How to Apply
- Submit application form and fee to the Graduate School
(https://www.gradsch.wisc.edu/eapp/eapp.pl) - Submit materials to the English Department
- Indicate interest in departmental support, including fellowships
- Send GRE scores*
- Log in to Grad Apply
*does NOT apply to MFA applicants
1. Submit application form and fee to the Graduate School
Please read the Graduate School's admission requirements and the detailed instructions for the online application before you begin.
You will need to know:
- The numeric department code for the English Department is 405 and Creative Writing is 243.
- The email address of your three recommenders.
- Your Intended Major Field of Study. **see table below
Note to Literary Studies applicants: Please note that we do not have a terminal MA program in Literary Studies. If you are applying for the PhD program and do not have a Master’s in English, identify your Intended Major Field of Study as English MA.
| Academic Program | Intended Major Field of Study |
|---|---|
| Doctoral Program in Literary Studies **beginning at the MA level | English MA |
| Doctoral Program in Literary Studies **beginning at the PhD level. |
English PhD |
| Afro-American Studies Bridge Program | Afro-Am MA & English PhD |
| Doctoral Program in Composition and Rhetoric | English PhD |
| Composition and Rhetoric Bridge Program | English MA English PhD |
| Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing* | Creative Writing MFA* |
| Doctoral Program in English Language and Linguistics | English PhD |
| Master's Program in Applied English Linguistics | English MA |
*Creative Writing MFA applicants should also refer to the Creative Writing Admissions webpage for further application information.
You can pay your fee by credit card when you apply online. Otherwise, send your check or money order to:
Office of Graduate Admissions
228 Bascom Hall, 500 Lincoln Drive
Madison, WI 53706
Do not send your fee payment to the English Department.
Paper application forms are no longer available. However, an exception to this rule may be granted if you are unable to submit an online application. Please make your request in writing to the Admissions Coordinator, 7195H Helen C. White Hall, 600 N. Park St., Madison, WI 53706.
2. Submit materials to the English Department
Three letters of recommendation are required. Letters of recommendation will be submitted electronically through the Graduate School beginning September 15th. If your recommender is unable to submit his or her letter electronically a copy of the form may be downloaded, printed, filled in by hand, and mailed to the Admissions Office. Applicants that utilize a portfolio service should feel free to submit their letters of recommendation in paper form using that service. If at all possible, recommenders should be people who have taught the applicant rather than employers or others who know the applicant in non-academic contexts.
Recommendation form for MA applications, including MFA*
Recommendation form for PhD applications
Admissions Office
English Department - Graduate Division
600 N. Park St.
Madison, WI 53706-1403
*Creative Writing MFA applicants should also refer to the Creative Writing Admissions webpage for further application information.
Other application material that must be mailed to the admissions office (unless otherwise noted), include:
- Reasons for Graduate Study (may be submitted with your online Graduate School application). 300 - 500 word statement should convey applicant's interests, strengths and goals.
- Academic writing sample (or an appropriate writing sample for the MFA program) of no more than 20 pp. (double spaced 12 pt font, normal margins). If possible, provide sample in field of anticipated specialization.
- Two copies of official transcripts from every post-secondary institution attended. International academic records must be in the original language accompanied by an official English translation. Documents must be issued by the school in a sealed envelope with the official seal/stamp and official signatures. Please note: Some transcripts list vague or generic course titles. For example, it might be useful to know that "English II" was a course on 17th and 18th century British writers, or that "American Literature I" was a course on Hawthorne, Melville, and Twain. Please supply such descriptions if possible.
To ensure that all of your materials are received, we suggest that you collect all your application materials and send them in one complete package. We receive hundreds of applications each year and may not be able to check on the completeness of your application or notify you if your application is incomplete.
The professors on our Admissions Committee carefully read hundreds of files from many talented applicants. Please be practical – if you send excess materials they are unlikely to be read. However, be sure that the Admissions Committee knows everything that you want them to know about your accomplishments and potential. In addition, if you are a currently enrolled student, some idea of the courses you are currently taking (or plan to take in the upcoming semester) would be useful.
Please see the Application FAQ for more information.
3. Indicate interest in departmental support, including fellowships
To be considered for departmental support (including University Fellowships) you must select the appropriate box on the application form and return all materials to the English Department postmarked no later than your program's application deadline. Incomplete applications or those received after the deadline may not be considered. Successful fellowship applicants normally have demonstrated excellence both on the Graduate Record Exam and in their coursework. Notice of admission from the Graduate School does not mean you have received financial aid; these notices are sent separately.
MFA applicants do not need to apply for departmental support.
See our page on financial aid for more details
4. Have GRE scores sent to the University of Wisconsin-Madison
Please arrange to have your Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores sent to the University of Wisconsin-Madison. We will need your Verbal, Quantitative, and Analytical scores — and, if applying to the Literary Studies program or either of the bridge programs, the GRE Literature in English Subject Test score. These scores must arrive by the December 15 deadline if you wish to be considered for departmental support. Scores resulting from the GRE Subject Test in Literature administered in November will be accepted for the December 15 fellowship deadline.
GRE scores are NOT required for application to the MFA program.
The GRE codes to use for UW-Madison are:
- Institution Code: 1846
- Department Code: 2501
ONLY applicants to our Literary Studies program or either of the bridge programs must take the GRE Literature in English Subject Test. Applicants to the Doctoral Program in Composition and Rhetoric (not its bridge program), the MFA program, the English Language and Linguistics program, or the Applied English Linguistics program do NOT need to take the GRE Literature in English Subject Test
All candidates required to take the exams will need to take exams early enough for the scores to arrive before our deadlines. If your scores will not arrive from ETS in time for our application deadlines, you may be able to call the Educational Testing Service and receive your scores over the phone. You may send these unofficial scores via email to the Admissions Coordinator, who will include them with your file. However, any invitation to matriculate at the University of Wisconsin will be subject to confirmation of these scores. If you have taken the GRE too late for even unofficial scores to be available by our application deadlines of December 15 (for fellowships) or January 6th (for admittance only), then your application file will be considered incomplete. Incomplete applications or those received after the deadline may not be considered.
For more information, please consult our GRE FAQ.
5. Log in to Grad Apply to review the progress of your application
Once you have submitted your online application to the Graduate School and your application fee has been processed you will receive a welcome email inviting you to log in to the Grad Apply system.
You must log in to the Grad Apply system in order to finish the process of application
The student questionnaire within Grad Apply will ask you for detailed information specific to the English Department graduate admissions process, such as your intended area of study.
Grad Apply also allows you to track which of your application materials (letters of recommendation, transcripts, etc.) has been received by the department.
6. Application deadlines refer to postmarks.
Department of English
7195 Helen C. White
600 N. Park St.
Madison, WI 53706
608-263-3761
fax: 608-263-3709