English Today

“In the long run, a people is known, not by its statements or its statistics, but by the stories it tells.” –Flannery O’Connor

Discover the power of English to expand your horizons.

New online course in English: Ten Premodern Poems by Women

Students will learn about how poets have fashioned life experience into verse, how to discuss poetry, and what poetry means for each of us today.

Learn more about this exciting new course and register now!

Spring Online Course: Digging Deeper

"Digging Deeper: The Form and Function of Manuscripts," a 6-week online course led by scholars from Stanford and Cambridge, introduces students to early text...

Current or prospective student in English?

The English department offers a Ph.D. in English, a B.A. in English, a minor in English, and a minor in Creative Writing.

Visit the Degree Programs page to learn about each program and get all of your questions answered.

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Prospective student?

My first impression on visiting Stanford was that the professors, students and supporting staff were genuinely friendly, supportive, compassionate, and that this was a non-competitive community which also happened to do some of the most cutting edge work in the discipline. This department cares about its students and their lives, and yet still demands the best work of them without spoon-feeding. And the sun shines! I wouldn't go anywhere else.

— Jodie Archer, PhD 2014

Upcoming Events

Mar

Another Look Book Club - The Fire Next Time

Bechtel Conference Center, Encina Hall...

7:30pm

Mar

A Reading with David Roderick and Matthew Siegel

Terrace Room, Margaret Jacks Hall

6:00pm

Mar

Kim Haines-Eitzen (Cornell), "Acoustic Encounters in the Late Ancient Desert"

Humanities Center Board Room

4:00pm

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Affiliated Programs

Creative Writing Program

Center for the Study of the Novel

Stanford Literary Lab

Hume Center for Writing and Speaking

Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship of Scholars in the Humanities

Department Bookshelf

English remains a top-ranked department nationally because of the strength and variety of our faculty publications, both in scholarly research and creative writing. Browse the Bookshelf to explore our many interests.