All persons who are admitted into the graduate program of the Department of English at UCLA enter the first phase of the doctoral program, successful completion of which results in the MA. If you come to UCLA with the master's degree, you may waive certain course requirements (see below), but you must pass the First Qualifying Examination (which also grants admission into the second phase of the doctoral program).
Admission to the program is based on a thorough review of your academic record. Ordinarily, if you hold the BA, you are expected to meet these minimum requirements: an undergraduate major or program that prepares you for the advanced study of literature, and grade-point averages in English courses in the junior and senior years of at least 3.5. You are also expected to have taken the Graduate Record Examination within the last five years, including the General Test and the Literature in English Subject Test. If you hold the MA, you will be expected to have a grade-point average of at least 3.7 in all graduate courses, and a correspondingly higher score on the Subject Test.
Application Components:
- UCLA online graduate application - available only at http://www.gradadmissions.ucla.edu. Submission fee required.
- Three letters of recommendation attesting to your ability to succeed in graduate study.
- A writing sample - which should be about the length of a seminar paper (15 to 25 pages). However, excerpts of longer works can be submitted, and should demonstrate the applicant's interest, competence, and experience in the chosen field of specialization.
- A statement of purpose - no minimum or maximum length, although the average is two to three pages. Discuss your research interests and how they align with those of our faculty, and your preparation to pursue graduate study.
- Official transcripts - one official transcript from all undergraduate and graduate work is required. NOTE: Community college transcripts are not necessary.
- GRE general and subject test scores (and TOEFL scores for international students whose first language is not English) - In order for your application to be complete, the Department of English must receive score reports for the GRE general test and also the GRE subject test in English Literature taken within the last five years. You must request that copies of your score reports are sent to us by ETS (Educational Testing Service) using institution code 4837 and department code 2501 for the UCLA Department of English. If you only send your scores to the general UCLA code (4837) your application may not be processed.
- Confidential Financial Statement (international applicants only).
Care should be taken with the statement of purpose and the writing sample, as the quality of thought and argument these exhibit, as well as their style, weigh significantly in admissions decisions.
All application materials except official transcripts and GRE/TOEFL scores can be submitted through the online application system. Test scores must be submitted to us through ETS as specified in item 6 above. Official transcripts should be sent to:
Graduate Advisor
UCLA Department of English
149 Humanities Building
Box 951530
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1530
The online application submission deadline and the postmark deadline for transcripts and test scores is December 1.
We admit applicants only in the Fall quarter. All admitted applicants are automatically considered for recruitment fellowships and teaching assistantships. These awards are usually made in mid-March. Questions about need-based aid should be directed to the Financial Aid Office at (310) 206-0400.
PLEASE NOTE: No application, whether foreign or domestic, will be reviewed until scores from both the GRE General and Subject Test in English Literature have been received by the Department of English. Applicants should take the exams no later than October or November of the year in which they are applying. For more information regarding test dates and registration, go to http://www.gre.org.
Please visit the UCLA Graduate Division website at http://www.gdnet.ucla.edu for information regarding funding, application procedures, and general graduate information for domestic and international applicants. The graduate application is only available online at this website.
Once your application and fee have been processed, you will be able to access your application status online at http://www.gdnet.ucla.edu/gasaa/admissions/applicat.htm. Please check this website often for confirmation of materials, such as GRE scores and letters of recommendation, received by the department. You may also check this website in February for your admission decision status.
If you should have further questions about the admissions process or the status of your application, please call the Graduate Assistant at (310) 825-3927 or email at graduate [at] english (dot) ucla (dot) edu.
For information about the GRE tests given in your area, test dates, or for practice test booklets, write to:
GRE-ETS
P. O. Box 6000
Princeton, NJ 08541-6000
You may also call (609) 771-7670 or go to http://www.gre.org.
For further information regarding admissions statistics and enrollment data provided by Graduate Division, please go to http://www.gdnet.ucla.edu/gasaa/majors/engl.html.