Chair Introduction from Joseph Bartolomeo , Department Chair:
Welcome to the Department of English web page at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. The Department includes 44 faculty, approximately 800 undergraduate majors, and some 120 MA/Ph.D. and 75 MFA candidates. Our programs of study in language, literature, and writing promote a wide range of perspectives and encourage inquiry into diverse textual, cultural, and theoretical traditions. We are also committed to having a diverse faculty and student body, recognizing our investment in the variety of viewpoints that diversity makes possible.
English majors can expect to develop an understanding of a wide range of literature, sensitivity to the nuances of language, sharp analytic skills, and excellent skills as writers, speakers, and listeners.
To accomplish these ends, we offer small classes conducive to substantive discussion, frequent writing, and face-to-face contact with faculty. We have a distinguished tradition of excellent teaching with numbers of winners of the University Distinguished Teaching Award and the College of Fine Arts Outstanding Teacher Award. Our faculty are equally distinguished for their research and writing. We count amongst our numbers winners of the National Book Award, the Pulitzer Prize, the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, and the Chancellor's Medal for Distinguished Service as well as prestigious fellowships such as the Guggenheim, Woodrow Wilson, and ACLS. Our MFA program is among the most eminent in the country. We also have a strong MA/PhD program, with excellent placement records for our graduates. Our Undergraduate Writing Program and Western Massachusetts Writing Program are nationally recognized as well.
We are equally proud of our alumni, who go on to such professions as teaching in high school, colleges, and universities; professional writing; law; web design; editing; fiction and poetry writing; and scholarly research.
Please browse our pages to learn more about us, our fine undergraduate and graduate programs and affliated programs such as the Renaissance Center, Oxford Summer Seminar, and the literary and scholarly journals we sponsor. Contact us in person if you wish to learn more.