Our English MA program balances intellectual exploration and academic rigour and is recognized by doctoral programs across the country and around the globe. All of our students are supported with a combination of grants and/or teaching assistantships; for more information about funding please visit our funding and awards page.
Designed to foster student success both in academia and pursuits in the workforce, the MA in English offers both Seminar-Based and Thesis-Based pathways. These streams are filled with meaningful opportunities for professional development and scholarly growth, such as:
- Our unique, hands-on Literary Internship
- Conference Travel Awards
- Departmental Research Forums
- Professional Development Course
MA Degree: Two Streams
Seminar-Based
The MA Seminar-Based degree emphasizes
- Small group immersion in literary and cultural topics
- Opportunities for Directed Reading and Literary Internship courses
Thesis-Based
The MA Thesis-Based degree balances
- Seminars and other courses
- Individual major research essay or hybrid creative research project
Opportunities after a Masters in English at Queen’s
Our Master’s students consistently demonstrate high rates of success in national awards competitions, in achieving entry into doctoral programs, and in securing employment in fields as varied as editing, publishing, teaching, law, civil service, business, NGO work, and information technologies.
The Seminar-Based Master’s is a 12-month program.
This program pattern is the recommended standard for an MA in English and is welcomed by doctoral programs in Canada and abroad for the breadth of study it encourages.
Students enrolled in the Seminar-Based MA take the following graduate courses:
- ENGL 800/900 Introduction to Professional and Pedagogical Skills in the fall term
- ENGL 803 Research Forum in the fall and winter term
- 2 seminar courses in the fall term
- 3 seminar courses in the winter term
- 1 seminar course in the spring term
MA students must take a course from at least two of the three periods:
- Course Group 1: Medieval to 1660
- Course Group 2: 1600 – 1900
- Course Group 3: 1900 to present
One of the courses may be an individual Directed Reading arranged with the approval of the Graduate Coordinator and a supervisor, rather than a seminar.
One of the courses may also be taken in a Queen's graduate program other than English, such as Philosophy, Art History, History, Global Development Studies, Environmental Studies, Cultural Studies, and Gender Studies.
The Thesis-Based Master’s is a 12-month program.
This program pattern is recommended for students who wish to pursue their own research-essay or research-creation thesis project in addition to a small number of seminars. In order to be guaranteed this option, applicants to the MA program propose a significant and viable project and secure the participation of a potential supervisor before or during the application process.
Students enrolled in the Thesis-Based Master's take the following graduate courses:
- ENGL 800 Introduction to Professional and Pedagogical Skills in the fall term
- ENGL 803 Research Forum in the fall and winter term
- 2 seminar courses in the fall term
- 1 seminar course in the winter term
MA students must take a course from at least two of the three periods:
- Course Group 1: Medieval to 1660
- Course Group 2: 1600 – 1900
- Course Group 3: 1900 to present
One of the courses may also be taken in another Queen's graduate program than English, for example in Philosophy, Art, or History.
MA Thesis
MA theses are planned in the Fall Term, written in Winter and Spring terms, and completed and defended before a committee within the year.
- A research-essay thesis is about 15 000 words in length.
- A research-creation thesis combines a creative project informed by research with a critical paper whose length depends on the nature of the project.
Literary Internship
The literary internship provides students with work experience that is directly related to literary studies. MA students have the opportunity of applying for one of our literary internships with such organizations as Kingston WritersFest, the Strathy Language Unit, or McGill-Queen’s University Press. Students apply directly to the Graduate Chair upon admission to the graduate program.