The master of arts in English program immerses students in literature dating from the Middle Ages through the present. Through the study and analysis of a variety of literary texts, critical and theoretical approaches (including, among others, new historicism, reader-response theory, deconstruction, feminist criticism, and post-colonial studies), and historical concepts, students are afforded the opportunity to develop individual interpretations of texts and to evaluate controversies surrounding the canon. Small-group tasks, oral presentations, short papers, and longer research papers complement lectures, discussions, and examinations. Travel and research grants are available to our students, several of whom have presented at graduate colloquia at Brooklyn College and at other universities throughout the country and abroad, or have had papers accepted for publication in journals.

Our graduates have found new employment or enhanced their present careers in diverse fields including education, publishing, writing for both for-profit and non-profit organizations. Others have been accepted into doctoral programs.

Students must pass the English Department M.A. French or Spanish examination or a test administered by the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures or they must pass a foreign language course acceptable to the deputy chairperson. The foreign language requirement may be waived for a native speaker with permission of the English graduate deputy.