Zerin Alam, Ph.D.
Welcome to the Department of English!
Established in 1921, ours is one of the 101-year-old founding departments in the Faculty of Arts, University of Dhaka, determined to attain the highest standards in academic excellence. For more than a century, this department has had a formative influence in fostering and developing some of the brightest minds of Bangladesh. Our mission is to produce graduates who will be able to apply their understanding of the language, the teaching of English and its literary implications effectively in their academic life and professional world in order to advance themselves as well as the nation towards progress while upholding the humanizing appeal of English Studies.
Our BA programme offers a wide range of courses, from traditional areas — like Shakespeare, Romanticism, composition skills and world literature — to contemporary subject matters including cultural studies, ecocriticism, advanced critical theories, migration literature, and also ELT in the light of the latest trends in foreign language teaching and learning. At the Master’s level, students can opt for a degree in either literature or ELT and applied linguistics with facilities available for them to conduct their own research. Our curriculums thus are designed to equip students with the necessary skills they need to explore the world within academia and outside and be prepared to tackle the challenges of the twenty-first century.
Our alumni can be found teaching in reputed institutions, nationally and internationally, in the civil service, in the corporate world, in media and much more. They serve in humanities centers, work as educators in high schools and colleges, and are involved in non-profit or private as well as public sectors using their research and teaching to shape the existing body of knowledge. All in all, our four-year undergraduate and one year masters programmes including MPhil and PhD programmes have a long history of producing some of the best education-leaders, academicians, critics, public intellectuals, writers, and civil servants of the country. Indeed, our teachers, students and alumni possessing an impressive range of qualifications, have significantly contributed to nation-building, national identity formation and human resources creation over decades all the way from British India to the emergence of Bangladesh as an independent state. And we expect nothing less from you as well, the pioneers of our bright future.
The quick links on the site will lead you to the notices, departmental publications and newsletters informing you of the flurry of activity happening here, and the primary links will enlighten you on the history of the department, its admission policies and faculty profiles. You will be happy to discover it for yourself that the department is a close-knit community working shoulder to shoulder to help you explore your creative aptitude, technical abilities, research skills and analytical expertise, ensuring a positive impact on every aspect of your practical and intellectual life.
If you are scanning through the page as an undergraduate student, please do not miss this opportunity to apprise yourself of the books, booklets and syllabi available online, which will afford detailed insights into what we do in the department. A few glances across the website will tell you that there is a lot more done here than just reading. If you take an interest in English literature and language, you will know that you will have to read across cultures, fine-tune your critical judgment, contribute to dialogue and even debate on a diverse range of issues as colonialism, power, race, gender, class and so on that will hopefully help you nurture a lifelong commitment to the cause of effective communication, purposeful action and humanistic principles.
Please also note that we try our best to fund your study cost and thus ease the financial crises of students in need by offering scholarships with the help of our distinguished alumni, who have been always there to encourage you to face the multifarious challenges of tertiary level education so you can learn the value of companionship, commitment and community feelings as a proud member of the country’s oldest and largest English department.
We look forward to continuing this legacy and hope you will join us in the exciting exploration of English studies. Please do not hesitate to communicate with our vibrant faculty and dedicated office personnel whenever you need! Let this department be a place for you to anchor yourself as you develop as an individual and a scholar. Welcome to your very own world of thoughts, texts, thrill, and teamwork!
Best regards,
Zerin Alam, Ph. D.
Professor & Chairperson
Department of English
University of Dhaka