There are six plans or graduate concentrations in the English Department:
Although the concentrations allow for flexibility and interaction, students are advised to consult with their advisors and plan coordinators about procedures that may differ from plan to plan.
Students who wish to transfer to another concentration must consult with the Associate Chair for Graduate Studies and the graduate coordinator of the plan they wish to enter. "Lateral" admission to another plan is not always possible; the consent of the Associate Chair for Graduate Studies and the graduate coordinator of the desired plans are required; some plans may have additional requirements for "lateral" admissions.
The Literary Studies concentration differs from traditional English graduate programs in both the diversity and intensive focus of its offerings. While students are expected to develop historical depth in their scholarship, they are not required to cover a prescribed canon of English and American masterpieces or major texts. Instead, they are encouraged to explore various critical approaches to the cultural, aesthetic, and historical properties of literary texts as a prelude to their own advanced and individualized research. At the master's level, and more extensively at the doctoral level, the concentration's course requirements provide options for work in the Department's other graduate concentrations. With appropriate planning students may thus design programs of study that incorporate work from one or more of these concentrations in support of their primary research interests and professional goals.
The concentration in Rhetoric and Composition grounds practice in theory by providing students with a broad background in rhetorical theory and the opportunity to apply that knowledge in teaching beginning, intermediate, and advanced writing courses. Our approach is many-faceted, providing opportunities for specializing in current rhetorical theory, history of rhetoric, cultural studies, peer tutoring, and the teaching of writing. Other research interests include the essay as an aesthetic genre, feminism, film, teaching English as a second language, and ethnographic case studies of the writing process. Students often enrich their work by taking courses in other concentrations and in other UWM departments. Most importantly, the concentration in Rhetoric and Composition aims to develop a community of teachers, researchers, and theorists who support each other's work, share ideas, and participate in shaping our program goals.
The Creative Writing concentration offers qualified students the opportunity to work intensively in either fiction or poetry under the supervision of an experienced and widely published faculty. At the master's level, the student combines graduate workshops in fiction or poetry with courses in literature, some of which stress the craft and theory of the genre in which the student has chosen to work. At the doctoral level, students continue the development of their creative writing in workshops and tutorials, while also establishing a secondary field of study in literature and criticism. The dissertation itself may be a novel, a collection of stories or poems, or a substantial work of creative non-fiction. The concentration in Creative Writing features guest writers whenever possible and sponsors a literary magazine, The Cream City Review. With its combination of curricular and extra-curricular activities, Plan C strives to create an atmosphere of commitment to the creative task, a genuine community of working writers and poets within the framework of a metropolitan university.
The graduate concentration in English Language and Linguistics offers students the ability to specialize in Linguistics, Second Language Acquisition, and Composition in a Second Language Setting. Participating faculty are drawn from the Department of English and the Department of Linguistics. The program is especially strong in typology, language universals, and discourse analysis. The program in Second Language Acquisition provides training in the theory of this area and prepares the student for a career in adult English second language acquisition in the USA or abroad. Finally, the program in Composition in a Second Language Setting offers a unique course of study in conjunction with the concentration in Rhetoric and Composition. Students take courses in the theory of second language acquisition and the theory and methodology of teaching composition. Graduates of the program will have sufficient background and expertise to find employment in adult English second language acquisition in the USA or abroad and will have an additional specialization in the teaching of writing skills.
Modern Studies is a cross-departmental and cross-disciplinary concentration, drawing its faculty from the Departments of English, German, French, Italian, and Comparative Literature, Spanish and Portuguese, Art History, Philosophy, Anthropology, Communication, and Film. The concentration focuses on texts and cultural objects in the modern and postmodern eras and encourages the application of current theoretical perspectives to the study of diverse historical periods and places. Course and examination requirements emphasize an integrated knowledge of cultural productions and interpretive issues in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. With a basis in critical theory and the backgrounds of modernism, students are encouraged to develop individualized programs of study in a number of key areas, including feminism, literary theory, psychoanalysis, gender critique, concepts of modernity and postmodernity, philosophical discourse, critical pedagogy, film, mass culture, technology, social and political theory, traditions of the avant garde, and performance theory.
The graduate concentration in Professional Writing is an interdisciplinary program that prepares students to engage in professional writing scholarship and research, teach business, technical, and professional writing, or work as technical communicators. According to their individual interests and career goals, students can develop in-depth knowledge of professional writing history, theory, research, pedagogy, and practice, while also specializing in one or more related disciplines such as rhetoric, linguistics, creative writing, information resources, computer science, psychology, organizational communication, and graphic arts. Our approach is to ground theory in practice. Students learn to analyze complex professional writing situations and contexts based on a variety of theoretical perspectives, and gain practice in basing document-related decisions on multiple theoretical approaches. We also continuously encourage students to critique existing theories and practices, and to develop new disciplinary approaches of their own.
In cooperation with the School of Information Studies, the Department of English offers the Master of Arts/Master of Library Information Science (MA/MLIS) coordinated degree program to prepare students for positions as humanities librarians. Students enrolled in this program concurrently pursue an MA degree in English and an MLIS degree. Admission to the MA/MLIS degree is contingent upon acceptance to graduate studies by the Department of English and the School of Information Studies. Therefore, students must apply to both programs as well as to the Graduate School. Prerequisite to the award of either degree in this program is the simultaneous award of its counterpart degree.
Students interested in the MA/MLIS program are required to choose one of the six study concentrations in the Department of English graduate studies program. Those concentrations are:
In addition, students are expected to follow all the requirements and standards of the Department of English with one exception: the MA portion of the MA/MLIS degree requires the successful completion of at least 21 credits as opposed to the 24 credit requirement of the standard MA program offered by the Department of English.
Students will indicate their choice of the MA/MLIS degree on the Graduate School admissions application as well as on the application to the Department of English. Study concentration selection must also be indicated on the Department of English admissions application.
For information on applying to the Master of Library Information Science program, go to the School of Information Studies web site.
