English, Ph.D.

Course Requirements

Students must complete for credit a minimum of 45 semester hours of graduate courses, exclusive of 12 credit hours for the dissertation. The graduate advisor assesses all transferred graduate credit hours, and it is possible that postgraduate hours completed more than seven years prior to a student's admission into TCU's English graduate program may not be counted toward requirements if they are deemed outdated relative to the present state of the field; the graduate advisor will determine applicable credit on a case-by-case basis. 

Of the 45 hours, at least 30 must be taken at TCU. Of these courses, students must take 6 hours in Pedagogy and remaining hours in electives, as outlined below. The course in Teaching College Composition may be satisfied through transfer/waiver.

Students should select their additional coursework in consultation with their English advisor(s) and the Director of Graduate Studies, focused not only on intended area(s) of specialization but in preparation for qualifying examinations.

Earned MA Degree

Upon completion of 45 hours of graduate courses, a PhD student will be conferred the degree of MA in English. All 45 hours must be completed at TCU. No transfer credits from previously attended graduate program can count toward the coursework necessary for earning the MA degree through the PhD track.

Examinations

A student takes qualifying comprehensive examinations, consisting of a minimum of two exams in two different areas, when they have completed for credit 39-45 hours of graduate courses, of which 30 must be from TCU; and completed requisite coursework. These examinations are based on the student’s areas of concentration. The student and their advisory committee will determine the areas to be covered by the exams. A student who fails one or more areas of the examinations may retake the failed area(s) again, but a second failure on any area of the examination bars the student from candidacy.

Dissertation

Doctoral students must complete a dissertation that demonstrates their ability to do independent and original research, and to synthesize their findings and existing knowledge into a unified document. A candidate must present a dissertation prospectus to their advisory committee for discussion, suggestions and approval before proceeding with the project. The candidate's oral defense of the dissertation is a public lecture based upon their findings, presented to the Department of English graduate faculty, graduate students and other interested persons within the academic community.  

Academic Advising

Students are advised in consultation with their English advisor(s) and the Director of Graduate Studies.