UMD English MA Program Guide 2026

UMD English MA Program Overview

The University of Maryland Department of English offers a Master of Arts program that distinguishes itself through structural flexibility and the unmatched research advantages of its Washington, D.C. metropolitan location. Housed in Tawes Hall on the College Park campus, the program provides three distinct pathways that accommodate scholars pursuing academic careers, aspiring rhetoric and writing specialists, and practicing English educators seeking advanced credentials.

The MA program requires 30 credits completed over an anticipated two years of full-time study, with a maximum of five years permitted. Under the leadership of Director of Graduate Studies Jason Rudy and Department Chair Amanda Bailey, the program maintains rigorous academic standards — students must sustain a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.6 throughout their enrollment, reflecting the department’s commitment to excellence in graduate-level literary and rhetorical scholarship.

What sets UMD’s English MA apart from comparable programs is its combination of traditional scholarly rigor with innovative approaches to graduate work. The capstone project can take forms ranging from traditional critical essays to digital projects, podcasts, and pedagogy portfolios, preparing graduates for the evolving landscape of humanities careers. For students exploring graduate humanities programs more broadly, our guide to the Duke University PhD in English provides a useful perspective on doctoral-level literary studies.

Curriculum Structure and Credit Requirements

The UMD English MA requires 30 credits distributed across 9 graduate-level courses (27 credits) and 3 semesters of mandatory advising through ENGL 779 (3 credits). Two courses are required across all pathways: ENGL 601 (Introduction to Graduate Studies) provides foundational training in graduate-level research methods, while ENGL 798 (MA Non-Thesis Research) offers at least 3 credits of directed independent study time with the capstone advisor.

The program builds in several flexibility mechanisms. Students may take up to 6 credits of independent-study courses to fulfill elective requirements, and one 400-level course may substitute for 3 credits of independent study. A 600-level course can count for 700-level credit when students arrange additional work with the instructor, allowing access to a broader course catalog. ENGL 611 (Approaches to College Composition) counts as an elective, and students on teaching fellowships are specifically required to take it in the spring semester of their first year.

A typical full-time student takes 9-10 credits in each semester of the first year, beginning with ENGL 601. The second year focuses on remaining coursework and the capstone project, with ENGL 798 providing structured time for capstone development. The First Year Meeting at the end of the second semester serves as a critical checkpoint where students meet with the DGS, CGS, and a potential capstone advisor to confirm their trajectory.

Academic Pathway in Literature

The Literature pathway offers the most traditional route through the English MA, structured around broad coverage of literary periods. Students complete 2 courses (6 credits) in literatures from earlier periods — Beginnings and Medieval, Early Modern, Long 18th Century, or Nineteenth Century — and 2 courses (6 credits) in Modern or Contemporary literatures. The remaining 3 elective courses (9 credits) can be drawn from any area, though the program recommends ENGL 602 (Critical Theory) as a foundational elective.

This pathway is designed primarily for students aiming to enter competitive PhD programs, where demonstrating breadth across literary periods and theoretical approaches is essential for admission. The period distribution requirement ensures graduates develop the chronological range that doctoral programs and academic hiring committees value, while electives allow specialization in areas of particular interest.

Students in this pathway benefit from the department’s strength in literary scholarship, with faculty expertise spanning medieval literature through contemporary experimental writing. The Center for Literary and Comparative Studies (CLCS) provides additional intellectual community through grants for conferences, symposia, reading groups, and visiting speakers. Regular departmental reading groups cover areas including British Performances on Stage and Screen, Eighteenth Century Studies, Nineteenth-Century Transatlantic Studies, and Transatlantic Poetics.

Language, Writing, and Rhetoric Pathway

The Language, Writing, and Rhetoric (LWR) pathway provides a specialized track for students interested in composition studies, rhetoric, writing pedagogy, and language theory. This pathway requires 4 courses (12 credits) in LWR or a related field, with at least 6 credits within the English department. The remaining 3 elective courses (9 credits) offer flexibility to build complementary expertise.

A distinctive feature of the LWR pathway is its genuinely interdisciplinary character. With DGS and Rhetoric and Writing advisor approval, students may take courses in Communication, the iSchool, Education, Classics, and other departments to fulfill LWR requirements. This cross-departmental flexibility is rare among English MA programs and reflects UMD’s recognition that writing and rhetoric scholarship intersects with multiple disciplines.

Both the advising and capstone components must be completed under the guidance of an LWR faculty member, ensuring disciplinary coherence despite the interdisciplinary coursework. The Academic Writing Program, directed by Jessica Enoch, provides additional institutional support and potential teaching opportunities for LWR-focused students. Graduates of this pathway are well-positioned for doctoral programs in rhetoric and composition, positions in writing program administration, and careers in professional and technical communication.

Part-Time Teaching Pathway

The Part-Time Teaching Pathway is designed specifically for practicing English educators who want to deepen their subject expertise and pedagogical skills while continuing to work. This pathway mirrors the Literature pathway’s period distribution requirements — 2 courses in earlier literatures and 2 in Modern or Contemporary — but adds the option of taking up to 2 courses in Education electives (6 credits), directly connecting literary study to classroom practice.

The program accommodates part-time students through flexible meeting options, including advising appointments conducted by phone, Skype, or Zoom. This practical accommodation recognizes that teaching professionals often cannot attend campus meetings during standard business hours, and ensures that part-time students receive the same mentoring attention as their full-time counterparts.

For educators considering graduate programs that combine disciplinary depth with pedagogical development, UMD’s Part-Time Teaching Pathway offers a structured approach that many programs lack. The integration of Education courses within an English MA framework means graduates emerge with both enhanced literary knowledge and evidence-based teaching strategies. Students interested in other education-focused graduate programs may also want to explore our Harvard Ed.M. Graduate Education Guide.

UMD English MA Capstone Project and Defense

The MA Capstone Project is the culminating requirement for all UMD English MA students, described as “a graduate-level piece of critical inquiry that contributes to an established area in English language, literary studies, composition studies, or rhetoric.” What makes UMD’s capstone particularly notable is the range of acceptable formats, moving well beyond the traditional seminar paper.

Approved capstone formats include an article-length critical essay revised with a faculty advisor, a pedagogy portfolio with critical component, a digital project with critical component, a personal essay or literary ethnography with critical component, a translation or edition with critical component, and other advisor-approved formats such as podcasts. This flexibility acknowledges that meaningful scholarly contribution can take many forms in the contemporary humanities landscape.

The capstone committee consists of three members: a Director who oversees the project, a Reader who is a professor in the same field of study, and a Representative of the Graduate Office (DGS or Graduate Steering Committee member) who reads only the final version. Students must contact the GSO at least 6 weeks before their intended defense date and submit the project to committee members at least 2 weeks before the defense.

The one-hour defense begins with a brief student presentation focusing on the work completed, the revision process, and the formation of the project. Open discussion follows between committee members and the student. Three outcomes are possible: “High Pass” (truly exemplary work, requiring unanimous agreement), “Pass” (at least two committee members judge the paper fulfills its goals), or “Fail” (at least two members judge it does not). A second “Fail” disqualifies the student from receiving the MA, making the first-attempt defense a significant milestone.

Funding, Assistantships, and Financial Support

The UMD English MA program offers a limited number of half-TAships to support students financially. Students on TAships receive biweekly stipend payments from approximately August 24 through June 14 each year (22 pay periods). The funding structure is designed so that students do not teach during their first semester, allowing them to focus entirely on coursework. In the subsequent three semesters, funded students TA one course each, depending on availability.

Beyond departmental TAships, students can apply for graduate assistantships in other departments across campus through the UMD jobs portal, some of which include tuition remission and additional benefits. Fellowship disbursements follow a different schedule from stipends — they are paid in lump sums at the beginning of each semester, with half in fall and half in spring, deposited directly to the student’s UMD account.

Conference travel funding provides up to $400 for MA students presenting at academic conferences, with an additional $400 in matching funds available through external travel awards including the ARHU Travel Award, Goldhaber Travel Award, and International Conference Student Support Award. The department processes all travel through the SAP Concur system for requests, booking, and reimbursements.

Students should be aware that both TAship stipends and fellowship funds are taxable income. TAship paychecks have taxes withheld, but fellowship payments do not — students may owe taxes on fellowship income and can adjust their W4 to have additional taxes withheld from their stipend to offset this burden. The TerpTax service offers free tax preparation through the Graduate School, and international students can access Glacier Tax Prep for their specific needs.

DC-Area Research Resources and Consortia

UMD’s location in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area provides English MA students with research advantages that few programs can match. The Folger Shakespeare Library Consortium offers courses and programs that complement UMD’s early modern literary studies. The Library of Congress provides unparalleled access to literary manuscripts, rare books, and archival materials. The National Archives and Dumbarton Oaks further expand the research ecosystem available to UMD students.

Membership in the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area allows UMD students to take courses at American University, Georgetown, George Washington University, Howard University, Catholic University, George Mason University, and Gallaudet University for residence credit. This consortium access means students can study with faculty at some of the nation’s most distinguished humanities departments without transferring — a flexibility that significantly enriches the MA experience.

The university’s eight campus libraries provide extensive holdings in literary studies, with the CIRLA (Chesapeake Information and Research Library Alliance) extending lending privileges across multiple universities. For digital humanities work, the Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities (MITH) is one of the leading digital humanities centers in the country, offering fellowships, research support, and housing collections of electronic literature and early-era personal computing that support innovative approaches to literary and rhetorical scholarship.

Faculty, Mentoring, and Professional Development

The UMD English Department features a large and distinguished graduate faculty organized by area groups, comprising Visiting, Assistant, Associate, Full, Distinguished, and Emeritus Professors. Faculty responsibilities extend across teaching, research, publication, and student advising, with active involvement in the Center for Literary and Comparative Studies (CLCS) and engagement with campus organizations and academic conferences.

The mentoring system operates on three tiers. Peer-to-peer mentoring pairs incoming students with advanced students through a buddy system. Faculty mentoring provides discipline-specific guidance through the advisor relationship, formalized through mandatory advising appointments every semester. Pedagogical mentoring supports students developing teaching skills through their TA experience.

The structured milestone system ensures consistent progress: the First Year Meeting at the end of the second semester brings together the student, DGS, CGS, and potential capstone advisor for a comprehensive progress review. An ELMS course page for all MA students centralizes resources, forms, and samples of past student work, providing practical models for capstone development.

Professional development extends through multiple channels. The Graduate English Organization (GEO) organizes professionalization events, conferences, and study groups. The Graduate Placement Committee collaborates with GEO on enrichment activities. The Teaching and Learning Transformation Center (TLTC) offers workshops, roundtables, and specialized programs including the Graduate Teaching Assistant Portfolio Retreat for writing teaching philosophy statements and the International Teaching Fellow Program for international TAs. Students interested in graduate programs with strong professional development components may also want to explore the BU Linguistics Graduate Programs Guide.

Certificates, Interdisciplinary Programs, and Student Life

UMD English MA students can pursue several interdisciplinary graduate certificates that complement their degree. The Critical Theory certificate includes a one-credit Critical Theory Colloquium each semester, providing structured engagement with theoretical frameworks. The Digital Studies in the Arts and Humanities certificate, co-sponsored by MITH and the College of Arts and Humanities, positions students at the forefront of digital humanities methodology.

Additional certificate options include Jewish Studies, Women’s Studies, and participation in the Film Studies Curriculum organized by the Graduate Field Committee in Film. These certificates allow students to develop expertise in specific areas without extending their time to degree, adding demonstrable specializations to their academic profiles.

The department’s intellectual community extends through numerous lecture series and reading groups. Active groups include British Performances on Stage and Screen, Digital Studies, Eighteenth Century Studies, Language Writing and Rhetoric, LGBT Studies, Local Americanists, the Marshall Grossman Lecture Series, Nineteenth-Century Transatlantic Studies, Transatlantic Poetics, the Washington Area Romanticists Group, and Writers Here and Now. Interdisciplinary centers including the Center for Global Migration Studies, the David C. Driskell Center, and the LGBT Studies program provide additional scholarly communities.

The University of Maryland campus itself offers comprehensive student services, health insurance requirements for all full-time graduate students (mandatory since fall 2020), and a vibrant intellectual community spanning the arts, sciences, and professional schools. The Graduate School provides additional professionalization events, writing support, and career services that supplement departmental offerings.