This course is suitable for those interested in a single literature or in comparative literature, since it can be done in either one or two literatures. The Faculty offers a wide range of lecture courses open to undergraduates and graduates, and a number of research seminars which enable graduates to present their own work and discuss that of others. Students may also apply to attend courses from the English Faculty, but these can only be offered in connection with another literature and are subject to availability.

Full guidance on how to apply, application deadlines, and entry requirements can be found on the central admissions pages and application guide pages of the University website.

Course Content

The MSt degree consists of five compulsory components: a core course (taught across the first and second term), two Special Subjects (taught in the first (Michaelmas) and second (Hilary) term, respectively; a research topic; and a dissertation.

Core Course

The core course runs during Michaelmas and Hilary terms, delivered as weekly one-hour seminars. Each session would typically be based on readings of two or more articles (or equivalent activity) designed to provoke high-level reflection on questions of method and purpose in the literary humanities. Areas of study will include:

•    Objects of Study
•    Language and Textuality
•    Materialisms and Historicisms
•    Politics and Identity
 

MSt Programmes of Special Subjects

Special Subjects are grouped into language specific and comparative programmes or wider areas of study and will be taught in small groups or seminars. The subjects correspond to areas of particular teaching and research strength in Oxford and courses are offered across different language strands and specialisms, subject to the availability of the relevant supervisors in any particular year. Students choose two of these options, one each in Michaelmas and Hilary Term.

Popular language-specific options typically offered include: Women’s Writing in Medieval Germany, Problems in Dante Interpretation, Francophone Literature, Realism and Its Alternatives in Spanish American Narrative, Latin American Cinema, Lusophone Women Writers, Contemporary Brazilian Fiction, Late Soviet and Post-Soviet Russian Literature, Modern Greek Literature in Comparative Frames, Walter Benjamin in Weimar, Conscience and Consciousness in French and Francophone Literature.

You may also study designated comparative and cross-linguistic options including European Enlightenment, Cultural Studies, Contesting Colonialisms, and Posthuman Subjectivities. This year’s selection of Special Subjects for 2026-27 can be found in the table below. These are indicative of the course offerings for the sub-faculty, so applicants should note that not all options will run in all years, and some course content might change.

Research Topics

You will focus on a subsection of the module topic that is relevant to your language area or proposed research. You will have an individual meeting with a tutor in Hilary term, intended to orient you towards a specific area of the core course that it is appropriate for you to cover. 

Dissertation

All candidates prepare a dissertation of 10,000 to 12,000 words which must be submitted in the seventh week of the third term of study. The subject will allow you to use and extend the reading you have done for your Special Subjects, to apply the theoretical reflections or methodological approaches acquired in your first two terms, and to undertake a piece of research that may lead on to doctoral work.

Assessment

Core course: The core course will be assessed through a reflective diary submitted at the end of Hilary term and it will consist of reflections on at least 12 of the 16 sessions. This assessment will encourage you to continually reflect on and assess your learning experiences across the terms and help to prepare you for the larger pieces of submitted work.

Special Subjects: You will select what you and your supervisor(s) think are the best essay or essays and submit it or them as a portfolio for examination. Special Subject submissions may comprise one or two essays to a total maximum word length of between 5,000 — 7,000 words.

Research topic: You will focus on a subsection of the module topic that is relevant to your language area or proposed research. You will have an individual meeting with a tutor in Hilary term, intended to orient you towards a specific area of the core course that it is appropriate for you to cover. The research topic will be assessed through a literature review, or état present, of some subsection of the Core Course that is relevant to your language area or proposed research. The review will be submitted at the end of Hilary term.

Dissertation: Submission of a dissertation of 10,000 — 12,000 words in the seventh week of the third term of study.