FAQ
What are the supporting materials required?
Can I submit a piece/pieces of written work which are longer than the stated 2,000/4,000 words?
How should I format my written work?
What scores do you require in GREs and GMATs?
What if I haven't finished my degree yet?
Can I submit character references instead of academic references?
What grade point average (GPA) score do I need to be considered?
Can I apply if my degree is in a subject other than English?
Can I apply with a joint honours degree?
Can I apply to more than one MSt course?
Can I register as a DPhil candidate straight from my BA?
Can you advise me on my choice of college?
Do I need to personally contact potential supervisors prior to application?
Can I visit the faculty to talk to someone about my application?
What if I’ve not studied for a while – can I apply?
Are there scholarships available? How can I apply for funding?
Can I have a part-time job while I’m studying?
Are there opportunities to gain teaching experience?
Do you run English Language or Teaching English (TESOL) courses?
Where can I find more information about the content of the course?
What supporting materials are required?
- 3 academic references
- Relevant transcripts
- Either two pieces of work of 2,000 words apiece, or a single piece of 4,000 words
- Research Proposal (For DPhil applicants) or Statement of Purpose (for MSt applicants)
Can I submit a piece/pieces of written work which are longer than the stated 2,000/4,000 words?
No. You should cut your written work down as far as possible to the required length. You can submit an extract of a longer piece of work if you wish and indicate that the whole essay is not included due to the word length restriction. Extracts from longer pieces should be prefaced by a note explaining the context.
How should I format my written work?
There are no specific formatting requirements. You may use any citation style and your work can be single- or double-spaced, marked or unmarked, and published or unpublished.
What scores do I need in English Language tests? Will my application be considered incomplete without them?
See the application guide for results required. You can submit your application without language test scores – these can be forwarded on to us when they reach you.
What scores do you require in GREs and GMATs?
These tests are not required and there is no need to have your scores sent to us.
Yes. A transcript is a detailed record of higher education including programmes of study taken and standards achieved. Please submit all higher education transcripts with your application. See the university guidance for further information regarding official transcripts that are required at the point of application.
What if I haven't finished my degree yet?
Completion of a previous degree (often to a specified standard) is a common condition of acceptance. Your current university should be able to provide an interim transcript showing your name, institution and a breakdown of your grades. If you are offered a place on the course, you will be required to send us your final transcript once you have received it. See the university guidance for further information for applicants who are currently studying.
Can I submit character references instead of academic references?
You are asked to provide three academic references. Personal references are never acceptable.
What if I don’t have three academic referees?
The Faculty of English expects three academic references in all but exceptional cases, and never fewer than two academic references. It is acceptable for your referee to be retired. You may also consider taking a local course and requesting course tutors provide references.
If you cannot secure three academic referees, a professional reference is acceptable.
The university has further guidance on selecting referees.
What grade point average (GPA) score do I need to be considered?
For applicants with a degree from the USA, the minimum overall GPA we seek is 3.75 with at least 3.85 in the Major. See the university’s guidance for qualifications from other countries.
Can I apply if my degree is in a subject other than English?
Students who have a degree in a related subject, i.e. other Humanities subjects such as Classics, History or Modern Languages, are sometimes accepted. You should explain in your statement of purpose how your past academic experience would prepare you for the course.
Can I apply with a joint honours degree?
Yes, as long as it includes English.
Can I apply to more than one MSt course?
You can apply for a maximum of two master’s courses (i.e. two MSt courses, or the MPhil plus one MSt course) and will need to pay the application fee separately for each application. If you are made more than one offer, you will need to choose one strand. Once you have accepted an offer, it is not possible to transfer to another strand. If funding is associated with an offer to one strand, the funding is not transferable to another strand.
Can I register as a DPhil candidate straight from my BA?
No. Candidates with a BA need to complete a Master's degree before they can be considered for entry to the DPhil programme. All successful candidates are initially admitted as a PRS (Probationer Research Student). They then have to transfer to DPhil status through an assessment of their work, usually at the end of the second term of the first year.
I'm applying for the MSt and intending to do a DPhil – do I need to submit a research proposal with my MSt application?
A research proposal is not necessary. However, a statement of your intended research interests in your personal statement is very useful.
Can you advise me on my choice of college?
The English Faculty cannot advise applicants on their choice of college. All teaching is organised by the Faculty so it does not make any difference academically. Candidates must take into account their own priorities and preferences in terms of location, ethos, facilities, accommodation etc, and whether they would prefer a mixed or graduate-only college. It is not essential to be in the same college as your supervisor, although you may wish to choose a college with fellows with similar research interests to you. A list of faculty members with their research interests and college membership is available on the English Faculty people pages. Visit the University website for information on colleges.
Do I need to personally contact potential supervisors prior to application?
No, this is not necessary. However, if you feel that your proposed subject area is somewhat obscure, it may be worth looking up faculty members' research interests to check that a suitable supervisor is available. Supervisors are allocated by the faculty and it is not always possible to accomodate the preferences of incoming graduate students to work with a particular member of staff. Please note also that a faculty member's willingness to supervise is no guarantee of admission.
Can I visit the faculty to talk to someone about my application?
Unfortunately we don’t have the resources to offer personal visits to the faculty, but please contact us if you have a specific question and you can’t find the answer on the course page or in the Application Guide.
What if I’ve not studied for a while – can I apply?
We welcome applications from mature students.
Please see above for advice obtaining references.
You may submit essays from your qualifying degree (for example, your BA if you are applying to an MSt/MPhil course), if you still have them, as your degree is the basis on which you are making your application to Oxford. Alternatively, you may submit a more recent piece of academic writing, or write a new one, if you would prefer.
Are there scholarships available? How can I apply for funding?
Applications received by the course deadline will be considered for faculty funding and some other scholarships, such as the Clarendon scholarships.
Some sources of funding, including but not limited to the OOC AHRC Doctoral Training Partnership and the Ertegun Scholarships, require that you specifically indicate your interest in this funding on the course application, and/or that you provide further statements in support of your application. Please read the websites carefully.
The university also has information regarding funding. Please note that only a handful of scholarships are awarded each year, and that these are extremely competitive.
Can I have a part-time job while I’m studying?
Yes, but you shouldn’t rely on earnings from a part time job to cover the cost of your studies. The university guidelines recommend no more than 8 hours of paid work per week in term time for master’s students and enough time to work on your studies for 40 hours per week for DPhil students. If you are studying on a visa, additional restrictions apply.
Are there opportunities to gain teaching experience?
The English Faculty is not responsible for providing teaching opportunities for research students as most undergraduate teaching in Oxford is organised by individual colleges. Teaching is not a compulsory part of the DPhil but research students may wish to gain some teaching experience, so long as it does not interfere with their own progress. The faculty runs preparatory teaching workshops and seminars and students can enrol on a Teaching Mentor Scheme.
A part-time DPhil is available, but the MSt and MPhil courses are full time. The Department for Continuing Education offers a part-time MSt in Literature and Arts.
No. Students are required to be in Oxford during term time.
No, but the Department for Continuing Education offers an MSt in Creative Writing.
Do you run English Language or Teaching English (TESOL) courses?
No. The English Faculty does not offer courses for learning or teaching English.
Where can I find more information about the content of the course?
The course details book contains information about the compulsory and optional courses, as well as reading lists. It is subject to change each year but gives an indication of the courses typically offered. The handbook deals with the practicalities. Examples of each for previous years can be found on the website.
Do I need to know Old Norse, Old English or Middle English to apply for the MSt 650-1550 or MPhil (Medieval)?
We do not expect students to have studied Old Norse or Old English. If you wish to learn either language, you may do so during this course.
For Middle English, applicants would usually have studied or at least carefully read some Middle English texts in the original. We do not provide specific language teaching in Middle English and students will be expected to write on texts (in either Old English or Middle English) in the original.
