The Department of English has a strong record of supporting and mentoring graduate students. Our students have the opportunity to teach a range of undergraduate courses, both face to face and online. We have an excellent training program for graduate student teachers, including a workshop in August before classes begin, a formal pedagogy course, and a mentoring system for graduate student teachers.
We take seriously the professional development of our students; each semester, we organize panel discussions and workshops of topics ranging from writing abstracts, preparing for preliminary exams, choosing journals for the submission of articles, compiling a teaching portfolio, and narrowing down a dissertation topic.
In addition, we offer placement support for a range of career outcomes, including a Placement and Professionalization course (ENGL 681) offered in your fourth or fifth year in the program, and continuing job market support including review of job materials, mock interviews, and practice job talks.
Students who are considering non-academic positions can work closely with the Career Center to explore career outcomes. The English department can support professional development travel geared to non-academic careers as long as such work fits within the scope of the student’s research. For instance, we have supported students attending the Los Angeles Review of Books Publication Workshop and the Fay B. Kaigler Children’s Book Festival.