Frequently asked Questions

Before Beginning the Program...

  1. Where should I live?

    Most graduate students live off-campus, as on-campus housing is typically reserved for international graduate students. You can live within walking distance, on a bus line, or farther afield. Housing near campus in Chapel Hill or Carrboro is relatively expensive, but it is convenient. Housing in Durham will be cheaper, but will require commuting. Parking on campus is practically non-existent, but there are pay lots and garages in town, as well as a number of park-and-ride lots that connect to Chapel Hill bus lines. For more parking and commuting information, see http://www.dps.unc.edu/dps/2ndparkingpage.asp or http://www.townofchapelhill.org/transit/

    See the Graduate School's page for more help finding housing.

  2. When do we start?

    Usually in late August, although the exact date varies. Teaching Fellows may need to be in town and/or on campus earlier. Visit the University Calendar or the departmental calendar.

  3. When is the sorting ceremony?

    By the end of your second year of the MA program, you should have a good idea of which area(s) you would like to join.

  4. What are the best online resources for Chapel Hill?

    If you want quick access to things like Transit Guides, links to local classified ads, and apartment guides, see the University's Chapel Hill Living webpage. Local papers (like the ones linked here can provide good overviews of local goings-on, and the university and departmental calendars are the best resources for happenings on-campus.

  5. What practical stuff should I do when I hit town?

    If you get to town a few days early, start checking these things off of your list:

    • Get a UNC OneCard. You will need a OneCard to check out books and conduct other on-campus business. The OneCard office is located on the first floor of Daniels (the Student Stores.) You can also link your OneCard to a Wachovia checking account, or put money on the card for campus purchases (coffee, copies, etc.)

    • Get connected electronically. See the Help Desk's New Student Guide. At minimum, make sure you have an onyen, which you need for everything, including UNC email. If you have a laptop, you may want to configure it for UNC's wireless network. You may also want to learn how to access your AFS (University server space) remotely.

    • Get a NC Driver's License and Register to vote. These are two important steps toward getting North Carolina residency for tuition purposes. For more information about residency, click here.

    • Get a library carrel. These can be hard to come by if you are not yet writing your dissertation, but you can always try. Fill out an application at the reference desk of Davis Library.

First Year Students

  1. What are the MA requirements?

    Visit the English department's page on MA Requirements.

  2. What should I be doing this first year?

    • Taking proseminars, other requirements, and elective coursework.

    • Choosing two course for which you will be required to write 18-25 page papers...and then writing them.

    • Identifying your M.A. thesis advisor (by the end of the spring term.)

  3. Which classes should I take?

    The M.A. in English requires thirty hours of coursework (nine courses plus 3 hours of credit for the thesis or thesis option.) Degree candidates are required to take the following courses:

    • ENGL 606 Rhetorical Theory and Practice (required of those who plan to teach; some students can request a waiver.) (3 hours)

    • ENGL 992 (Master's thesis option) or ENGL 993 (Master's thesis) (3 hours)

    • An English language course (e.g., 613, 719, 814, 720, or with the permission of the Director of Graduate Studies: a class in linguistics, theory of the language, or philosophy of language. (3 hours)

    • Two ProSeminars taken in your first 3 semesters of graduate study. (6 hours)

    • Other Electives and Distribution Requirements

    • Also...start planning for satisfying the Foreign Language requirements.

  4. What is a ProSeminar?

    ProSeminars are meant to be introductions to professional work in the designated field. They are often team-taught, and may be organized chronologically or thematically. They are not survey courses, but aim to give new graduate students a breadth of knowledge of literary texts, methods, and secondary material. Students will learn how works in the period have been studied and begin to acquire the research skills and background knowledge required to join the ongoing conversation(s) in the field.

  5. What is the writing requirement?

    By the end your first year, you must write and submit at least two 18-25 page research papers to the Director of Graduate Studies. These papers will constitute your MA portfolio, and one of them will be revised over the summer and become your MA thesis or thesis option.

  6. What is the MA thesis?

    The thesis option is an 20-30 page research paper that represents the results of independent research that contributes to the scholarly community and reveals the student's control of the relevant secondary and critical material and methodology. The model for the thesis option is an article in a scholarly journal.

    Most students elect to write the thesis option, rather than a thesis. If you have specific reasons for wanting to produce a thesis, you should discuss them with your advisor and the DGS early in your second semester.

    After your advisor and your second reader have approved your written thesis option, you must schedule a one-hour oral defense (a "conversation") about your paper. Note: a thesis or thesis option must be filed before a student will be considered for admission to the doctoral program.

  7. How many classes should I take?

    While you may take four, we recommend taking THREE classes your first semester. Remember to consider other factors such as work schedules (for on- or off-campus jobs), whether your professors are known for assigning heavy reading loads, and how challenging to the transition to graduate school will be for you.

  8. Where is my office?

    Excellent question--you don't have one. Greenlaw is in dire need of more office space and so only teachers have officers--and in fact, many composition teachers are displaced to Swain Hall. In Greenlaw, you can use Donovan Lounge or Gaskin Library as a gathering space. Remember, though, that both of these rooms are public spaces and can be reserved, so be sure to check with Linda Horne before you use them.

  9. When do I get paid?

    If you have a fellowship or other funding, then you will get paid every other Friday. If not (as is the case for many incoming students), you will get paid when you begin teaching, typically in the second year of the program. Your tuition remission and health insurance will also begin when you start teaching. Many first-years without funding looking for on- or off-campus part-time jobs. You can expect to make $8-10 per hour in this area.

  10. How much should I work? How can I find a job?

    You can comfortably work 12-15 hours a week while taking three classes. Some students work more, but that certainly requires discipline. Luckily, jobs paying relatively decent wages abound in Chapel Hill. You can find lots of campus jobs that need a graduate student for 15-20 hours a week, and there are a handful of positions traditionally filled by English Dept. people that have been passed down through generations of first-year students. You'll find out about those positions at orientation or see them advertised in or around Donovan Lounge in Greenlaw Hall. You might also consider signing up with Tarheel Temps or browsing the local classified ads.

Second Year Students

  1. What should I be doing this year?

    Begin to get a sense of the profession. Remember, it is easy to lose sight of the big picture, when you are busy jumping through hoops of coursework and exams, but you must always have the final goal in mind, because it will be here sooner than you think! To those ends:

    • Identify the major journals in your area of interest and begin skimming the article titles.

    • Look at the Dissertation Abstracts to see what has been written recently.

    • Look over the job list in September (when it comes out) and see what kinds of jobs are out there and what you need to have on your c.v to get those jobs!

    • Look at the c.v.'s of people who you consider successful and note what you need to do to make your c.v. look like that.

    • Fulfill course requirements.

    • Determine what your Major and Minor will be.

    • Seek out a mentor/advisor in your field of study.

    • Begin (slowly) reading primary texts for PhD Exams.

  2. When is the MA thesis due?

    You will hand in the revised version of your chosen paper to the DGS on the last Friday in August. A copy of the revised paper will also go to the thesis director. By early September, the thesis director will either approve the thesis or return it to you with further suggestions for revision. If revisions are required, the revised thesis will be due on the first day of classes in January. If the thesis is approved, you will proceed to the M.A. oral examination.

  3. What is the MA Oral Examination?

    In the course of writing the thesis option, the student (in consultation with his/her advisor) should identify and meet with a second faculty member who will serve as a reader. In anticipation of the oral defense of the thesis option paper, the student will submit copies of the thesis option to his/her advisor and reader at the end of the summer. In the fall semester, at a mutually convenient time, the advisor, reader, and student will meet for an hour to discuss the paper. The student will submit the following form once the meeting time has been determined [thesis option defense form].

    In this conversation, the student will be assessed in terms of his or her ability to talk intelligently about both the content and the methodological approach presented in the paper. The oral examination should be scheduled no later than mid-October (check the current calendar of deadlines to ascertain the last day of scheduling). Any student failing the exam will not be asked to rewrite the paper, but to re-take the oral examination. (In the rare case of a thesis, the student will take a comparable oral examination on the thesis.)

  4. Many 3rd years are preparing for their PhD exams. Do I need to be doing anything yet?

    Nothing specifically, although you should begin to read texts which you will expect to be on your reading list. We recommend taking notes on characters, themes, etc. to use when you begin to study for the exams. In the beginning of your 3rd year, you will compile your reading lists (see below) so you can begin this process during the summer, if you wish.

  5. Where can I get help with planning English 101? How much will I teach?

    • The Studio for Instructional Technology in English Studies (SITES) has teaching tools online, as does the Blackboard site for English TFs. There are lesson plans, assignment sequences, grading tools, etc. Each Teaching Fellow will also participate in a "Peer Coordinating Group" designed to help facilitate the sharing of teaching tips. We also recommend begging and borrowing from current teachers.

    • You will teach a 1-1 (one course in the fall and one in the spring) during your second year in the program. After that you may teach 3 courses per year (2-1 or 1-2).

  6. How long will I be teaching English 101/102?

    Have faith--you will eventually get to teach other courses. But composition will always be your bread and butter.

    • Beginning in your fourth year, you may be eligible to be a discussion leader for a film, Shakespeare, or novel class.

    • After you pass your exams, you will be eligible to teach a literature course such as British Lit (Chaucer to Pope), British Lit (Wordsworth to Eliot), Intro to Fiction, Intro to Poetry, Intro to Drama, Contemporary Lit, or Major American Authors.

Third Year Students

  1. What should I be doing this year?

    • Finish course work

    • Be familiar with your field of study, to know what projects need doing. Keep reading journals in your area.

    • Work on filling out your C.V.

    • Compile your exam reading lists. You should have a sense of a dissertation topic when you compile your reading list, so you can craft it accordingly.

    • Select your exam committee.

    • Begin studying!!

  2. What's up with the Ph.D. exam?

    Excellent question, if a bit informal. Here are several important things to know:

    • You may choose to take your exams in the Fall or Spring of your 4th year. Speak with your advisor to determine which is best for you.

    • The first step is to determine your Major and your Minor. (For example, you may major in 19th C British and minor in 20th C American.)

    • After you have done this, you should determine who you would like to have on your exam committee. There will be three professors representing your major and two representing your minor. One person will be the Chair of the committee - this person is responsible for organizing meetings concerning the reading list and, ultimately, he or she will be writing the exam. Your committee chair will NOT be the same person who directs your dissertation, so if you have a dissertation advisor in mind, then save him or her for later. The entire committee is responsible for approving your reading list (see below), writing your written exams (see below), and conducting the oral exam (see below). More details about selecting your committee are below.

  3. How do I get my own Ph.D. committee?

    Once you have decided who you would like to have on your committee, it is customary (and just good manners) to ask the professors if they would serve on your committee. Some professors (typically ones who have taught recently) are in great demand and cannot work with everyone who requests them - don't take this personally! The next step is to fill out a form with your choices and give it to the DGS. He/She will work diligently to fulfill people's wishes. Sometime in NOVEMBER of your THIRD year, the committees will be announced. The Chair of the committee is responsible for calling a meeting soon after with everyone to discuss your reading list.

  4. What are the reading lists? Where do they come from? How do I compile them?

    Check the department's sample reading lists first. They are great for generating ideas.

    You will have two lists: one for your Major and a smaller one for your Minor. You should whittle this list down to something which represents your interests, while remaining comprehensive. (For example, if you are particularly interested in drama in the 20th C, then you will have more plays on your list than someone who is interested in autobiography.) Grad students who have gone before you recommend that you reduce the list as much as you can, because your committee will inevitably add texts to your list. (You may ask other grad students for their reading lists to get a sense of the typical length and content for your area of study.) For fall exams, you should have a rough draft of your reading lists by OCTOBER of your 3rd year. For spring exams, you should have a rough draft of your lists by April (or so) of your 3rd year.

    You typically meet ONCE with all five professors once you have your lists whittled down (in late November or early December). They will suggest where you may cut and, more likely, what you should add. Once you make these changes, they will sign off on your list and you may begin reading. (Hopefully, you have been reading, somewhat, all along.)

  5. What are the exams like?

    There is a 6 hour written Major exam. The next week, there is a 3 hour Minor exam. Roughly two weeks following that, there is a 2 hour oral exam. 20 minutes is given to each professor and 20 minutes to you so you may explain your ideas about your dissertation (speak with your advisor about this prior to the exam).

    Copies of past Major and Minor exams are located in Jodie's office; you should check out the folder and make photocopies of past exams to study by. This is a HIGHLY recommended study tool. The oral exam is intended to fill in any gaps from the writtens (i.e., texts you overlooked or brushed over, questions you chose not to answer, etc.) and to help you articulate anything you may have covered on the writtens.

  6. How should I study for exams?

    Everyone has different study techniques, naturally, but here are the typical answers I received when I surveyed a large number of grad students:

    • Read the texts (I am master of the obvious). Many people count how many weeks they have left to read and how many texts they must cover so as to determine how much they need to get done each week. Stick to your schedule.

    • Take notes on the texts. Some suggestions: jot down a list of important quotations which will refresh your memory when you study; take notes on important themes in that book or of that author; consider that author's relationship to other authors, etc. Much of what the exam questions consider is your ability to locate any one author in the context of other authors.

    • Refer to MagillOnLiterature Plus. This is an excellent resource which summarizes plots and themes and contexts, thereby saving you a great deal of time during note-taking.

    • Give yourself at least a MONTH before your exams to stop reading and begin preparing to answer exam questions.

    • Reading Groups: again, a personal preference. Many people find it useful to meet in small groups (3 or less?) to discuss texts and exam questions.

  7. What teaching options do I have next year?

    You may apply to lead a discussion section in one of three courses: Film Criticism, The English Novel, or Shakespeare. (This assignment would take the place of one of the three courses you could teach that school year.)

Fourth Year Students

  1. What should I be doing this year?

    • Take exams

    • Choose Dissertation Committee

    • Have prospectus meeting (required within 1 semester of passing first orals).

    • Begin working on dissertation after the prospectus has been approved.

    • Keep filling in that C.V.

  2. What literature courses can I teach after my exams?

    • British Literature: Chaucer to Pope

    • British Literature: Wordsworth to Eliot

    • Introduction to Fiction

    • Introduction to Poetry

    • Introduction to Drama

    • Contemporary Literature

    • Major American Authors

  3. What comes after the exams?

    The dissertation prospectus meeting must be scheduled by the middle of the semester after your Ph.D. exams. You should be reading (a lot) and filling out your bibliography for your prospectus.

  4. What is the prospectus?

    The format of the prospectus depends on your dissertation advisor. Some professors require an abstract, a bibliography and all chapter titles for the dissertation; some require the introduction or one chapter, etc. For more information, click here.

  5. Who can be on my dissertation committee? Can they be different than my exam professors?

    Anyone can be on your dissertation committee, including professors from other departments and even other schools (Duke, NC State, etc.). Many students retain some or all of their exam committee members, but your dissertation committee can be completely different. You must still select five professors.

Fifth Year and ABD Students

  1. Where can I find resources for teaching literature?

    The Studio for Instructional Technology in English Studies (SITES) has teaching tools online. There are lesson plans, assignment sequences, grading tools, etc. There is also an Idea File in Mark Richardson's office on the 2nd floor of Greenlaw.