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English
Location
Location
- Department of English
- Arts Building
- 853 Sherbrooke Street West, Room 155
- Montreal QC H3A 0G5
- Canada
- Telephone: 514-398-6564
- Fax: 514-398-8557
- Email: maria.vasile [at] mcgill.ca
- Website: www.mcgill.ca/english
About English
About English
The Department of English at Â鶹AV is unique, in that its program brings together three different but related areas of study: Literature; Drama and Theatre; and Cultural Studies. Graduate students, key participants in all areas of Department life, have the opportunity to explore aspects of Literature, Cultural Studies, Performance, and Theatre History in their seminar work and research. The Department is home to—or is a principal participant in—a number of major collaborative research projects, including the Burney Centre, the Â鶹AV Medievalists, the Bibliographic Society of Canada, and research teams on Shakespeare and Performance, Early Modern Conversions, Interacting with Print, Eating in Canada, and Novelists on the Novel. These research groups and projects are the most visible signs of cross-fertilization among the three areas of the Department's work, and of the Department's prominence in the development of interdisciplinary research and teaching at Â鶹AV and in the academy in general.
The English Department offers both M.A. and Ph.D. degrees. On average, there are 80 graduate students enrolled in the M.A. and Ph.D. programs each year.
The M.A. program admits 25 students each year from around the world. Unlike many other master's programs in English, the Â鶹AV M.A. culminates in a major piece of independent research, either a thesis or research paper, which is carried out under the supervision of a faculty member. Approximately half of Â鶹AV M.A. graduates go on to Ph.D. programs either at Â鶹AV or elsewhere. Other graduates have found employment with foundations, university development offices, publishing houses, consulting firms, and CEGEPs.
The Ph.D. program admits approximately six students each year from around the world. Doctoral students specialize in a broad range of fields within English studies.
All students who apply are considered for financial support, normally in the form of a scholarship that can be supplemented by Teaching or Research Assistantships.
The Department offers two options toward the M.A. degree; one thesis, and the other non-thesis. Both options consist of 48 credits and are designed to be completed in four terms (of 12 credits each). It is rare for any student pursuing the thesis option to complete the degree in less than two years, although some students do complete the research paper option in one year (Fall, Winter, and Summer terms) or in 16 months (Fall, Winter, Summer, and Fall terms).
| Master of Arts (M.A.); English (Thesis) (48 credits) |
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In the thesis option, students must successfully complete Bibliography (ENGL 694) and five seminars, and write a thesis of 80–100 pages that adheres to the guidelines set under the thesis regulations of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. Students submit a proposal for the thesis to the Graduate Administration Committee in the Department; the proposal must be approved before students begin working on the thesis. When completed, the thesis is submitted to the Thesis Office and is reviewed by an External Examiner. |
| Master of Arts (M.A.); English (Non-Thesis) (48 credits) |
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In the non-thesis option, students must successfully complete Bibliography (ENGL 694) and seven seminars, and write a research paper of 40 pages. Students submit a proposal for the research paper to the Graduate Administration Committee in the Department; the proposal must be approved before students begin to write the research paper. The finished paper is evaluated by the supervisor and a second member of the Department. Although the Non-Thesis (research paper) M.A. is designed to be completed in two years, some students complete the program in one year (Fall, Winter, and Summer terms) or in 16 months (Fall, Winter, Summer, and Fall terms). |
| Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.); English |
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Students with an M.A. in English or a closely related discipline may apply to the Ph.D. program. In their first year (Ph.D. 2), doctoral students are expected to complete the two halves of the compulsory proseminar: ENGL 787 (taken in the Fall term) and ENGL 788 (taken in the Winter term), along with four seminars. The proseminars expose students to current academic issues, theoretical propositions, and professional questions. Students may substitute for the two second-term seminars one extended supervised Optional Research Project. Courses must be chosen in order to make possible the identification of a major and a minor area of concentration. In Ph.D. 3, candidates complete a Compulsory Research Project in the area of the dissertation and submit the dissertation proposal. This Compulsory Research Project, a unique feature of the Â鶹AV Ph.D., serves the purpose of a field exam and replaces comprehensive exams, allowing students to work on a publishable piece of research. The language requirement must be fulfilled before the dissertation proposal is approved. Doctoral students must complete the Ph.D. program within six years. A candidate intending to submit the thesis to meet the deadline for Spring Convocation must give notice of this intention before January 1. A candidate intending to meet the deadline for Fall Convocation must give such notice before May 1. The majority of students who complete the Ph.D. proceed to postdoctoral fellowships and teaching positions, either at CEGEP (colleges) or at universities. |
English Admission Requirements and Application Procedures
English Admission Requirements and Application Procedures
Admission Requirements
Admission Requirements
M.A. Degree
Admission to the M.A. program requires a B.A. degree in English (honours or major) or its equivalent, with a very strong record of academic success (especially in the final two years of the B.A.). Typically, applicants will have solid training and coverage within their chosen area of theatre, cultural studies, or literature. Outstanding applicants from related disciplines may be invited to take a Qualifying year.
Ph.D. Degree
Admission to the doctoral program is highly competitive. Generally, outstanding students with the M.A. degree in hand apply to the doctoral program and are accepted into Ph.D. 2. In very rare circumstances, outstanding graduates of B.A. programs will be considered for “fast-tracking” into the doctoral program, entering at Ph.D. 1. For their first year, students follow the M.A. program (Thesis option) and, if their work is given a strong evaluation at the end of the first year, they then go on to complete the remaining requirements of the Ph.D. program.
Application Procedures
Application Procedures
Â鶹AV’s online application form for graduate program candidates is available at www.mcgill.ca/gradapplicants/apply.
See Application Procedures for detailed application procedures.
Application Deadlines
Application Deadlines
The application deadlines listed here are set by the English Department and may be revised at any time. Applicants must verify all deadlines and documentation requirements well in advance on the appropriate Â鶹AV departmental website; please consult the list at www.mcgill.ca/gps/contact/graduate-program.
| Canadian | International | Special/Exchange/Visiting |
|---|---|---|
| Fall: Jan. 15 | Fall: Jan. 15 | Fall: Jan. 15 |
| Winter: N/A | Winter: N/A | Winter: N/A |
| Summer: N/A | Summer: N/A | Summer: N/A |
Admission to graduate studies is competitive; accordingly, late and/or incomplete applications are considered only as time and space permit.
English Faculty
English Faculty
| Chair | |
|---|---|
| T. Ponech | |
| Emeritus Professors | |
| M.D. Bristol; A.B.(Yale), Ph.D.(Princ.) | |
| K. McSweeney; B.A., Ph.D.(Tor.) | |
| P. Ohlin; Fil.Mag.(Stockholm), M.A., Ph.D.(N. Mexico) | |
| M. Puhvel; B.A., M.A.(McG.), Ph.D.(Harv.) | |
| J. Ripley; B.A., M.A.(New Br.), Ph.D.(Birm.) | |
| D. Suvin; B.A., M.Sc., Ph.D.(Zagreb), F.R.S.C. | |
| W.C. Wees; B.A.(N’western), M.A.(Roch.), Ph.D.(N’western) | |
| D. Williams; B.A.(Boston), M.A., Ph.D.(Tor.) | |
| Professors | |
| K. Borris; B.A.(Vic., BC), Ph.D.(Edin.) | |
| M.N. Cooke; B.A.(Qu.), M.A.(Cornell), M.A., Ph.D.(Tor.) | |
| A. Hepburn; B.A., M.A.(W. Ont.), Ph.D.(Princ.) | |
| M.A. Kilgour; B.A.(Tor.), Ph.D.(Yale) (Molson Professor of English) | |
| M. Kreiswirth; B.A.(Hamilton), M.A.(Chic.), Ph.D.(Tor.) | |
| R. Lecker; B.A., M.A., Ph.D.(York) (Greenshields Professor of English) | |
| P. Sabor; B.A.(Camb.), M.A.(Qu.), Ph.D.(Lond.) (Canada Research Chair in 18th Century Studies) | |
| M. Stenbaek; B.A.(Copen.), M.A., Ph.D.(Montr.) | |
| B. Trehearne; B.A., M.A., Ph.D.(McG.) | |
| P. Yachnin; B.A.(McG.), M.Litt.(Edin.), Ph.D.(Tor.) (Tomlinson Chair in Shakespeare Studies) | |
| Associate Professors | |
| D.A. Bray; B.A.(McG.), Ph.D.(Edin.) | |
| S. Carney; B.A.(Manit.) M.A.(Alta.), Ph.D.(York) | |
| T,W. Folkerth; B.A.(CSU Chico), M.A., Ph.D.(McG.) | |
| J. Fumo; B.A.(Mass.-Amh.), M.A., Ph.D.(Princ.) | |
| P. Gibian; B.A.(Yale), M.A.(NYU), Ph.D.(Stan.) | |
| Y. Halevi-Wise; B.A.(Hebrew), M.A.(G’town), Ph.D.(Princ.) | |
| D.C. Hensley; B.A., M.A.(Trin. Coll., Cambridge), B.A., Ph.D.(Yale) | |
| M. Hickman; B.A.(Brown), M.A., Ph.D.(Mich.) | |
| E. Hurley; B.A.(McG.), M.A.(Brown), Ph.D.(CUNY) | |
| B. Kaite; B.A.(C’dia), M.A.(McM.), Ph.D.(Car.) | |
| P. Neilson; B.A.(Bishop's), M.F.A.(Calg.) | |
| D. Nystrom; B.A.(Wisc.), M.A., Ph.D.(Virg., Charlottesville) | |
| T. Ponech; B.A.(McG.), Ph.D.(N’western) | |
| M. Popescu; B.A., M.A.(Bucharest), M.A.(Windsor), Ph.D.(Penn.) | |
| F. Ritchie; B.A., M.A.(Durh.), Ph.D.(Lond.) | |
| D. Salter; B.A.(Br. Col.), M.A., Ph.D.(Tor.) | |
| N. Schantz; B.A.(Stan.), M.A., Ph.D.(USC) | |
| M.W. Selkirk; B.A.(Alta.), M.F.A.(Ill.) | |
| T. Sparks; B.A.(Bates College), M.A., Ph.D.(Wash.) | |
| A. Thain; B.A.(McG.), Ph.D.(Duke) | |
| Assistant Professors | |
| S. Banerjee; B.A., M.A.(Jad.), M.Phil.(Oxf.), Ph.D.(Syrac.) | |
| E. MacLaren; B.A.(Alta.), M.A.(W. Ont.), Ph.D.(Tor.) | |
| A. Osterweil; B.A., M.A.(NYU), Ph.D.(Calif., Berk.) | |
| M. Van Dussen; B.A.(Ohio Wesl.), M.A., Ph.D.(Ohio St.) | |
| K. Zien; B.A.(Col.), Ph.D.(N'western) | |
Master of Arts (M.A.); English (Thesis) (48 credits)
For more information, see Master of Arts (M.A.); English (Thesis) (48 credits).
Master of Arts (M.A.); English (Non-Thesis) (48 credits)
For more information, see Master of Arts (M.A.); English (Non-Thesis) (48 credits).
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.); English
For more information, see Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.); English.