Master of Arts in English
Program Overview
(Students may select the literature-based M.A. or the M.A. track in Professional Writing and Editing to complete their degree. On this page are the requirements for the literature-based M.A.)
The Master of Arts program in English offers courses in literature research, history, and theory, genre and figure studies, creative and professional writing, linguistics and composition theory, film, and the teaching of writing and literature.
Faculty members strive to offer students an understanding of the traditions of literary study and familiarity with the latest multicultural and interdisciplinary approaches.
The M.A. in English prepares graduates to pursue opportunities in teaching, professional writing, and further graduate study. Working closely with their advisors, students design individual programs to meet their interests and goals. Students are encouraged to explore a variety of approaches to the study of literature, language, and writing and to develop their abilities as readers, critics, writers, and teachers.
The English M.A. program requires 30 semester hours of coursework in English, during which students complete and present a thesis, or a portfolio of their representative work, to a faculty review committee.
Admission Requirements
Students must have an undergraduate English major or other preparation judged satisfactory by the Department and an unrecalculated grade point average in undergraduate study of at least 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale).
Applicants for the M.A. are required to submit a brief (750-1000 words) statement of purpose outlining their reasons for wishing to obtain the M.A. in English and how that degree fits into their professional goals.
Course Requirements
English M.A. students must complete 30 semester hours in English courses at the graduate level; exceptions must have prior approval of the Department chair and the Director of Graduate Studies.
Students are encouraged, but not required to, create a focus area with their remaining courses. Possible focus areas include literature, linguistics, professional writing and editing, composition and rhetoric, teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL), and literature for children and young adults.
Students planning to pursue a Ph.D. in literary studies are strongly encouraged to complete a broad selection of courses in British and American literature.
Students must take the following four courses (see lists below for offerings):
1 & 2. Two literature courses
3. One theory or methods course (excluding 6989; graduate assistants must take 6907)
4. One language, discourse and writing course
In addition, students must complete a thesis or portfolio. Students selecting the thesis option may count up to three semester hours of thesis credit (English 6999) toward their total of 30 semester hours of graduate coursework. The portfolio option does not count for credit hours.
Literature courses (6 or more s.h.)
| Catalog number | Title | Hours |
| 6911 | The Medieval World | 3 |
| 6912 | Sixteenth- and Seventeenth-Century British Studies | 3 |
| 6913 | Shakespeare and Renaissance Drama | 3 |
| 6914 | Restoration and Eighteenth-Century British Studies | 3 |
| 6915 | Early American Studies | 3 |
| 6916 | Ninteenth-Century British Studies | 3 |
| 6917 | Ninteenth-Century American Studies | 3 |
| 6918* | Studies in Children's Literature | 3 |
| 6919* | Studies in Young Adult Literature | 3 |
| 6920 | Twentieth-Century British Studies | 3 |
| 6922 | Twentieth-Century American Studies | 3 |
| 6923 | Working-Class Literature | 3 |
| 6927* | Historical Survey of LIterature for Young People | 3 |
| 6935 | Studies in Romanticism | 3 |
| 6968 | Studies in Literary Form | 3 |
* Students may choose only one of these three courses.
Theory and methods courses (3 or more s.h.)
| Catalog # | Title | Hours |
| 6900 | Methods of Literary Researech | 3 |
| 6901 | Methods of Composition Research | 3 |
| 6902 | Literary Thought | 3 |
| 6907* | Teaching of Writing | 3 |
| 6955 | Advanced Linguistics | 3 |
| 6956 | TESOL Methods | 3 |
| 6957 | TESOL Practicum | 3 |
| 6960** | Studies in Linguistics | 3 |
| 6963 | Perspectives in Multicultural Stuidies | 3 |
| 6976 | Studies in English Education | 3 |
| 6993 | Discourse Theory | 3 |
* This course is required for graduate assistants.
** Depending on topic.
Language, discourse and writing courses (3 or more s.h.)
| Catalog # | Title | Hours |
| 6943 | Technical Communication | 3 |
| 6950 | Sociolinguistics | 3 |
| 6951 | Language Acquisition | 3 |
| 6958 | English Grammar | 3 |
| 6960* | Studies in Linguistics | 3 |
| 6966 | Writing of Poetry | 3 |
| 6967 | Writing of Prose | 3 |
* Depending on topic.