Program Description

The Department offers the degrees of Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy.

The University of North Dakota Department of English offers a varied program of studies in English and American literature, writing, and the English language. The academic atmosphere is intimate, class size for graduate courses is small, and students are encouraged to work closely with members of the graduate faculty. The curriculum varies from year to year and includes courses in genres, periods, specific authors, critical theory, rhetoric/composition, interdisciplinary study, creative writing, cinema/film theory, linguistics, and research methods. Faculty in the Department also work in interdisciplinary areas such as American Studies, Peace Studies, Composition Studies, American Indian Studies, and Women Studies. The Department works closely with the University’s College of Education and Human Development in the area of English Education. In all areas of work, students are encouraged to utilize a variety of critical and theoretical approaches.

The Department sponsors an annual week-long writers conference that gives graduate students a chance to hear contemporary writers read their work and discuss the writing process. Visitors have included Czeslaw Milosz, Louise Erdrich, Larry McMurtry, Leslie Silko, James Welch, August Wilson, Luisa Valenzuela, Peter Matthiessen, Tim O'Brien, Ursula Hegi, Barry Lopez, Tobias Wolff, and Mary Gaitskill.