PhD in Comparative Literature

Comparative literature PhD students receive high-quality academic supervision from active research staff, and benefit from participating in the Department’s thriving research community.

PhD students participate actively in the research community at QMUL and beyond, by presenting their own work at staff-student research seminars and at events hosted by the London Intercollegiate Network for Comparative Studies (LINKS). PhD students also have opportunities to organising talks and events, often featuring invited speakers.

Comparative Literature PhD students have opportunities to seek part-time employment to assist in teaching within the Department, thereby receiving relevant training for academic career paths.

Comparative Literature PhD students benefit from a number of  on-campus facilities, including work spaces. PhD students also receive access to a wide range of library and archival materials. The QMUL University Library contains an extensive collection of English and foreign language monographs and journals (including e-journals) on comparative literature. QMUL students also gain access to the Senate House Library, University of London Library, the Library of the Institute of Romance and Germanic Studies, and the libraries of the other constituent Colleges of the University of London. QMUL students further benefit from close proximity to the British Library, the National Archives at Kew, and London’s many museums.

Our staff engage in interdisciplinary research and research-led teaching of literatures and cultures from the European countries to China, South Asia and Australia, covering different periods, sharing a focus on World Literature. The intellectual profile of the department is broad and dynamic.

Members of the Department have organized major international conferences and symposia; they are also actively involved in the British Comparative Literature Association (BCLA), the International Comparative Literature Association (ICLA), and the American Comparative Literature Association (ACLA). Department members also serve in advisory roles on editorial boards of journals and publications series in Comparative Literature worldwide.

It is essential to contact a potential supervisor to discuss your proposed PhD project before you apply for admission. We normally do not accept students who have not yet secured agreement from a potential supervisor.

You can find available PhD supervisors via our People search function. Please filter by Department and select 'PhD Supervisors' in staff type. 

The Department of Comparative Literature seeks to support PhD research with:

• Theoretical interests in: cosmopolitanism, exile, translation, world literature, childhood, critical/literary theory, digital humanities, Global South studies and postcolonial studies.
• Interdisciplinary interests in: thinking literature alongside visual media, material culture, the arts, philosophy, ethics, pornography, life sciences, and environmental studies.
• Regional and linguistic interests in: German, Russian, French, Central European, East Asian (with focus on modern China), South Asian Anglophone and bhasha, Global South, and intra-Asian literatures.

Minimum entry requirements for our PhD programmes are:   

• a Bachelor's degree (or international equivalent) in Literature or a related subject, with a minimum final degree classification of 2.1 (or international equivalent)  
• a Master's degree (or international equivalent) in Literature or a related subject, with a minimum final degree classification of Merit (or international equivalent) 
• proof of proficiency in academic English (e.g., minimum IELTS 7.0, with a minimum of 7.0 in writing), where applicable 
• a compelling research proposal that closely aligns with the research interests and expertise of staff in the department
• capacity to conduct independent and original PhD-level research (as evidenced by a statement of purpose and letters of reference)

Applicants to our PhD programmes may be eligible for competitive funding awards managed by the university. If you wish to be considered for one of our funded studentships, you must apply before the end of January for admission the following September. For September entry, the application deadline for most awards is mid-January. Students hoping to be competitive for funding awards should allow time to substantially revise their initial proposals following feedback from their potential supervisor(s). This means initial contact should be made before December of the year preceding the intended start date.

Find out more about funding available.

The first step as you consider applying to the Department of Modern Languages and Comparative Literature for a PhD will be to check whether you meet eligibility criteria and to look at the research interests of individual staff to see if we have a colleague who works in the area of your research interests.

Next you should email your research proposal to the staff you have identified as your potential supervisor(s). It is essential to contact at least one potential supervisor to discuss your proposed PhD project before you apply for admission. This is likely to include a draft proposal at this stage, and indicative of your interests rather than binding. It will help you to organise your thinking and will give any prospective supervisor the most essential information. Your proposal may be refined and redrafted after discussions with your prospective supervisors before you apply.

We normally do not accept students who have not yet secured agreement from a potential supervisor. If you are unsure who may be an appropriate supervisor for your project, have a look at the available supervisors below and/or contact Dr Rachel Bryant Davies: r.bryant-davies@qmul.ac.uk.

Your Research Proposal forms a vital part of your application. Its quality, originality and feasibility will all be judged in the entry process and if you are applying for funding. The best proposals are developed in close consultation with prospective supervisors and prepared several months before any funding competition deadlines.

Good proposals open new research questions and have a clear set of theoretical objectives. Your proposal should demonstrate a good awareness of the existing literature around your chosen subject, and you should show an understanding of how your own research will contribute to, as well as further, the scholarly debate. You also need to demonstrate a practical sense of the project’s feasibility. Your proposed programme of work should be achievable within the space of 36 months of full-time study. You should be able to complete your project within the necessary financial constraints of a studentship award or self-funding.

Every year, the admissions committee reviews a large number of applications, so it is important that your proposal is well written and clearly presented. Try to use short sentences, paragraphs and subheadings to provide clear structure. Research proposal should not be longer than 2000 words (including bibliography) and follow the format below:

• Applicant’s name
• Proposed title
• Name(s) of proposed supervisor(s)
• Summary of your aims and objectives: outline central research questions
• Rationale and literature review: illustrate how your work builds upon the current literature (refer directly to wider scholarship) and establish the distinctiveness of your own theoretical position
• Methodology: explain how you intend to pursue your research and the methods and perspectives you will use in analysing them
• Work plan for 3 years: specify likely starting date and prospective completion date (when)
• Originality and significance (in, and where applicable, beyond the academia)
• Bibliography: provide a short list of the relevant literature in your research area

Prepare your Personal Statement (max. 4000 characters) and Academic Curriculum Vitae. In your personal statement, describe your motivation for pursuing PhD research and how your experience to date is relevant for carrying out the project proposed. This is likely to be a draft proposal at this stage, and indicative of your interests rather than binding. It will help you to organise your thinking and will give any prospective supervisor the most essential information. In this document, you should also outline how your proposed research fits within the department of Modern Languages and Comparative Literature and QMUL.

Your Academic Curriculum Vitae (CV) should include the following:

• Full Contact Details
• Education
• Professional Information
• Publications
• Grants, Honors, etc.

After discussing your proposal with potential supervisors, and subject to their support and guidance, you may wish to make a formal PhD application online on QMUL’s MySis platform. Note that indication of interest on the part of a potential supervisor does NOT guarantee acceptance into the programme. Applicants are advised to treat the letters of reference as an important component of their application. Ensure that your referees are able and willing to give enthusiastic support for your application and that they have adequate time to write their letters. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure all elements of the application are submitted in time, including letters of reference.