MA English or Master of Arts in English is a postgraduate academic degree. MA English syllabus includes a comprehensive study of both ancient and modern English literature comprising poetry, prose and fiction. It is of 2 years and is divided into 4 semesters where the students will go in-depth of the English language and its literature.
Students who want to join the MA in English course need to be aware of the fee to meet their financial status. The course fee varies with respect to colleges or universities. The average course fee for the MA English curriculum is approximately INR 40,000 per annum.
Every student aims is to build a good career and expects a good job role after graduation. MA English course provides ample career opportunities with good salary packages. The average salary offered for a graduate executing MA English jobs is INR 3.24 lakhs per annum.
Degree | Masters |
Full Form | Master of Arts in English |
Duration | Course Duration of Master of Arts [MA] (English) is 2 Years. |
Age | No age limit |
Minimum Percentage | 50% in Bachelor's Degree |
Subjects Required | Bachelor's Degree |
Average Fees Incurred | The average MA English course fee is INR 40000 per annum |
Similar Options of Study | BA (English Literature), MA (English Literature), M.Litt (English) |
Average Salary Offered | Average MA English Salary in India is INR 3.24 lakhs per annum |
Employment Roles | Lecturer / Speaker, Content Writer, Technical Writer, High School Teacher, Primary School Teacher, English Language / Literature Teacher - Postsecondary, Editor, Copy Editor etc. |
Placement Opportunities | Vodafone, VIBGYOR High, Capgemini, ABP Pvt Ltd, Accenture etc. |
Master of Arts degree in English Literature or M.A. in English Literature is a Post Graduate program in English Literature offered by Universities across the country. MA English course duration is 2-years, for students who have successfully secured their Bachelor’s degree program, it is also available through correspondence mode for those who want to prefer the distance education model.
This mode of education can be seen in all the colleges who offer the regular/ full-time course, For MA English IGNOU is one of them. Also, there are many MA English colleges in India to explore. MA English Literature is a feather on the crown for bachelor degree holders focuses on an in-depth study of various genres and the factors shaping literature from different eras and the MA English syllabus is designed that way.
On completion of this course, a student is expected to be able to expertly analyze a work of literature in its historical, cultural, political and philosophical context. MA English course is suggested for the aspirant who aspire to build their careers in the creative field and who like reading about different literary genres or styles.
Below mentioned are some of the top MA English colleges in India:
Master of Arts (English) is a program that focuses on English Literature throughout the course. The course equips the trainees with in-depth knowledge of various genres and the factors affecting literature from different eras.
Master of Arts in English Literature is a postgraduate program. The degree is awarded after successful completion of a two years program or course that includes a comprehensive study of both ancient and modern English Literature comprising poetry, prose, and fiction.
The program is most suitable for those who are interested in English literature. The program makes one competent to analyze a work of literature in its historical, cultural, political and philosophical context.
After this program, you are absolutely certain that a Ph.D. is in your future. The MA English course might even act as a companion master’s to a degree as an MPA (public administration) or another field that requires both an advanced degree and also efficient writing and communication skills.
This program offers a focused Internship or Apprenticeship. Beneficial to find yourself in roles like editors, journalists, copywriters, marketers. It enhances the creative writing and reading skills which is a huge advantage for the related career growth.
It provides job security, high earnings and obviously a reputed profession. MA English jobs are available in various government departments and agencies as decoders, interpreters, and translators, campaign managers, and speechwriters, which require sophisticated writing skills.
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There is no specific entrance exam for MA in English but few colleges have their own entrance exam just to check the ability of the students.
Enrolling in coaching institutes: A coaching class or a tutor especially for clearing the entrance exam is a bonus as the teacher will help a candidate to focus on weaker zones and will aid in practice and comprehension of topics.
Practice makes perfect: Candidates should practice and revise before the exam so that it reduces the unnecessary pressure one day before the examination.
Knowledge of the exam paper pattern: The paramount step in preparing well for the entrance exam is a deep-rooted understanding and comprehension of the paper pattern and the syllabus.
Effective time management: Focus points should be kept in mind, with particular emphasis on weaker subjects and the daily practice of numerical problems. A timetable should be drawn, and the candidate should follow the timetable with dedication and diligence.
MA English is 2 years of post-graduation program, which is divided into 4 semesters. Below is the tabulation of all the MA English Subjects, which most of the colleges follow in their curriculum.
MA English Subjects - Semester I | |
Sl.No | Subjects |
1 | The Structure of Modern English |
2 | English Fiction |
3 | Traditional English Drama |
Electives | |
4 | Indian Verses |
5 | English Language and Literature Teaching |
6 | Research Methodology |
MA English Subjects - Semester II | |
Sl.No | Subjects |
1 | The Structure of Modern English |
2 | English Fiction |
3 | Modern English Drama |
Electives | |
4 | Indian Prose Works |
MA English Subjects - Semester III | |
Sl.No | Subjects |
1 | Literary Theory and Criticism |
2 | English Poetry |
3 | Shakespeare (Early Works) |
Electives | |
4 | American Literature |
5 | Research Methodology |
6 | English Language and Literature Teaching |
MA English Subjects - Semester IV | |
Sl.No | Subjects |
1 | Literary Theory and Criticism |
2 | English Poetry |
3 | Shakespeare (Later Works) |
Electives | |
4 | American Literature |
Students who want to join the MA English course need to be aware of the fee to meet their financial status. The course fee varies with respect to colleges or universities. The average course fee for the MA English curriculum is approximately INR 40,000 per annum.
Below is the tabulation of MA English course syllabus semester wise. Most colleges across the nation follow this curriculum, although minor variations are observed in some colleges:
MA English Syllabus - Semester I | |
Sl.No | The Structure of Modern English |
1 | Communication |
2 | Phonology |
3 | Morphology |
4 | Syntax |
5 | Semantics |
MA English Syllabus - Semester I | |
Sl.No | English Fiction |
1 | Jonathan Swift: Gulliver's Travels |
2 | Henry Fielding: Joseph Andrews |
3 | Jane Austen: Pride and Prejudice |
4 | Charles Dickens: David Copperfield |
5 | George Eliot: Middlemarch |
MA English Syllabus - Semester I | |
Sl.No | Traditional English Drama |
1 | Ben Jonson: Volpone |
2 | Christopher Marlowe: Dr Faustus |
3 | William Congreve: The Way of the World |
4 | Sheridan: The School for Scandal |
5 | William Goldsmith: She Stoops To Conquer |
MA English Syllabus - Semester I | |
Sl.No | Indian Verses (Elective) |
1 | Background to Indian English Poetry |
2 | Nissim Ezekiel |
3 | Arun Kolatkar - Jejuri |
4 | The Old Playhouse and Other Poems – Kamla Das |
5 | William Goldsmith: She Stoops To Conquer |
MA English Syllabus - Semester I | |
Sl.No | English Language and Literature Teaching (Elective) |
1 | Methods and Approaches to Language Teaching |
2 | Teaching of Grammar |
3 | Dimensions of Research in English Language and English Literature |
4 | Teaching of Language Skills |
5 | Approaches to Teaching of Literature |
6 | Teaching of Poetry, Drama, Fiction |
MA English Syllabus - Semester I | |
Sl.No | Research Methodology (Elective) |
1 | What is Research? |
2 | Constructing Research Design |
3 | Research Process |
4 | Dimensions of Research in English Language and English Literature |
5 | Development, Hypothesis and Preparation of Research Proposal |
6 | Research Process |
7 | Parts of the Dissertation |
8 | Presentation of Research |
9 | Presentation of Research |
10 | Major Concerns in the Thesis |
MA English Syllabus - Semester II | |
Sl.No | The Structure of Modern English |
1 | Language and Society |
2 | Distinctive Features of British, American and Indian English |
3 | Pragmatics |
4 | English in India |
5 | Introduction to Stylistics |
MA English Syllabus - Semester II | |
Sl.No | English Fiction |
1 | Thomas Hardy: Jude the Obscure |
2 | Joseph Conrad: Lord Jim |
3 | D. H. Lawrence: Sons and Lovers |
4 | Graham Greene: The Power and the Glory |
5 | EM Forster: A Passage to India. |
MA English Syllabus - Semester II | |
Sl.No | Modern English Drama |
1 | GB Shaw: Candida |
2 | TS Eliot: Murder in the Cathedral |
3 | Samuel Beckett: Waiting for Godot |
4 | Harold Pinter: Home Coming |
5 | John Osborne: Look Back in Anger |
MA English Syllabus - Semester II | |
Sl.No | Indian Prose Works (Elective) |
1 | Background to Indian Prose |
2 | Kanthapura |
3 | Lokmanya Tilak – Essays from Bal Gangadhar Tilak |
4 | RK Narayan: An Astrologer’s Day |
5 | Rohinton Mistry: A Fine Balance |
MA English Syllabus - Semester III | |
Sl.No | Literary Theory and Criticism |
1 | Aristotle: The Poetics |
2 | Philip Sidney: An Apology of Poetry |
3 | Dr Johnson: A Preface to Shakespeare |
4 | William Wordsworth: A Preface to Lyrical Ballads |
5 | Matthew Arnold: The Study of Poetry |
MA English Syllabus - Semester III | |
Sl.No | English Poetry |
1 | John Milton: Paradise Lost Book 1 |
2 | John Donne: The Sun Rising |
3 | Andrew Marvell: To His Coy Mistress |
4 | Alexander Pope: The Rape of The Lock |
5 | William Blake: From Songs of Innocence |
MA English Syllabus - Semester III | |
Sl.No | American Literature (Elective) |
1 | Background Topics |
2 | Nathaniel Hawthorne: The Scarlet Letter |
3 | Mark Twain: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn |
4 | Poetry |
5 | Thoreau: Civil Disobedience |
MA English Syllabus - Semester III | |
Sl.No | Research Methodology (Elective) |
1 | What is Research? |
2 | Constructing Research Design |
3 | Research Process |
4 | Dimensions of Research in English Language and English Literature |
5 | Development, Hypothesis and Preparation of Research Proposal |
6 | Research Process |
7 | Parts of the Dissertation |
8 | Presentation of Research |
9 | Writing Styles |
10 | Major Concerns in the Thesis |
MA English Syllabus - Semester III | |
Sl.No | English Language and Literature Teaching (Elective) |
1 | Methods and Approaches to Language Teaching |
2 | Teaching of Grammar |
3 | Relationship between Psychology and Teaching of Language |
4 | Teaching of Language Skills |
5 | Approaches to the Teaching of Literature |
6 | Teaching of Poetry, Drama and Fiction |
MA English Syllabus - Semester IV | |
Sl.No | Literary Theory and Criticism |
1 | T.S.Eliot: Tradition and the Individual Talent |
2 | F.R.Leavis: Literature and Society |
3 | Northrope Frye: The Archetypes of Literature |
4 | Ronald Barthes: The Death of the Author |
5 | Elaine Showalter: Feminist Criticism in the Wilderness |
MA English Syllabus - Semester IV | |
Sl.No | English Poetry |
1 | ST Coleridge: The Rime of Ancient Mariner |
2 | William Wordsworth Poetry |
3 | Tennyson Poetry |
4 | Robert Browning Poetry |
5 | W. B. Yeats Poetry |
MA English Syllabus - Semester IV | |
Sl.No | Shakespeare (Later Works) |
1 | King Lear |
2 | Macbeth |
3 | Julius Caesar |
4 | Measure for Measure |
5 | Tempest |
MA English Syllabus - Semester IV | |
Sl.No | American Literature (Elective) |
1 | Background Topics |
2 | Arthur Miller: The Death of a Salesman |
3 | Edward Albee: Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf |
4 | John Steinbeck: Of Mice and Men |
5 | Poetry |
Graduation and/or Bachelor's Degree obtained through the 10+2+3 mode or an equivalent qualification with a minimum aggregate of 50% or equivalent CGPA of any of the Universities incorporated by an act of the central or state legislature in India. There is a Relaxation of 5% aggregate for SC/ST candidates. There are some colleges that intake students on the basis of marks scored in the entrance exams.
For admission in this program, there will be a direct admission or some colleges will be taking the entrance exam to check the ability of the students. After the test, there will be a personal interview followed by the group discussion. Also, an aspirant has to score an aggregate of at least 50% in his/her bachelor's and (10+2).
An MA English grad has ample of opportunities waiting around, all one needs to do is to grab it. All of this is because of the diverse skill set one possesses. There are many job opportunities for MA English graduates. They can find jobs in translation agencies. Some of the posts are copywriter editor, or even as a proofreader.
Every student aims to build a good career and expects a good job role after graduation. MA English course provides ample career opportunities with good salary packages. The average MA English salary of an aspirant is approximately INR 3.24 lakhs per annum.
Below mentioned are the few top MA English colleges in India in India which provide the MBA course:
SI.No. | Name of the Institute |
1 | Lady Shri Ram College, New Delhi |
2 | Christ University, Bangalore |
3 | St. Stephen's College, New Delhi |
4 | Miranda House, New Delhi |
5 | Loyola College, Chennai |
6 | Madras Christian College, Chennai |
7 | Hansraj College, Delhi |
8 | Sri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi |
9 | Hindu College, New Delhi |
10 | Fergusson College, Pune |
MA English distance learning is offered to those candidates who do not find time to go for full-time classes, these students can go for IGNOU. IGNOU is an open university which is built to provide learnings to individuals through various means other than going through full academic session. Other than IGNOU there is a large number of colleges in India offer distance learning or correspondence courses in MA English. Some of the names of colleges are listed below:
What is the difference between MA English and MA in English Literature? Below is a difference which is a must-read for MA English every aspirant.
Sl.No | MA English | MA in English Literature |
1 | MA English represents a very vast scope of studies as English the term stands for the English language, i.e. the study of grammar, prosody, linguistics, phonetics, composition, drafting and mode of translation | M.A. in English Literature means is simply to study the vast great and grand studies of English Literature on PG level |
2 | It is a part of MA in English literature | It is a vast scope of study |