Graduate Studies
TA Josef Benson's Narration & Description class
Graduate studies in English at the University of South Florida include degree programs in
Literature (PhD and MA), Rhetoric and
Composition (PhD and MA) and Creative Writing (MA/MFA). The department also
administers graduate certificates in Teaching Composition (temporarily on hold),
Comparative Literature, and Creative Writing. In conjunction
with the World Languages and American Studies/Humanities departments, the English department plans to begin a
multi-disciplinary PhD in Comparative Literature and Film Studies and a graduate certificate in Film Studies.
Additionally, graduate students in English can earn certificates
in related fields such as Women’s Studies and area studies including Africana, Cuban, Latin American and Caribbean
Studies, or Library Science.
We have approximately 140 students in our program who work closely with a dynamic and growing
faculty of internationally recognized scholars and award-winning
teachers. The program features small seminar-style graduate classes and offers many opportunities for directed
research and professional development. The department is home to
journals for undergraduate and graduate students as well as Saw Palm, a
literary annual focused on Florida authors and themes produced by members of the Creative Writing program, and the
Norman Mailer Review.
Because many of our graduates go on to tenure-track jobs at teaching institutions, we emphasize theories of
pedagogy and training in instruction through practica in Composition, Literature and Professional and
Technical Writing. Many of our students are offered teaching assistantships for
First-year Writing courses, and there are opportunities for advanced graduate students to teach general
education courses in literature and writing. Graduate student instructors build a supportive network through such
activities as the monthly Teaching Literature Discussion Group.
Dr. Sara Deats, "The Faustus Legend"
The department benefits from the collegial interaction of our three tracks with colloquia and speaker series
that bring them together. Our active English Graduate Student Association sponsors a monthly colloquium where
students from Literature, Rhetoric and Composition and Creative Writing each read from their work. Faculty members
share their work-in-progress in a monthly brown-bag lunch series.
With courses on professional topics such as Scholarly Writing for Publication and workshops on preparing for
the job market by our placement committee, we are pleased to see our graduate students publishing in a variety
of scholarly and literary venues; our creative writing students have won national awards including the O. Henry
Prize for short fiction. The department provides some support for students to present their work at conferences,
and additional funds are available from the Graduate and Professional Student
Council. Our teaching assistants consistently garner the university’s highest distinction, the
Provost’s Award for Outstanding Teaching, and the department annually honors
our top students for their accomplishments in scholarship, writing and instruction with twelve or more named cash
awards.
Additional information and resources for graduate students can be found on the following pages: