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University of Essex

Colchester , England ,United Kingdom

MA American Literatures

Gain a rich understanding of the variety and interconnections of American writing, exploring major poetic, fictional, non-fictional and dramatic works. You will read from the cannon of American literature, as well as texts that are topical and contemporary.

At Essex, we challenge the study of the United States as a territorially bound space by embracing an expanded conception of ‘America', which explores the richness of U.S. and Caribbean literatures in dialogue. This allows you to formulate sophisticated analyses of the role of space and place in the production of American writing and identities.

You explore how cultural geography may be integrated into literary history, concentrating on American literatures topics including:

How violence and conflict have shaped writing across the American tropics
The difference between reality and the “American Dream”
Caribbean modernities and post-colonialism
US nationalism and regionalism in literature
African American literature
Students would usually attend a two-hour seminar for each module each week. Seminar groups would usually have about 10-15 students.

This course is also available on a part-time basis.

Campus Information

Colchester campus

Wivenhoe Park, Colchester CO4 3SQ, United Kingdom

Intakes

  • Oct

Application Processing Time in Days: 30

Minimum English Language Requirements

English Level Description IELTS (1.0 -9.0) TOEFL IBT (0-120) TOEFL CBT (0-300) PTE (10-90)
Expert 9 120 297-300 86-90
Very Good 8.5 115-119 280-293 83-86
Very Good 8 110-114 270-280 79-83
Good 7.5 102-109 253-267 73-79
Good 7 94-101 240-253 65-73
Competent 6.5 79-93 213-233 58-65
Competent 6 60-78 170-210 50-58
Modest 5.5 46-59 133-210 43-50
Modest 5 35-45 107-133 36-43
Limited 4 32-34 97-103 30-36
Extremely Limited < 4 < 31 < 93 < 30

Job Opportunity Potential

You get more than just a degree with Essex Business School, you get a head start on your career. 
Our courses allow you to experience the cutting edge of modern business practices and are designed to equip you with the essential skills and knowledge that you will need for an exciting and fast-paced career in business and beyond. 

On this page you will find information on a wide variety of career pathways for business school graduates. From Accountant to Wall Street Wizard (yes, we encourage our graduates to build their own job titles where possible) you will discover where a degree from Essex Business School could take you.

We are a big department with academic expertise in five key subject areas: accounting, finance, entrepreneurship, management and marketing. Therefore, this page will guide you through the key skills and alumni destinations for each of our subject areas.

As business themes operate through every industry you will find that doors open for business school graduates in virtually every sector. On this page you’ll hear from business school graduates who have taken their opportunities and built upon the skills gained on their degrees to become entrepreneurs, traders, business leaders and so much more.

Which career will suit me?

  • Graduates from business subjects typically have good commercial awareness which makes them very versatile candidates and attractive to recruiters.
  • Many graduates go on to have successful careers in HR, finance, marketing, new venture creation and consulting and are often suited to professional level employment soon after graduation.
  • Graduates from Essex Business School are very well suited to entrepreneurship and often set up their own businesses either as students or shortly after graduating.

At Essex Business School, we have five core subject areas, plus The Essex MBA. To find out about the specific career prospects for your chosen subject, click on one of the panels below. To find out more about how Essex Business School supports your employability skills and career prospects more generally as a department, please keep scrolling.

PSW Opportunity

  • 2 Years PSW is applicable after completing a minimum duration of 9 months course (like- Undergraduate, Postgraduate Level)
  • 3 Years PSW is applicable after completing PhD level courses.

Admission Requirement / Eligibility Criteria

Many of our Postgraduate Taught Masters will consider applicants with 50% or 5.3/10 from Band 1 or Band 2 institution/ 55% or 5.8/10 from all other institutions from Bachelor degree. Some courses and departments have higher entry requirements as well as other admissions criteria

Academic IELTS (including UKVI IELTS, non-UKVI
IELTS, IELTS Online, and IELTS Indicator) and British
Academic Centre International English Test (BACIET)

6.5 overall with minimum component scores:
Listening: 5.5
Reading: 5.5
Writing: 6.5
Speaking: 5.5

TOEFL iBT, TOEFL MyBest, TOEFL Special Home Edition

88 overall with minimum component scores:
Listening: 17
Reading: 18
Writing: 26
Speaking: 20

Pearson Test of English (PTE)

58 overall with minimum component scores:
Listening: 42
Reading: 42
Writing: 58
Speaking: 42

Cambridge Advanced English (CAE) and Cambridge
Proficiency English (CPE)

176 overall with minimum component scores:
Listening: 162
Reading: 162
Writing: 176
Speaking: 162

Disclaimer: PSA updates the information on this page from time to time; however, there may have been more recent updates. Please refer to the university website for the latest information.