Are there distance literature graduate programs?

February 12, 2012 7:46 PM

Are there such things as reputable distance Ph.D. programs in literature?

I remember thinking about this article I read back a few months ago on Slate. It was about James Franco doing his graduate work with a professor through some sort of "directed reading" program.

Article here: http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2011/12/james_franco_at_yale_franco_s_professor_speaks_.html

From what I gathered, the advisor assigns readings and then they go over it. I think that's a pretty cool program -- esp. a cool way to earn a Ph.D.

So, do these programs exist for other people besides movie stars? I mean, I'd imagine there would be some course work involved, but say you have all the background coursework for a graduate degree in literature done. Are there ways to just coordinate with professors, read what they want you to read, and then bang out a dissertation?

XO

posted by apip to Education (10 answers total)

"Say you have all the background coursework for a graduate degree in literature done"

Do you mean, you were in residence at the relevant program and took the courses there? Or you just magically get the program to count work from an undergrad degree or MA program or something?

If the former -- doing your dissertation long distance after completing your coursework is not very uncommon. Notice, though, that you'd get no TAships, obviously, and you can only count on a semester or two of fellowship.

If the latter -- now you're in dreamland. The details depend on the program, of course, but in general you just cat get credit towards a Ph.D. for more than one or two courses taken elsewhere.

(Caveat afterthought: I'm talking US programs. In the UK and Australia, there typically isn't any coursework for a Ph.D. Don't know about writing from afar, though.)
posted by kestrel251 at 8:25 PM on February 12, 2012

PhD programs are virtually never 'distance' because a large part of the process is gaining a networking and being socialized into the discipline.

Further, you sort of have to be around to be funded.

However, as you say, if you've finished your coursework, yes, you could work remotely. People do this for family reasons fairly often. I wouldn't recommend it (after having left, dissertation 70% completed).
posted by k8t at 8:47 PM on February 12, 2012

There are actually two questions here:

1. Are there reputable institutions that have formal distance-based PhD programs where you don't take courses per se?

Nope. No way you'll ever find a legit program that works that way at the doctorate level in Literature, although you'll find this program willing to take your money.

2. Once you're in a conventional PhD program, can you make special arrangements to accomplish a lot of the necessary work from a distance?

Sure! Aside from James Franco, it's certainly possible to arrange, if your professors are supportive, but it's not straightforward, and it's not expected you'll do the whole thing this way, as far as I know
posted by StrikeTheViol at 8:49 PM on February 12, 2012

The Open University does offer PhDs but it's not clear how much of the work can be done via distance, although the OU is usually a distance learning university and is certainly a well-respected one. However they say they require their full-time PhDs to live within 15 miles from Milton Keynes although exceptions can be made. For their part-time PhDs, it's much less clear from their Web site whether they must live nearby.
posted by hazyjane at 10:51 PM on February 12, 2012

At many UK universities it is possible to complete a PhD as an external student. I think you have to go in person a few times, but can essentially complete the whole thing at a distance. UK PhDs do not involve coursework in the same way as US ones, but you should probably have the equivalent of a masters.

Google 'external PhD student'. The kind of universities I'm thinking of are Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and so on. Reputable places.
posted by plonkee at 1:16 AM on February 13, 2012

The important part here is what do you want the degree for? If you want the degree so you can go off and work in academia the deck is already stacked against you. There are far far more PhDs in most fields than there are jobs available. This is doubly true for literature/composition/English than there are jobs available*. The only people for whom this is a reasonable gamble are the people accepted to top programs and I can't imagine any top programs doing this sort of distance approach. It is possible in graduate school to take classes and then move to another place to finish writing, but that will vary on program, adviser, and circumstance. Unfortunately when grad students move away to write up they often lose focus and never finish.

If you want the degree just to learn more about literature then you may not need to do a formal PhD program. There may be all sorts of books, online lectures, upper level courses at your local schools, etc to scratch that itch.

If you want the degree just to be able to point to a piece of paper on the wall saying you have a PhD then I imagine there are probably online universities willing to give you such a piece of paper for the right price.
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* The reason for the over production is that there are lots of freshmen English composition classes that need to be taught. Universities often exploit grad student labor for this which subsidizes graduate school for many folks in this field. The schools need a certain number of grad students to teach these sections. This leads to the production of far more PhDs than there are jobs for the PhDs when they finish. And once done most of those PhDs are competing with that huge pool of graduate students to teach freshman composition classes which means they get paid peanuts as lecturers or adjuncts if they are not one of the very lucky few.
posted by Tallguy at 6:05 AM on February 13, 2012

VCU -- Virginia Commonwealth University -- actually offers a distance PhD in English. It's accredited and everything. They do require some kind of annual six-week program on campus, usually in the summer, you have to attend, but you could probably hold down a full-time job and use all your vacation and sick time and maybe make arrangements with your employer for unpaid time away.

This is the only program of its kind in the US, and the only one I would even remotely consider. Do not go anywhere near a program that is totally online-only or is not affiliated with an actual university, as they are likely running a scam or will give you a "degree" that will be dismissed by the rest of the profession.
posted by Philemon at 7:40 AM on February 13, 2012

Not to derail, but I don't actually see a PhD in English offered at VCU: instead, there's this, which is some kind of interdisciplinary program that's not explicitly offered online, either.
posted by StrikeTheViol at 1:03 PM on February 13, 2012

You're right, Strike.

I had the right state but the wrong school. It's Old Dominion U that offers a PhD in English that's online only (except for the six-week annual residency req, which you'd only need to do until you completed coursework).

Here's a link to their page, and they describe the online component right there in the headnote: http://englishphd.digitalodu.com/
posted by Philemon at 1:32 PM on February 13, 2012 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thanks guys! Now can somebody show me how to program my Explorer 4250HDC to show only available channels instead of showing all the channels?
posted by apip at 7:51 PM on February 14, 2012