Graduate Admissions

General Requirements for Graduate Admission
Admission requires at least a BA degree or equivalent, with credit in English equivalent to the TCU 33 hour major. Applicants with less preparation may be admitted conditionally, but must take such additional courses as are prescribed by AddRan College and the departmental Director of Graduate Studies (DGS).

How to Apply to English Graduate Programs
To be considered for admission for graduate study in the English department at TCU and graduate financial aid, you will need to complete and submit the online application by January 11th.

Materials needed to complete your application include the following:

Application form with application fee

Official transcripts

Official GRE General Test scores (have ETS send directly to TCU)

Statement of purpose

A CV (or resume)

Writing sample

Three letters of recommendation

Official TOEFL scores

1. Application form with application fee The $60 application fee will be due through electronic payment at the time the application is submitted. McNair Scholars applying to the graduate program are exempted from paying the application fee.
2. Official transcripts TCU requires one copy of an official university/college transcript sent directly to the TCU Registrar’s Office from the originating university. The transcript must bear the official seal of the institution and the registrar’s signature. Order one complete official, sealed transcript mailed from the Registrar’s Office of each institution attended since high school directly to the TCU Registrar’s Office: TCU Registrar’s Office
   TCU Box 297005
   Fort Worth, TX 76129 All electronic graduate transcripts should be sent to tcugradstudies@tcu.edu.

Materials needed to complete your application include the following:

Application form with application fee

Official transcripts

Official GRE General Test scores (have ETS send directly to TCU)

Statement of purpose

A CV (or resume)

Writing sample

Three letters of recommendation

Official TOEFL scores

To pursue an MA in English, students must earn a BA or equivalent, with credit in English equivalent to the TCU 30-semester-hour major and with sophomore-level credit in a foreign language. Applicants with less preparation may be admitted conditionally, but must take such additional courses as are prescribed by AddRan College and the departmental director of graduate studies.

What to Submit

• Recent GRE scores (less than five years old) with the admission application.
• A writing sample (10-20 pages, exclusive of notes and works cited) that demonstrates appropriate academic and writing skills needed for success in an English graduate program.
• A personal statement outlining career goals, explaining how they match the English program at TCU.
• Three to five references directly relevant to postgraduate work in English studies.

Admission to Ph.D. from Master’s Program

Students admitted only to the MA program at TCU must reapply for admission to the Ph.D. program. Their records are subject to review by the department’s graduate admissions committee: admission is not automatic.

Completion of Prior Master’s degree

In special cases, students may be given provisional admittance to the Ph.D. program if they have not yet completed their master’s program. They will, however, lose any fellowship, departmental assistantship, graduate instructorship or graduate assistantship appointment if they have not completed their master’s degree before the beginning of their second year in the TCU doctoral program.

“Transferable” Credit

Doctoral program students who have completed a master’s degree in English studies at another appropriately accredited university may receive credit for as much as six courses (18 credit hours). The director of graduate studies will assess a student’s official transcripts and make an appropriate judgment concerning such courses.

When a student’s earlier coursework is incomplete, or in a disciplinary field other than English studies, or completed more than six years previously, such credits are not transferable. Transfer credit is not available for students in the MA program.

Technically, the department does not “transfer” credit, but instead certifies to the university that appropriate graduate coursework has been completed elsewhere; TCU requires that all doctoral students complete at least 30 hours of course work at TCU, not including dissertation guidance.

What to Submit

• Recent GRE scores (less than five years old) with the admission application.
• A writing sample (10-20 pages, exclusive of notes and works cited) that demonstrates appropriate academic and writing skills needed for success in an English graduate program.
• A personal statement outlining career goals, explaining how they match the English program at TCU.
• Three to five references directly relevant to postgraduate work in English studies.

Admission to Ph.D. from Master’s Program

Students admitted only to the MA program at TCU must reapply for admission to the Ph.D. program. Their record is subject to review by the department’s graduate admissions committee; admission is not automatic.

Completion of Prior Master’s Degree

In special cases, students may be given provisional admittance to the Ph.D. program if they have not yet completed their master’s program. They will, however, lose any fellowship, departmental assistantship, graduate instructorship or graduate assistantship appointment if they have not completed their master’s degree before the beginning of their second year in the TCU doctoral program.

“Transferable” Credit

Doctoral program students who have completed a master’s degree in English studies at another appropriately accredited university may receive credit for as much as six courses (18 credit hours). The director of graduate studies will assess a student’s official transcripts, and make an appropriate judgment concerning such courses.

When a student’s earlier coursework is incomplete, or in a disciplinary field other than English studies, or completed more than six years previously, such credits are not transferable. Transfer credit is not available for students in the MA program.

Technically, the department does not “transfer” credit, but instead certifies to the university that appropriate graduate coursework has been completed elsewhere; TCU requires that all doctoral students complete at least 30 hours of course work at TCU, not including dissertation guidance.

What to Submit

• Recent GRE scores (less than five years old) with the admission application.
• A writing sample (10-20 pages, exclusive of notes and works cited) that demonstrates appropriate academic and writing skills needed for success in an English graduate program.
• A personal statement outlining career goals, explaining how they match the English program at TCU.
• Three to five references directly relevant to postgraduate work in English studies.