Summarizes a survey of the bulletins about graduate programs in English at 20 universities in the Northeast, the Midwest and the South to determine whether they wanted promising Black students or were opening their doors to a few students of exceptional attainment. (Author/JM)

Discusses the results of the Modern Language Association's 1990 survey of doctorate-granting departments in English and other languages regarding doctoral study. (HB)

Considers the Modern Language Association's 1990 survey of doctorate-granting departments in English and other languages regarding doctoral study. Analyzes the survey results in depth, including institutional characteristics, numbers of applicants, number enrolled, degrees granted, and program trends. (HB)

Among the changes that have characterized English studies over the past 25 years is an increase in self-reflection. The rise of various kinds of writing collectively labeled "theory" has influenced this move to scrutinize actions and motives. Composition studies have developed classroom strategies for asking students to reflect on their…

Argues that tenured English teachers at small liberal arts colleges want several things from prospective new faculty members, including the capacity to share authority among equals, and the ability to give up some radical intellectual independence in order to collaborate (not compromise or capitulate) professionally. (RS)

Describes steps taken by the English department at Washington State University to deal with the double bind of overproduction of PhDs and the situation of temporary instructors. Addresses the forces pushing against these efforts and the department chair's difficulties in dealing with those forces. (RS)

Suggests that W. Ross Winterowd's most significant and influential contribution to the field of rhetoric and composition is the Rhetoric-Linguistics-Literature Program (RLL), started in 1972 as a program in the Department of English at the University of Southern California. Presents a history of the program, noting its "virtual demise"…

Attempts to make effects of fiscal constraints better understood in the hope of finding optimal solutions to critical difficulties faced by academic institutions. Suggests a new emphasis in graduate training on teaching. Points toward ideal changes in the structure of higher education but attempts to keep recommendations practical. Discusses the…

Presents the experience and concerns of a black graduate student in an English department. Considers that diversity and mentoring help create an optimum psychological environment in which the black graduate student can be productive. Concludes that a diverse student body fosters diverse scholarship and allows for paradigm shifts that stimulate new…

The trajectory of an English professor's scholarly interests has always involved emotion. From the simple question she asked herself during her graduate study (what do we feel?), she moved to the beneficial psychological effects of writing, then onto empirically identifying the emotions involved in writing, to discussions of social emotions, to an…

Examines reasons for university English departments' ignorance and apathy towards two-year college English departments, and ways two-year college teachers can attack them through faculty exchanges and graduate coursework. (RAE)

In a response to the Minnesota Conference on the Future of Doctoral Study in English, argues that English departments should not become service departments for other academic departments. Urges the replacement of adjunct faculty members with tenure-earning assistant professor lines and claims that recognition through publication serves the…

Summarizes issues raised in speeches and group discussions at the Minnesota Conference on the Future of Doctoral Study in English and makes personal observations about the conference in general. (MM)

Contains the minimum Graduate Record Examination and grade point average requirements for graduate English programs of over 70 universities. (EL)