PhD English at Rice University

Programme overview

The PhD is run by the Department of English and Creative Writing. Students design an individualised programme with a two-faculty advisory committee and take part in the department's teaching and research activities. Outcomes include teaching literature at university level and producing publishable research.

Faculty: School of Humanities | Department: English and Creative Writing | Duration: 90 credit hours | Study mode: full-time | Location: Houston, TX, United States

What you will study

HUMA 500, ENGL 510 Pedagogy Seminar, ENGL 600 Topics in Literary Studies, ENGL 605 Third-Year Writing Workshop and ENGL 606 Dissertation Writing Workshop, with two pre-1800 and two post-1800 courses and five electives. A qualifying exam (two papers and an oral exam), thesis prospectus, thesis and oral defence are required.

Official programme page

Application information

Entry requirements

Rice graduate programmes (university level): applicants should generally have at least a 3.0 (B) undergraduate GPA or equivalent; the GRE is generally not required, though individual programmes may recommend, strongly recommend or require it; a statement of purpose and reference letters may be required depending on the programme. International applicants need TOEFL iBT 90, IELTS 7 or Duolingo English Test 115 unless they hold a degree from an accredited US institution or an English-medium institution. Admission is decided at programme level.

Requirements published at program group level.

USD 66,784 a year (2026-27). School of Humanities: Masters & PhD full-time tuition ($33,392 per semester) for the school's standard full-time master's and PhD programmes; estimate, excludes fees and health insurance. Reduced rate of $3,710 per year applies to continuing doctoral stud Source

Most doctoral applications for Fall 2027 close December 1, 2026 (Mechanical Engineering December 15, Computer Science January 1, 2027); applications open September 1, 2026 through the Rice graduate portal (gradapply.rice.edu). Application fee is generally $85, waived for some doctoral applicants.

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