SILCS is a four-week summer institute to promote diversity in the field of English. For our current events, program profiles and institute news, read our blog below, or read our blog archives.
For more information about the Institute, click here.
Welcome Class of 2012
19 April 2012, 2:41 pm
Welcome SILCS class of 2012! We excited to see you all in June.
We’d also like to congratulate the SILCS class of 2011, who are hearing back from graduate programs now. So far our students have been accepted to:
- Ohio State University
- Northwestern
- University of Florida (2 students)
- Vanderbilt (2 students)
- Syracuse University
- Emory
- University of Delaware
- Howard University
- Temple University
- Virginia Tech
- Yale Divinity School
- Brown University
- Cornell University
- University of Pennsylvania
- Pennsylvania State University
- UC Berkeley
- University of Texas Austin
- University of Wisconsin
Congratulations, everyone.
Application Deadline: February 10, 2012
6 February 2012, 1:40 pm
The deadline for applications to this year’s Summer Institute for Literary and Cultural Studies is this Friday, Feb 10. Please make sure that you send your materials as soon as you can! If you have any questions for us at all, you can email us at silcs [at] wheatoncollege.edu, or call us at (508)-286-3745.
Information on how to apply is on our Application page.
Applications for SILCS 2012
21 December 2011, 2:58 pm
On January 3rd, 2012, we will officially begin accepting applications for SILCS 2012. Our applications are currently live on our How To Apply page. Please check it out!
Just a note: due to technical difficulties, we won’t be able to accept faxes until most likely January 4. We’ll let you know if that changes.
The application deadline is Friday, February 10. Have a happy holiday season!
SILCS 2011 Weeks 3 and 4 and beyond
30 June 2011, 10:30 am
The Summer Institute has come to another successful conclusion. We had a great month and made a lot of close friends who we hope will stay in touch. Have a great summer, everyone!
In the second half of the month, we listened to lectures from Dr. Daniel Kim of Brown University, Dr. Tanya Rodrigue of Wheaton College, Dr. Greg Colón-Semenza of the University of Connecticut, and Dr. Darryl Dickson-Carr of Southern Methodist University. All of them gave information on their own research and tips on the graduate application process. In addition, on June 17 we visited the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research in Cambridge.
On Friday, June 24, we celebrated our fourth annual Graduate Recruitment Fair, where such schools as Tufts University, Stanford University, SUNY Albany, Syracuse University, Washington University in St. Louis, Southern Methodist University and Northeastern University set up tables and spoke individually with each student about their graduate programs. The next day, the students presented their work in a Symposium in front of their classmates and returning alumnae/i from the previous year.
This fall, we plan to make SILCS better than ever, with the help of our new team of alumnae/i coordinators. Now the SILCS office closes once more for the summer, but we will be back again in September, ready to start preparing for SILCS 2012!
SILCS 2011 Weeks 1 and 2
13 June 2011, 11:34 am
SILCS 2011 is nearly halfway over, and the students are working hard. As usual, the month has passed very quickly, and we’re fast approaching our final symposium, where the students will present their work.
Everyone arrived on campus over Memorial Day weekend, where the weather was unseasonably warm for Massachusetts. As in the past, we visited Project Adventure and learned a lot about each other as we worked together on team goals. The day ended with a BBQ on the campus green.
The first week, Drs. Sam and Alex Vasquez (of Dartmouth College and Wheaton College, respectively) came to talk about their dual careers and balancing graduate school and family life. On Monday, June 6, Dr. Gillian Johns (of Oberlin College) came to talk about her own work. The students also visited Brown University’s John Carter Brown Library and Boston University’s English department and Gotlieb Research Center.
This week, we’re looking forward to more lectures and trips, and are trying to stay warm after the heat wave suddenly turned into cold rain. Stay tuned!
Congratulations
11 March 2011, 1:43 pm
We would like to congratulate our students from SILCS 2009 and 2010 who have been accepted into the following programs:
Indiana University
Ohio State University
Rutgers University New Brunswick
Syracuse University
University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Los Angeles
University of Florida, Gainesville
University of Michigan
We will update this list as we hear more!
EXTENDED DEADLINE
14 February 2011, 4:17 pm
We have extended the deadline to this Friday, Feb 18. If you were planning on applying to SILCS but couldn’t make the deadline, you have another chance. Apply now!
Deadline TOMORROW, Feb 11
10 February 2011, 10:08 am
Our application deadline is TOMORROW, February 11. Your mailed materials must be postmarked by that date, and we should receive your emailed application by tomorrow at midnight.
PLEASE NOTE: If you are having trouble faxing, please email us (see email address in sidebar) or call us at (508) 286 3745. Most faxes get through, but on occasion some do not.
Application Deadline: Feb 11
1 February 2011, 10:09 am
We are currently accepting applications for SILCS 2011. You can find out information on how to apply on our application page. The deadline is Friday, February 11, 2011. If you can, try not to wait until the last minute, so you can be sure that all of the parts of the application arrive on time. We look forward to hearing from you. Good luck!
Profile: Syracuse University
21 December 2010, 9:45 am
Syracuse University is the final program in our series of graduate program profiles. Syracuse offers an M.A. and Ph.D. in English and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing.
The department, which is internationally known for its innovative undergraduate curriculum in English and Textual Studies (ETS), also has one of the most intellectually versatile graduate programs in the country. Recognizing the complex discipline that “English” has become in the contemporary university and in today’s society, our graduate program is organized around critical studies of history, aesthetics, and politics. We have particular strengths in early modern literature, Victorian culture, American studies, and film, but cover other areas as well, and our outstanding faculty all share a strong interest in literary history and forms, critical theory, and cultural studies. The particular specializations of our diverse faculty thus allow for both continuity and flexibility in the work that students can do while in the program.
In the Syracuse Ph.D. and M.A. programs, students work closely with their faculty mentors and attend small seminars. Ph.D. students take a workshop that helps them prepare for the qualifying exams and their dissertation. Syracuse maintains close ties with Cornell University and the University of Rochester, allowing students to attend courses and workshops on all three campuses. Students can enter the Ph.D. program directly from the B.A. or with the M.A. in hand. To complete the M.A., students submit and defend three papers.
The M.F.A. program, which takes three years, culminates in a book-length manuscript of poetry or fiction. Exceptional M.F.A. students are eligible for a university fellowship, which includes full tuition and a $16,720 stipend. There are also six creative writing scholarships awarded to new students.
All three programs include teaching assistantships and fellowships. Multi-year university fellowships are awarded to Ph.D. students, alternating with teaching assistantships, and include a stipend of $21,170 and a full-tuition scholarship for 30 credits for the academic year. African American Fellowships are also awarded to six African American graduate students.
The deadline for all programs is January 9.
