Which schools in the US have funded PhD programs for postcolonial lit, especially Indian writing in English?

[sharanyadutta92]

Applying for the Fall of 2018, and panicking. 

[Yanaka]

Erhm--I'm not sure you'll find the help you need, since it's also your job to do the research  

But basically, all PhD programs are usually fully funded. That's why they're so competitive!

[engphiledu]

Yanaka is right mostly about funding. In order to find my programs, this is what I did (and what many of my advisors recommended):

Look at top journals in your field and who is publishing (or recent books). Who is publishing, and if they are a professor, where are they located? Are they tenured? You don't necessarily want to make a decision on a school simply because a single faculty member is there, but you can then look at that school more generally (who else is in your time period, doing research that works with your theory, etc.), and then you can look at funding availability. Generally, schools will try to fully fund all the PhDs they accept, and then whatever funding is left generally goes to MAs. There will be some programs who will accept without funding, but that is more common for MA than PhD.

You can also look at rankings, location, etc. to help you select schools. So, what I did after locating faculty members was to look at the graduate school US rankings to continue to expand my list of possible schools. I knew that there were places that were too far from home for me, but also that there were some schools I ultimately decided were too far of a "stretch" for me to apply (schools which get hundreds of applications and accept 2-3). So, I went through the schools individually which ranked higher than my current MA program and looked for my particular area in each faculty directory. Most schools have handy search features (like showing faculty in particular time periods or selecting certain theories).

These two steps helped me establish a long list of school options (30+). Then, I ultimately whittled that list down to the schools I thought were the best fit!

I hope this helps somewhat! 

[kirbs005]

7 hours ago, sharanyadutta92 said:

Applying for the Fall of 2018, and panicking. 

Also- probably a good idea to save the panicking for later. You've got plenty of time to do research and gather materials. Not to detract from the effort it takes to complete applications, but you've got some time.

Edited January 30, 2017 by kirbs005

[Metaellipses]

Also, just to reassure - almost every English PhD program has some representation in post-colonial, and Anglophone literature from South-East Asia is one of the most popular regional literatures represented in it (probably because the field as a whole was largely responding to British decolonization). I'd start by looking in English departments for sure, since you're more likely to poco scholars there who work on Indian anglophone (Comp Lit would probably combine Indian anglophone literature with readings in Hindi or Urdu). Also keep a look out for departments with strong representation in "World Literature," and "Global Anglophone" as those are the hot fields right now. Indian literature in English is represented strongly in both. Poco as a theoretical framework isn't as popular as it used to be, but the literature that Poco brought into the canon is still being studied from the perspective of world and global lit.

[Philosobroad]

I literally just applied to a bunch of schools in the same area (and got one acceptance so far, which is nice :D)

Definitely look at comp lit programs. You may have to work in two languages (though it's not necessary for some, as long as you're mixing regions in some way). Northwestern has a really good Asian Languages and Cultures department with some cool courses. If you can think of a compelling focus that uses Indian writing in English they would be a great program to apply to. Lehigh University has a small but really good (personal attention!) English dept with at least one person who works in Indian lit. University of Washington also has a good complit program with one India guy, but also a good supplementary South Asia Studies department you can work with on the side. Purdue school of interdisciplinary studies is good. UW Milwaukee has a couple of people doing india in their English dept. Louisiana State has one Indian lit person in their English department (but I've heard terrible things about the way they treat grad students, so tread carefully!). A lot depends on what kind of research you want to do on Indian writing on English as well, so make sure you have an interesting focus that is current but not done-to-death.

If you have any questions about the application process (esp about emailing professors - which you should definitely do!) feel free to message me. I did this EXACT PROCESS for this exact topic for the fall of 2017 haha).

[modernecho]

Although our areas are different, I'd suggest you to look at articles or journals in your interested field (as suggested by other members) and look up the profs. whose work intrigues you. During my own research about the programs I came across few names. Take a look at Ohio State University, Uni of Colorado (Centre for Asian Studies). Your area of research has lot of names, both Indian and American. It's also helpful to know what sort of jobs you'd be applying after grad school. And of course, the most significant advice---your fit, whether there are profs who'd be willing to supervise you in your area of interest. A good match is at least 2-3 names. Also, look at the graduate students profile and recent courses. Hope this will give you a start. If you have any other questions, I'd be happy to answer them. Good luck!

[Zauber]

Everyone else has said most of the important stuff. All PhD programs are fully-funded, it is just the components of the funding that change (TAships, RA/GSR posts, Fellowships etc.). Do not worry about funding since you need to get into a program and you will be taken care of.

As @Philosobroad so rightly stated, look at Comp.Lit programs. Postcolonial Studies in the aftermath of Spivak and Basnett, is being done in CompLit departments with more gusto than ever. The ability to think, read and articulate in multiple languages is a valuable tool to have, especially given our shared Indian multilingual context. Apply to schools which have people you want to work with. Don't look at the name as much, although it is still a factor. If you get into an Ivy but don't have faculty that share or can support your your interests, it serves no purpose. A University of Wisconsin-Madison or a University of California-San Diego might be better options for you. 

Some schools you could look at include:

• UC system- Berkeley, Santa Cruz, San Diego, Davis, Santa Barbara, Irvine, Los Angeles and Riverside
• Ohio State
• University of Wisconsin-Madison
• NYU
• Columbia University
• University of Chicago
• University of Washington
• University of Texas- Austin
• University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill
• Indiana University
• Washington University in St. Louis
• Brown
• Penn State
• UPenn
• University of Maryland
• University of Massachusetts

I hope this helps! Good luck and happy hunting! You can contact me if you have any questions. I went through this process for the Fall 2017 cycle so I know what it is like.

[Warelin]

20 hours ago, Zauber said:

Everyone else has said most of the important stuff. All PhD programs are fully-funded, it is just the components of the funding that change (TAships, RA/GSR posts, Fellowships etc.). Do not worry about funding since you need to get into a program and you will be taken care of.

 

I'm sorry but I do have to disagree here. Not all PHD programs are fully-funded. Some programs only fund 30-50 percent of their students. Some programs may not fund the first year. Others might require you to pay more mandatory fees while others may not require you to pay any fees at all.

[Zauber]

2 hours ago, Warelin said:

I'm sorry but I do have to disagree here. Not all PHD programs are fully-funded. Some programs only fund 30-50 percent of their students. Some programs may not fund the first year. Others might require you to pay more mandatory fees while others may not require you to pay any fees at all.

All the programs that I looked up whilst applying (around 40) were fully-funded. Most of the well-known/good programs seem to be. Then again, it may have slipped under the radar. Thanks for sharing something that I didn't know!