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Graduating Teacher-Scholars of Literature
We are currently accepting Fall 2026 applications for our Ph.D. program only.
The M.A. and Ph.D. in Literature degree programs in English and American Literature enable students to deepen their knowledge of literature and culture through graduate work in different historical periods and genres; to devise theoretical and historical frameworks that enhance their comprehension of literary and cultural materials; and to complete individualized projects that best represent the particular strands within literary studies of most interest to them.
Small seminars with outstanding teacher-scholars in all the major areas of literary study provide an excellent grounding in the contemporary practices of literary criticism, theoretical work, and historical scholarship.
Curriculum and Courses
Master of Arts in English and American Literature:
To earn the degree, students complete at least 20 hours of coursework in Literature. An introductory course in literary and cultural theory is also required. Students may choose either to write a thesis or to take a written examination to cap the degree. Both options include a final oral defense.
Literature, Ph.D.
For PhD students in literature, a Course of Study may be structured either around traditional period distinctions or across periods to ensure broad historical coverage. Within this framework, coursework can focus on a single genre or balance multiple genres while examining a particular movement at a given time, and it may center on one national, ethnic, or cultural tradition or extend across these boundaries.
The Course of Study must take into account the historical distribution requirement and other course requirements, and it may include more than one composition and rhetoric course.
Facts and Stats
College for Producing Fortune 500 CEOs Nationwide
National Public University
Post-Graduation Success Rate
Miami University Data
National Public University
U.S. News & World Report, 2020
Administrative Opportunities
A considerable strength of our program is that we offer extensive and diverse administrative opportunities for graduate students to gain professional, administrative experience while contributing in positive ways to the university community. For doctoral students especially, this level and scope of administrative experience provides a strong professional credential for university writing program administration.
Humanities Center Communication Associates
The Miami University Humanities Center is a campus-wide hub for cross-disciplinary inquiry. In addition to offering graduate fellowships and support for interdisciplinary research groups, the center employs one or two communication associates. In these paid positions, graduate students work a modest number of hours per week on public relations, event promotion, social media management, and the production of promotional materials.
Assistant Directors of Composition
Each year two doctoral students are awarded positions as Assistant Directors of Composition. In this capacity, they serve as co-administrators with the Director of Composition, helping with administration, curriculum development, and teacher preparation in the first-year composition program. Their primary responsibilities are:
- to co-teach with the Director the graduate seminars and practica on the teaching of writing (ENG 731 and ENG 606);
- to advise and work with the new TAs who are teaching first-year composition (ENG 111) and advanced composition (ENG 225).
Assistant Directors and Consultants, Howe Center for Writing Excellence
The Howe Center for Writing Excellence is a university-wide center that involves both a writing-across-the-curriculum (WAC) program and the Howe Writing Center (a student writing center where undergraduate and graduate consultants work with student writers). A variety of assistantships and paid hourly opportunities exist for MA and PhD students to work as Writing Center consultants and as assistants on various WAC projects and other initiatives, providing graduate students with excellent opportunities for gaining experience in these important areas of writing studies.
The Ohio Writing Project and Department of English Master of Arts in Teaching
One of the first sites of the prestigious National Writing Project, the OWP is an active professional development program offering workshops and seminars for K-16 teachers. The OWP offers an annual youth writing camp, a large fall teacher conference, and administers Miami’s Master of Arts in Teaching English (MAT). The OWP welcomes students who are interested in writing program administration, middle/high school writing center development, and K-12 literacy projects.
Teaching Opportunities
In addition to first-year composition, graduate students have opportunities to teach in the Professional Writing major, the Rhetoric and Writing minor, the College Composition program and in other programs, such as Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Interactive Media Studies.
Teaching in the Literature Major
Doctoral students who complete a required apprenticeship with one of the Literature Program Directors have opportunities to teach a literature survey course. The apprenticeship may be completed any time before the apprentice first teaches their own section of the course. Apprenticeships are designed to assure the quality of instruction in Miami Plan literature survey courses, to give graduate students practical training in the teaching of literature surveys, and to provide graduate students with a faculty contact who can write a detailed letter in support of their teaching.
Teaching Apprenticeships in Literature
Doctoral students who complete a required apprenticeship with a tenure-line professor have opportunities to teach a literature survey course. The apprenticeship may be completed any time before the apprentice first teaches his or her own section of the course. Apprenticeships are designed to assure the quality of instruction in Miami Plan literature survey courses, to give graduate students practical training in the teaching of literature surveys, and to provide graduate students with a faculty contact who can write a detailed letter in support of their teaching. Potential apprentices are strongly encouraged to apply to teach in the area of their scholarly expertise. The department expects doctoral candidates to apprentice in the actual course they will teach, except in the case of unusual staffing conflicts. Thus, potential apprentices are encouraged to apply, well in advance of their initial teaching semester, for an apprenticeship with an appropriate member of the graduate faculty.
Humanities Center Altman Graduate Fellowships
Each year, the Miami University Humanities Center appoints one or two Altman Graduate Fellows for its annual Altman Program in the Humanities. Fellows join an advanced interdisciplinary research community in which approximately 20 faculty members and students study an issue of consequence. The program includes a biweekly faculty seminar, a series of ten public lectures by distinguished visitors, a special advanced undergraduate course, and opportunities for research collaboration. Graduate fellows play a key role in mentoring undergraduate fellows on both independent research and collaborative public humanities projects.
Graduate Student Successes
Every year many of our graduate students secure jobs or gain admission to other excellent academic programs to continue their education. Faculty on the Job Placement Committee serve job seekers by holding informational meetings, reading and commenting on job application materials, and conducting mock interviews. Job Placement (listed by graduation year)
Admission and Funding
This is Where Your Journey to Miami University Begins
Explore what it means to be a graduate student at Miami University, where students prepare to go anywhere and everywhere. We’ll be here to help every step of the way as you prepare for college admission, enrollment, and success.
Contact Us
Graduate Admission
513-529-GRAD (4723)
[email protected]
Department of English
Tim Lockridge, Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies
196 Harris Hall
Oxford, OH 45056
[email protected]