Coursework
The Department of English offers an PhD in Composition, Rhetoric, and English Studies (CRES). Degree requirements include courses in theory, writing, linguistics, and pedagogy.
Language Requirement
Doctoral students must demonstrate reading proficiency in a foreign language in one of two ways:
- certification through the appropriate department of a “B” average or the equivalent of two years of undergraduate- or graduate-level study in a single foreign language, completed within five years of admission to the master’s program.
- passing the foreign language reading course or examination prepared by the Department of Modern Languages and Classics. Students who are not native speakers of English may use their native language to fulfill this requirement.
Exam and Dissertation
After finishing coursework, students must be formally admitted to candidacy for the degree. To meet this requirement, students must pass a written and oral preliminary examination, and engage with their dissertation committee in a one-hour conference concerning the dissertation prospectus.
Once the prospectus conference is completed, the student may proceed to the dissertation.