Course details

Summary

Do you enjoy reading and writing? Novels, plays, short stories, poetry and creative non-fiction help shape and reflect our individual identities and collective culture. Studying literature opens up worlds and times beyond our experience. It also helps us understand - and question - our own social, natural and technological environments.

At the same time, students of English develop skills in research, interpretation, analysis, formulating an argument, and writing clearly and precisely. This skillset is useful for a huge range of occupations, such as journalism, law, communications, publications and creative writing.

The UC Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) is a research-only degree carried out under expert supervision and using world-class facilities.

A PhD involves extensive, sustained and original research and study in your chosen subject, with the results being presented in a thesis that will contribute to intellectual knowledge of the field. It is a mark of intellectual ability, self-discipline and commitment. A PhD prepares you for a number of careers, including as an academic.

The minimum period of enrolment for a full-time candidate is two years and the maximum period four years; most PhD students take between three and three-and-a-half years.

Career opportunities

A good degree in English can take you to surprising places. The skills learned in studying English - the close reading and careful analysis of texts, the ability to write clearly and concisely, and the skill to both make and critique arguments - are essential to success not only in education, but also in a wide range of work environments.

Among our graduates are a New Zealand ambassador, a former chief political reporter for TVNZ, a political commentator for a national newspaper, a couple of prize-winning novelists (including Eleanor Catton of Man Booker fame), a prize-winning film-maker, a museum curator, a cultural event organiser for Te Papa, an art gallery manager, a theatre director, a local television presenter, a number of publishers' editors, members of parliament, and policy advisers in the Treasury, the Education Ministry and the State Services Commission.

What these people learned in their English degree impressed employers looking for people who could read, write, speak and think clearly, effectively and creatively.

Entry criteria

Enrolment in a PhD requires completion of a research-focused honours or master's degree at first-class or second-class division 1 level (or equivalent qualifications). Applicants with qualifications from outside New Zealand must have been granted admission to the University.

Other English language requirements: TOEFL PBT with a minimum score of 575 and TWE with a minimum score of 4.5; CCEL EAP Level 2 with a minimum B+ grade; CAE or CPE score of 176 with a minimum of 169 in reading, writing, listening and speaking; Pearson Test of English (Academic) - PTE with an overall score of 64 and no PTE communicative skills score below 58.