Department of English

Reading closely, thinking deeply, and writing well: a degree in English literature offers unmatched intellectual rewards while also providing an excellent base for future studies and professional development.

Welcome

At uOttawa you will learn from nationally and internationally recognized experts in a wide variety of fields. Core courses cover Canadian, American, British, Indigenous, and African and Asian diasporic literatures. The curriculum also covers the full range of historical periods and a wide variety of thematic approaches, such as environmental literatures, new media studies, decolonization and globalization studies. Programs in Creative and Professional Writing enable you to hone your writer’s craft and imaginative faculties, as well as your critical thinking and research methods.

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Our programs

Are you passionate about language and literature? Explore our English program offerings at uOttawa and embark on a transformative academic journey.

Explore English programs

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Undergraduate studies

Besides providing an excellent base for professional development, a degree in English literature can offer you unmatched intellectual challenges.

Two students talking outside campus building.

Graduate studies

What sets our graduate program apart is its combination of top-notch academic training and unrivalled collegiality. Our faculty are internationally renowned, producing leading research in their fields.

Student experience

We have a thriving cultural life on and off campus at the Department of English. Reading groups, work-in progress seminars, and visiting speakers ensure that the intellectual life of the department is conducted in public spaces beyond the lecture hall and seminar room.

Student life

English keyframe — Video

Reading, Writing, Thinking - Department of English

Why study English?

Literary study equips students with excellent communication skills, high-level experience in academic research and debate, and the capacity for creati…

Success during and after graduation

People trained in the humanities who study Shakespeare’s poetry, or Cezanne’s paintings, say, have learned to play with big concepts, and to apply new…

Pathways to careers

The time that you will spend studying literature– investigating and analyzing and debating its values and forms– is in many ways its own reward.  And …

Writer in Residence

Kate Heartfield is the author of several historical fantasy novels, including the Canadian and UK bestseller The Embroidered Book.

Discover this year's Writer in Residence

Arts Writing Centre

The goal of the Arts Writing Centre is to help students develop their writing talents in a friendly and collaborative environment.

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News

Quick links

About the department

Faculty fields of interest (Uniweb)

Current student website

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