Frequently Asked Questions
How can I apply to your program?
You may apply using the Graduate School’s online application (Please see Applying to the Program page).
What supporting documents do you require?
We require at least three letters of recommendation, two original transcripts from each school you have attended while working towards your B.A. (and/or M.A.) degree, a writing sample, a statement of purpose, and an official report of your scores on the GRE general examination.
Direct-admit Ph.D. applicants who are applying for teaching fellowships should also include a resume indicating their educational background, pedagogical training, and teaching experience as well as an additional letter of recommendation, if possible, testifying to their experience and potential as a teacher.
Where do I send my application materials?
The application fee and one set of official transcripts should be sent directly to the Graduate School, at UNC Graduate School, CB #4010, 200A Bynum Hall, UNC Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill NC, 27599-4010. An official score report from ETS, reporting your scores on the GRE General Examination, should also be sent to the Graduate School (UNC’s institutional code is 5816).
Your writing sample, statement of purpose, letters of recommendation, and an additional set of official transcripts should be sent directly to the Department of English at: Graduate Admissions, Department of English, CB #3520 Greenlaw Hall, UNC Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill NC 27599-3520.
Can I mail in the three letters of recommendation, or do they have to be mailed by the recommender?
You may send letters of recommendation with the rest of your application so long as they are in sealed envelopes with the recommender’s signature across the seal in the back.
What should I send as my statement of purpose and my writing sample?
Your statement of purpose should provide our admissions committee with an overview of your intellectual interests and development, both past and future. The statement need not, and in fact should not, provide a general biographical sketch but should instead focus your scholarly skills, inclinations, and aspirations. It is appropriate in the statement of purpose to discuss any significant research projects you have already undertaken (for example, an honors thesis, independent study, or M.A. thesis), any additional skills that will enhance your ability to conduct scholarship at an advanced level (foreign languages, training in paleography or bibliography, related work experience), and the directions in which you anticipate developing as a scholar during your years of graduate study and beyond.
Your writing sample should ideally be 15 to 20 pages in length, and it should demonstrate your critical and analytic skills as a reader and researcher in a field of literary study. Your writing sample should not be a work of creative or journalistic writing; instead, it should be a piece of expository writing or scholarship similar to that which will be expected of you as a graduate student and a professional scholar. Please be sure to include your full name on both the writing sample and the statement of purpose.
When should I take the GRE?
In order for scores to reach us before our recommended December 1 admissions deadline, we urge applicants to take the GRE examination before the end of October in their application year. Please note that from the 2006-07 application year onwards, applicants to the Department of English will no longer be required to take the GRE Subject exam.
What are the average GRE scores of applicants accepted to your program?
In the 2004-05 and 2005-06 application years, the average GRE scores (in percentiles) for applicants accepted to our program were as follows: Verbal: 92%, Analytic / Writing: 95%, Mathematics: 68%. In 2005-06, the median Verbal GRE score for students accepted to our program was 94%, meaning that half of the accepted students scored above the 94th percentile, and half below it.
What is the average G.P.A. of students accepted to your program?
In the 2005-06 application year, the average G.P.A. (at the B.A. level) for students accepted into our program was 3.78, and the median G.P.A. was slightly below a 3.82, meaning that half of the students accepted into our graduate program earned a G.P.A. of 3.82 or higher.
What is the application deadline?
The Graduate School deadline for completed applications is January 1, but the Department of English strongly urges applicants to submit all application materials by 1 December. Only students whose applications are complete by 1 December will be considered for university fellowships and departmental assistantships.
How do I know whether UNC has received all my application materials?
You can track your application on the web once you complete your official online application through the Graduate School. It is the responsibility of each applicant to confirm receipt of all application materials. Given the number of applications received each year by the Department of English, we do not notify individual applicants if their files are not complete, and applications are not reviewed until all material is received.
How many students do you normally accept each year, and what is the normal size of your entering class?
During the 2004-05 and 2005-06 admissions seasons, the Department of English received, on average, 315 applications per year, and we accepted (on average) 29 students for an entering class of between 16 and 18 students per year, of which (on average) 4 are direct-admit Ph.D. candidates. Our acceptance rate thus averages around 9% per year for all candidates; the competition is slightly stiffer for direct-admit Ph.D. candidates.
What is your job placement rate for students recently graduated?
We are placing 75-80% of new Ph.D. students in academic jobs each year.
What sorts of jobs do your Ph.D. students normally get?
We have placed many of our recent Ph.D.s at major research universities such as Ohio State (Columbus), UNC-Asheville, Auburn University, University of Mississippi, University of South Carolina (Columbia), UNC-Greensboro, Florida State, Virginia Tech, Iowa State, Texas A&M, and Montana State University, to name but a few. We have also placed a good number of recent Ph.D.s at selective liberal arts colleges such as the University of the South (Sewanee) and Wofford College.
Does your department encourage interdisciplinary work?
Absolutely. Graduate students routinely take courses in allied departments and curricula throughout the Humanities and Social Sciences, including History, American Studies, Anthropology, Classics, American Studies, Religious Studies, Romance Languages, and Germanic Languages. UNC also boasts several interdisciplinary institutes, curricula, and research groups such as the Institute for the Arts and Humanities, the Cultural Studies Program, and smaller, interdisciplinary groups devoted to Medieval, Renaissance, and Southern Studies. Doctoral students may also minor in any appropriate department or curriculum, and it is not unusual for faculty in other departments to serve on Ph.D. examination and dissertation committees.
If I have already begun graduate work at another institution (but not completed a graduate degree), how many credit hours can I transfer if I attend UNC?
You may transfer up to six credit hours, or the equivalent of two courses. This includes courses taken at UNC through the Continuing Studies Program.
Do you offer an ESL Program or a program for Teaching English as a Second Language?
No.
Do you offer a graduate program in Creative Writing?
No. The nearest school offering an M.F.A. in Creative Writing is UNC-Greensboro.
When can I expect to find out if I have been accepted to UNC?
Application decisions are made on a rolling basis. You may receive notification any time from early February up until the middle of April. The Graduate School will mail official notification letters to all applicants.
What happens after I am admitted?
Once you have paid your deposit, the Department will send you an email entitled “Now That I Have Been Admitted What Happens Next?”. In late May we will send you a Welcome packet including information about orientation and registration, among other helpful items. We will also set up a New Student Listserv to answer questions and forward important emails in the summer before your arrival in Chapel Hill.
For further information about the Graduate Program in English, contact the Office of Graduate Studies, Department of English, CB# 3520 Greenlaw Hall, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3520 or (919) 962-1454. The Administrative Assistant is Jodie Gregoritsch , 207 Greenlaw Hall.
The Graduate School office, which oversees all graduate programs at the University, is located in 200 Bynum Hall, (919) 966-261l. The Graduate School home page is http://gradschool.unc.edu.
Additional information regarding the University may be found in the RECORD OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHAPEL HILL. The RECORD is available online. Requests for purchase should be sent to the Bull's Head Bookstore, Daniels Building, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-1530.
Faculty members associated with the 2007-08 administration of the English Graduate Program are:
Chair: James Thompson
Director of Graduate Studies: Mary Floyd-Wilson
Director of Graduate Admissions
(Summer 2008 onwards): Jessica Wolfe
Interim Director of Graduate Admissions
(2007-08 application season): Beverly Taylor
Director, Writing Program: Todd Taylor
Graduate Secretary: Jodie Gregoritsch
The Director often calls upon the officers of the Association of Graduate English Students (AGES) for advice and help. Specific questions about graduate student life in Chapel Hill may best be answered by one of the officers.