Graduate Degrees in Literature

The department offers MAs and PhDs with focused areas of studies in literature, including a specialized literature subprogram in Renaissance Studies, and in composition and rhetoric studies.


Department faculty mentor students at all stages of their graduate experience, from coursework to teaching, from examinations to the writing of master’s theses and doctoral dissertations.
a classroom full of students

Teaching Experience

Graduate students in our department not only have the opportunity to learn in an engaging environment but also to teach with steady training and mentorship. In their first year, most literature students teach in collaboration with a professor, leading discussion sections attached to large lecture literature classes. In their second year, students gain valuable classroom experience in composition classes. For PhD students, future years can include teaching literature surveys and courses they design themselves.

Our program’s scholarly and pedagogical preparation, as well as our detailed attention to professional placement, has enabled students to develop careers as teachers, scholars, publishers, and editors.

Graduate Program Requirements

Undergraduate Degree in Literature

The Department also offers a versatile and robust undergraduate major in English. Please see our Undergraduate Studies pages for more information, or contact our Director of Undergraduate Studies.
Learn More

Literature Program

Director of Undergraduate Studies: Dan Novak, 232 English Building, (205) 348-4177, danovak1@ua.edu

Director of Graduate Studies: Lauren Cardon, 126 English Building, (205) 348-5065, lscardon@ua.edu