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MA, MA/PhD, PhD, & American Studies Track

University of Massachusetts Amherst
Department of English
Spring 2025

South College W329

(413) 545-8701

HOW TO USE THIS HANDBOOK

This English Graduate Student Handbook contains university regulations, department policies and practices, and informal advice to graduate students at the levels of MA, MA/PhD, and PhD degree work in the English Department. We suggest that you refer to the most current edition of the handbook, available on the department website, throughout your time at UMass.

This guide provides answers to the most common questions, issues, and problems faced by graduate students in our program. However, it cannot address individual and unique problems that may arise; in such cases, please feel free to contact the English Graduate Office, arrange to meet with the Graduate Program Director (GPD), and/or discuss the issue with your faculty mentor or advisor. We also strongly encourage you to see your peers and colleagues in the graduate program as another source of mentoring and to form connections within that community; the English Graduate Organization (EGO) is an excellent place to begin. On matters of policy, however, it’s always best to consult with the English Graduate Office staff to ensure that you are working with the most current information that reflects department and university guidelines. Note also that the UMass Graduate School is a critical source of information that applies to all graduate students at the university.

On the advice of the 2016 Graduate Handbook Committee, this handbook has been organized around the major concentrations and programs that make up the English graduate program. After some brief introductory materials, the major sections are

  • the requirements for the MA-Only degree in all concentrations;
  • the requirements and calendars for the MA/PhD and PhD degrees with concentrations in Literature or in Composition and Rhetoric;
  • the requirements and calendars for the MA/PhD and PhD degrees with a concentration in American Studies.

Following these are sections on topics of broader pertinence to most or all graduate students in the program and a page of resources and links to help you navigate the university and your many roles as part of this community.

You should meet with the GPD during your first semester on campus and again in subsequent semesters to discuss and plan for upcoming program milestones. As you move toward the job-search stage of your graduate career, you should also be in contact with the Associate Director, who serves as the program’s job officer. The English Graduate Office staff are committed to supporting your success; we hope that you’ll see us as a resource and also take advantage of the many mentoring, peer mentoring, and professionalization opportunities available to you.

Mazen Naous, Graduate Program Director
Caroline Yang, Associate Director