The admission requirement is an MA in English, Literary Studies, Cultural Studies, or a related field, with marks of at least A- in two thirds of their Masters level courses. In recent years, successful candidates have typically achieved an average of A (at least 85%) in their upper-level undergraduate and MA coursework. The Graduate Studies Committee will give consideration to matching candidates’ proposed projects with the research expertise of available faculty members.

Applicants who do not hold a post-secondary degree whose language of instruction was English, are required to provide an official record of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). A TOEFL score of 600 on the paper-based test, 250 on the computerized test, and 100 on the Internet-based test is required. If you are submitting the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) test, a score of 7 is required. Please note that achieving the minimum required score on these tests is not always sufficient for admission.

Applications

Applications for the PhD program should reach the Department of English and Cultural Studies at McMaster no later than JANUARY 14th. Applications and supplementary documentation must be submitted through the application portal: https://applygrad.mcmaster.ca/portal/start_your_app – open November 1^st. Only completed applications, which include supporting documentation, will be reviewed. Application fees are non-refundable. Please read the information below, before beginning your application. For questions regarding the application process, please email us at englgrsc@mcmaster.ca.

Required Documentation

You must compile the following required materials for the PhD program application. Please ensure that these required documents are uploaded when the online application form asks for the Statement of Interest and the CV.

The PhD degree program will normally be four years in length.

Coursework

PhD Candidates will successfully complete six graduate courses: five one-term elective graduate courses in Year 1 of the program, and the Doctoral Seminar in Year 2.  The Doctoral seminar is a required pass/fail course that focuses on practical elements of research and other aspects of professionalization in literary and cultural studies.

Thesis Proposal: Preliminary and Detailed

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 Year 2, 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. Please check the English and Cultural Studies Graduate Handbook for additional details and due dates.

The Thesis

After the completion of the Comprehensive Examination, 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.

Visit Graduate Studies to learn more about tuition, supplementary fees and everything you need to know about being paid as a Teaching or Research Assistant. Tuition fees are assessed on a term by term basis, depending on the number of courses a student takes or if they are paying by term.

Learn More

All full-time English graduate students receive scholarship funding from McMaster University. Our scholarship funding offers are competitive with those of other major programs in Canada. However, there are also several internal and external awards available to graduate students.

Graduate students in the Department of English and Cultural Studies have been very successful in winning internal awards and Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) awards, including Harry Lyman Hooker Senior Fellowships, the Harvey E. Longboat Graduate Scholarships for First Nations, Inuit and Métis Students, and the Ontario Trillium Scholarship (OGS).

Our graduate students also have an excellent track record in securing Canada Graduate Scholarship (CGS) awards, including the SSHRC, CGS-Doctoral, CGS-Master’s, and Vanier awards. Our department provides information sessions, proposal workshops, and one-on-one consultations for students applying to SSHRC’s Doctoral Fellowship and Canada Graduate Scholarship (CGS) competitions.

The Department of English and Cultural Studies recognizes the importance of teaching as an integral part of our graduate degree programs. For this reason, all full-time graduate students are given a teaching assistantship, supported by faculty-led supervision and peer advice.

MA and first year PhD students typically work as teaching assistants for our first-year undergraduate English and Cultural Studies courses, and we work to offer our doctoral students a range of teaching and research experiences over their four years of study. This may include working as a TA in upper-level English courses, or outside of the department in programs like Theatre & Film, Women’s Studies, Peace Studies or Communication Studies.

TAships generally involve running weekly tutorials, grading student work, and meeting with students individually. Marking TAs do not run tutorials, but instead grade essays and may meet with students individually to discuss their work. Some senior PhD students may be assigned a senior TA position, which involves assisting the instructor, and providing resources to their fellow TAs.

Please see a copy of the TA Handbook in the RESOURCES section below.