Our flexible MA in English and literary arts immerses you in the critical study of literature while allowing you to tailor the degree to your talents and interests. Through close reading of texts across centuries and cultures, you'll analyze narratives and understand perspectives from a diverse spectrum of experiences. Choose from a wide range of courses, including interdisciplinary subjects such as cultural and gender studies. You can also enroll in small group tutorials that allow you to study topics that interest you. Groups of up to three students and a professor can study a particular writer's works, focus on a specific literary theoretical approach, or even explore pedagogical concepts or career-oriented themes.
Many master's graduates choose to use their degree to apply to PhD programs. However, the critical thinking and writing skills utilized to obtain your degree can prepare you for a variety of careers where clear communication and creative problem-solving are valued. You may also find success in writing-focused careers, such as copywriting, publishing, journalism, business communication or technical writing.
What Sets Us Apart
A faculty of writers, critics and scholars who regularly publish in the best journals and presses.
Small class sizes, allowing you to work one-on-one with some of the best writers and literary scholars in the country.
Degrees tailored to your specific talents and interests, with major areas for research including creative writing, modern and contemporary British literature, American literature, American multicultural literature and Anglophone literatures, genre studies, and literary theory and rhetoric.
Courses outside the traditional literature model, including writing workshops, individually designed tutorials and colloquia devoted to teaching and professional development help round out your skills.
Move forward in your critical study of English and Literary Arts.
See how you can find your unique path at DU.
Degree Requirements
- Minimum number of credits required for the degree: 45
- To complete the degree, students write a thesis of original scholarship, including an approved prospectus, and successfully pass an oral defense of the thesis.
See the DU Graduate Bulletin for full course requirements.
Featured Faculty
Donna Ellard
Associate Professor
Aleksandr Prigozhin
Assistant Professor
Kristy Ulibarri
Assistant Professor
