Graduate Overview

With internationally acclaimed faculty and a cutting-edge curriculum, the MA and PhD programs of UWM’s Department of English are at the forefront of English studies today. Our four areas of concentration are highly ranked and our graduates are professors at colleges and universities across the country and around the world. We pride ourselves on being ahead of the curve as we explore innovative alternatives in literature, writing, and visual studies.

What makes UWM different? We focus exclusively on modernity from the early modern to the present, in courses that combine theoretical ambition with historical rigor. Building on UWM’s long tradition of groundbreaking theoretical work, our faculty are at the center of some of the most exciting developments in English studies today. The department faculty has special strengths in a large number of areas, including creative writing, American literature, post-colonialism, Native American studies, digital literature, cinema and media studies, queer theory, feminism and women’s studies, visual and scientific rhetoric, and Irish studies, among many others.

Through close collaboration with UWM’s Center for 21st Century Studies, students have the opportunity to hear and meet leading scholars and critics from other universities. Graduate students also run cream city review, the Department’s nationally recognized literary magazine.

The department offers concentrations in Literature and Cultural Theory, Rhetoric, Writing, and Community Engagement, Creative Writing, and Media, Cinema, and Digital Studies. Teaching assistantships are available. Each year, the department begins accepting applications from prospective graduate students in mid-October for enrollment the following academic year. The application deadline is December 15.