Doctor of Philosophy

Students must take at least 70 graded units of graduate level coursework of the 135 required total units. The 70 graded units must include ENGLISH 396 and 4 courses distributed across four categories as described in the Required Course section below. Five of the 70 graded units may be fulfilled with ENGLISH 398 Research Course, and an additional five units may be fulfilled with ENGLISH 398R Revision and Development of a Paper.

The remaining 65 units can be fulfilled with a mix of required, non-graded units and other non-graded units of the student's choosing, including research units with their advisor. The required non-grading units include the pedagogy course, ENGLISH 396L, the general exam preparation course, ENGLISH 398Q, and the cohort seminars, ENGLISH 398W. Research units are taken under ENGLISH 398 with the Introductory Advisor or their program advisor, once one has been determined. Students may count no more than ten 100-level units towards the 65 units at the discretion of the Director of Graduate Studies.

The English Ph.D. Handbook opens in a new tab provides additional guidance.

Teaching is core to the academic and professional training of doctoral students in our program. All students are required to complete 3 quarters of teaching experience in the program, usually in the first three years, regardless of financial support. Typically, students complete additional quarters of teaching as part of their professional training and financial support.

Admission to candidacy is a prospective judgement by the faculty of a student's potential to successfully complete the requirements of the degree program. Students are expected to complete qualifying procedures and apply for candidacy by the end of their second year in the program during the Summer quarter.

In the Department of English, the determination that a student is eligible to advance to candidacy is based on grades from the first and second-year coursework, teaching evaluations, progress in degree milestones, the results of the general exam, and faculty assessment regarding the student’s ability to fulfill the requirements of the degree program and produce original scholarship. Advancement to candidacy is not automatic and is not based solely on satisfactory completion of prerequisites; instead, it is determined by a vote of the Department's Graduate Studies Committee.

The Graduate Studies Committee meets after the student’s qualifying examination to evaluate their progress through their first year and provide the student with written feedback and recommendations for improvement. The decision on candidacy is made after the student’s second year and includes an assessment of subsequent coursework and initial preparation for the oral exam. Candidacy decisions are released in early September, prior to the start of the third year in the program.

In the Department of English, the oral exam is a test of the knowledge of the student's field. Students are expected to complete this milestone by the winter of their third year in the program.

Ahead of the exam and once the reading list is finalized, the advisor will prepare three to four questions for the student. The student must address one of these questions in a prepared 20-minute talk at the start of the exam. After a brief discussion of the presentation, the rest of the exam consists of the advisor and examiners asking questions about the works on the reading list.

After the dissertation topic has been approved, the candidate should file a formal reading committee form as the university prescribes. Once the first chapter has been drafted, the student meets with the entire reading committee for a one-hour colloquium, usually in the spring quarter of their fourth year. The dissertation must be submitted to the advisor as a rough draft, but in substantially final form, at least four weeks before the university deadline in the quarter during which the candidate expects to receive the PhD degree. The committee will meet for a closing colloquium in order to discuss the full dissertation and to suggest professional developments beyond the PhD.