Ph.D. Admissions
The Ph.D. in English
The Vanderbilt Department of English admits and trains doctoral students across a broad range of literary and cultural studies. Members of our graduate faculty specialize in areas including Antebellum American print culture and Victorian literature; Afro-Diasporic, Asian American, and Latino/a literatures and cultures; film and digital studies; global Anglophone literatures; and, hemispheric American and Caribbean literatures and cultures. The Ph.D. program in English aims to produce first-rate scholars, critics, and teachers of literature and culture within and without the academy. Our program is small, focused, and dynamic.
- A 1:1 student-faculty ratio with a superb research faculty.
- A full, five-year 12-month funding package for every Ph.D. student.
- A flexible curriculum tailored to each student’s interests and background.
- Opportunities for interdisciplinary work, including graduate certificate programs in African American and Diaspora Studies, American Studies, Asian Studies, Jewish Studies, Latin American Studies, Latino and Latina Studies, Medicine, Health and Society, and Gender and Sexuality Studies.
- The opportunity to pursue a joint doctorate in Comparative Media Analysis and Practice.
- Annual competitive summer research fellowships open to all.
- Annual competitive dissertations fellowships and dissertation enhancement grants.
- Generous conference travel funding.
- Affiliations with the Folger Shakespeare Library, the Newberry Library, the Dickens Project, the English Institute, the School of Criticism & Theory, and the Institute for World Literature.
- A Comprehensive system of mentoring and advisement from the first year through the search for academic employment.
- Opportunities to interact with program alumni who have entered alternative fields.
- The opportunity to apply for competitive College of Arts & Science postdoctoral positions upon degree completion.
- The opportunity to participate in fellowship programs through Vanderbilt’s Center for Teaching.
- Opportunities to engage with Vanderbilt’s Writing Studio.
- Opportunities to teach literature and writing.
Applying to the Program
The application deadline for Fall 2021 admission is December 15, 2020. Please apply through the Graduate School. For more information on the Ph.D. Program, please contact Director of Graduate Studies Vera Kutzinski
- Statement of Purpose: No more than 1,500 words.
- Writing Sample: No more than 25 pages. No creative writing. If uploading more than one piece, please combine into one PDF file.
- Three letters of recommendation and up to five letters permitted.
- Unofficial college transcript(s) uploaded to the application, with official transcript required upon admittance. Upon admittance, official transcripts may be sent either via the postal service of via secure electronic delivery. In order to be considered official, transcripts and other documents must come directly from the institution attended. Some institutions provide secure electronic delivery of transcripts. These submissions may be made to cdm@vanderbilt.edu. Transcripts sent via the postal service should be addressed as follows: CDM-College of Arts & Science, PMB 407833, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, Nashville, TN 37240-7833.
- TOEFL and IELTS scores are accepted for International Students whose native language is not English. For more information, visit the Graduate School’s Language Proficiency Page.
- For Fee Waiver information, visit the Graduate School’s website.
- GRE scores are not required for admission.