professional requirements of their chosen area when developing their language skills.

Doctoral progress report

Each May beginning in the student's second year in the doctoral program, both the student and their supervisor will be asked to write a brief report indicating the nature and extent of work completed on the candidacy process or thesis and any circumstances impeding progress on either.

PhD supervision

The student is assigned a Pro tem supervisor from their point of entry into the program.

By the end of the first year, the full Pro tem committee will be in place.

The committee members will guide the student through the qualifying process, beginning in the first year with the field examination. They also serve as academic mentors on all aspects of the program and the department.

The Pro tem committee is dissolved after the candidacy paper is passed. A new thesis supervisory committee is then constituted, which can (but need not) include members of the Pro tem committee. The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies must approve thesis supervisory committee members from outside UBC.

PhD Co-op (Optional)

What is Co-op?

The Arts Co-op Program offers students enriched educational experiences for personal and professional growth. Co-op is a high-impact educational program that allows you to alternate dissertation-writing terms with work terms, during which you gain meaningful paid work experience. We work with a diverse range of community partners and sectors to provide transformative workplace learning for co-op students.

The Arts PhD Co-op Program allows you to explore different career options, while gaining paid, professional work experience, guided training and reflection on career options, and a network of contacts. Some students are able to secure work terms that are relevant to their dissertation research, while others choose to pursue work experience that diversify their expertise and give them range. Students complete three work terms of 4 months each over the two to three years after achieving candidacy.

To read more about previous and current PhD Co-op students’ experiences, please refer to our ‘success stories’ on Jon Newell (English) , Pavlina Pajot (English) , and Henry John (History) , or see the 2019 update on UBC English’s co-op program for PhD students .  Henry John (History) also published a piece in Inside Higher Education about his experience in the program.

Applying to Arts Co-op

The application window for PhD Co-op is open once per year, and usually closes in the first week of October.

You are eligible to apply to the UBC English PhD Co-op Program if you have achieved candidacy (or are expecting to achieve candidacy by the time you begin your co-op term, typically in January of your third year in the PhD program). You also must have two years of PhD study left, in which to schedule three 4-month work terms. You cannot begin work-terms in the Co-op Program without advancing to candidacy first: that is, Co-op students must be ABD (all but dissertation) before their first Co-op work term.

SSHRC-holders and international students are both eligible to apply and go through the same application process.

Quick Links

There are more than 45 faculty members in the Program with diverse interests and specializations. Course work falls broadly into the following fields in which students can focus their studies and specialize in practically any period, style, and genre from the earliest literature in English to contemporary texts :

Postcolonial/Diaspora/World Literature

Courses and research projects of both faculty and students often cross temporal, national, generic, and stylistic boundaries. Diverse theories permeate the approach to study and scholarship. Visit the “ Courses ” page to view this year’s offerings.

The Graduate Program in English at York is an exciting environment to pursue innovative, socially engaging, career-ready education. Contact our Graduate Program Assistant to learn more.

Connect with English

Université de Montréal / Faculté des arts et des sciences English Studies – Department of Literatures and Languages of the World

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PhD in English Studies

The PhD in English Studies aims to train independent researchers and professors to work in institutions of higher learning. It also enables college (CEGEP) teachers to enrich and update their skills.

Consult the Graduate Student's Guide for further information on this program.

• Fall and winter admission
• Daytime classes
• Full-time and part-time
• 90 credits, including 75 for the thesis  

Questions about this program?

Heather Meek , Assistant Professors: 514 343-6239 Kathy Leduc  Student File Management Technician: 514 343-5736

Program structure (in French)

Financial support, find a thesis supervisor, international (in french), job outlook for graduates in this discipline, international student scholarship program.

Graduate Student's Guide

Guidelines for PhD thesis prospectus

PhD comprehensive examinations

PhD in English requirements and regulations