Research Groups
Interdisciplinary Collaborations
At the University of Minnesota, English faculty and students regularly make connections across campus, whether via workshops at the Center for Medieval Studies, collaborative groups at the Institute for Advanced Study, or co-sponsored events with other departments and centers.
Research Groups
Research groups (or subfields), comprised of graduate students and sometimes faculty, typically meet once or twice a month, on or off campus, for discussion of texts, recently published works, or works-in-progress. Many students participate in more than one group for social networking as well as academic support. If there is no group that suits your particular interests, the graduate office can help you start one (groups on pedagogy and theory recently concluded lively runs). Some currently active research groups include the following:
The Premodern Workshop
The Premodern Workshop is a multidisciplinary group for graduate students and scholars of the premodern world that partners with the Center for Early Modern History, the Center for Medieval Studies, and the Consortium for the Study of the Premodern World. We provide a variety of opportunities including work-in-progress workshops, pedagogy workshops, professionalization events, visiting speaker events, and more. Our goal is to maintain a unified group of students and faculty from a range of disciplines, in order to expand the network of premodern scholars on campus.
Medieval/Early Modern Work-in-Progress Group
The Medieval/Early Modern Work-in-Progress Group meets monthly to discuss pre-circulated scholarly writing (articles, dissertation chapters, conference papers, book chapters); participants include both graduate students and faculty members.
18th and 19th Century British Subfield
The 18th and 19th Century research group of graduate students and faculty members meets monthly to discuss works-in-progress which may include seminar papers, conference papers, potential articles, dissertation chapters, or sections of book projects. The group also sponsors visiting scholar events. Email nineteen@umn.edu for more information.
20/21 Century Subfield
This group provides a network for interested students and organizes discussions and presentations on topics concerning scholarship, teaching, and critical theory relevant to work in the fields of 20th- and 21st-century literatures and cultures. Email ttonec@umn.edu for more information.