Department of English

The Department of English, established in 2014, is part of the University’s multi-faceted School of Languages. Currently offering a two-year Masters program, the Department takes great pride in offering a syllabus which is thoroughly researched, meticulously planned and constantly updated. It aims at developing a competitive and keen academic environment that helps nurture every student individually, instilling the confidence to achieve her/his best, while keeping abreast of the latest national and international developments in literature and theory.

The Department prides its intensive classroom teaching, with an excellent student-teacher ratio and seeks to organize seminars, conferences, workshops, and symposia on a regular basis. The teachers, actively involved in research and publication, mentor students towards developing a keen edge in issues and theories of contemporary significance. The Department is also associated with inter-disciplinary intellectual activities with other language departments within the School of Languages as well as the University at large. Academic support is drawn from other prestigious institutions such as Jawaharlal Nehru University; University of Delhi, New Delhi; H.N.B. Garhwal University, Srinagar; Gurukul Kangri University, Hardwar and Center for Contemporary Theory, Baroda with leading academics from such institutions regularly visiting not only to take part in Advisory Committee meetings but also to function as guest/adjunct faculty (conducting workshops, lectures and talks for students.) We recently organized an international conference on on “Materialities: Objects, Matter, Things” and a National workshop on “Radical General Semantics” in collaboration with the Forum on Contemporary Theory, Baroda and the Balwant Parekh Center for General Semantics and Other Human Sciences, Baroda respectively. The events were graced by international academic icons like Prof. Bill Brown, Convener of the Conference and Karla Scherer Distinguished Professor in American Culture, English Language and Literature, Visual Arts, and Deputy Provost for the Arts, University of Chicago ; Prof. Sara Guyer, President, Consortium of Humanities Centers and Institutes (CHCI) & Professor of English, Comparative Literature, and Jewish Studies at the University of Wisconsin- Madison; Prof. Shannon Bell, Department of Political Science, York University,Toronto, Canada and Prof. Gad Horowitz, Professor Emeritus, Department of Political Science, University of Toronto, Canada.

We aspire to work towards achieving the status of being a Centre of Excellence in times to come. The Department seeks to conduct research and development in various spheres of English Literature, language and Culture Studies. Thrust areas include conducting original research and evolving foundational theory in Indian Writing in English along with a study of writings from Uttarakhand (and adjoining areas) translated into English.

Our two year M.A. program, is divided into four Semesters that include Mid-semester and final End-semester examinations. The Department prides its research oriented teachers who work arduously to keep abreast of recent advances in language, literature and culture. Lectures are conducted on a daily basis with special emphasis on customized student learning. Along with conducting regular lectures throughout the year, the Department undertakes inter-departmental and inter-disciplinary research and development under the aegis of SoL-Dialogue, SoL-Screen and SoL-Expressions.

The Department lays special emphasis on and seeks to undertake research in various aspects of English Studies in India including Indian Writing in English, Translated (into English) works of regional Indian writers, Indian Poetics, Gender Studies along with Women’s Studies(as a specialized area) as well as Diaspora Studies.

1.The University’s Conference Hall, Senate Hall and Court Room, which are physically and acoustically well-equipped venues for conducting workshops, conferences, lectures and panel discussions.

2. The showcasing of classic movies, with special reference to Film Theory.

3. University vehicles for undertaking educational trips.