English

Degree Offered Master of Arts in English

Program Overview

The graduate program in English is designed to provide advanced study in literature. It provides for personal development and for professional advancement, particularly in teaching, editorial work, journalism, publishing, writing, and research. The program also prepares students for advanced studies leading to the Ph.D.

Requirements for Admission to the Program:

Note: Applications for this program are accepted twice a year: February 1 and October 1 for Fall and Spring semester admission.

Students must fulfill the general requirements for admission to the Graduate College. In addition:

1. Applications must be word-processed or typed, and must indicate a degree concentration: Literature or Composition.
2. In their personal Statement of Goals and Objectives, applicants to the Program in English should specify their reasons for pursuing graduate-level studies in Literature or Composition, and they should identify the background, strengths, and academic skills that they feel will ensure their success as a MA student.
3. All applicants must submit a representative sample of academic or professional writing that demonstrates their critical thinking and/or research strengths and indicates their ability to do well in advanced study in English Literature or Composition. The writing sample should not exceed 15 pages in length, and should preferably be work completed for an upper-division undergraduate course in English or for a graduate-level English course. (Those who cannot meet this requirement may petition the Graduate Coordinator for admission in a written statement.)
4. The Graduate Records Examination (GRE) is a nationally recognized indicator of the verbal and written skills typically needed to fulfill graduate-level study in English. GRE scores are not required for admission, but they may be submitted to supplement an application.

Literature Track:
To be admitted to the MA program in English, Literature Track, students must have completed a minimum of 30 credit hours of undergraduate work in composition and literature, including courses in Literary Criticism, Shakespeare, and Chaucer. (History of the English Language may be substituted for Chaucer.)

Composition Track:
To be admitted to the MA program in English, Composition Track, a candidate must have a BA in English, English Education, or a related field subject to the approval of the Graduate Advisor in English.

Degree Requirements

For students admitted to Master's programs prior to the Fall 1997 semester, the majority of courses applied to the Master's degree must be 400-level; a limited number of appropriate 300-level courses are applicable.

For students admitted to Master's programs for the Fall 1997 semester and thereafter, all graduate credits will be at the 400-level, except for a limited number of 300-level courses specifically approved for graduate degree credits. Students may apply up to three of these 300-level courses, to a maximum of ten credit hours, to fulfill program requirements.

The graduate program requires 33 credit hours of coursework in literature (principally English and American), or 33 hours with a concentration in composition. (The specifics of each program are defined below.) Both programs require a final written examination.

Thesis Option:

A scholarly thesis or an original imaginative work, earning six credit hours, may be written by students enrolled in the literature track. Students on the composition track must write a scholarly thesis. After achieving degree candidacy, the student, in consultation with the graduate coordinator, should select a topic and choose an advisor. The approved thesis or imaginative work must be submitted to the graduate coordinator at least one month before a formal defense.

Examination:
When all course work is completed, degree candidates must pass a written examination, which is offered twice a year. A student who fails any part of the examination may take that part a second time. Permission to take it a third time may be granted by the departmental graduate committee after a review of the student's record. Additional course work may be required before a third and final attempt.

Students completing the thesis option will give an oral defense of their thesis before a departmental committee.

Literature Track:
A student's program should be planned with a view to achieving adequate and substantial preparation in English and American literatures, with some work in world literature. Courses in literary criticism, Shakespeare, Chaucer and the history of the English language must be taken in the master's program if they were not taken in the undergraduate program. While the graduate coordinator may recommend more or less work in English and American literatures, the typical program includes the following course work:

Required Courses:

ENGL 410 Literary Method and Practice......................... 3 cr.
ENGL-430 Studies in Literary Criticism ......................... 3 cr.
Two American literature courses at the 400-level,
including at least one seminar .................................... 6 cr.
Three English literature courses at the 400-level,
including at least one seminar .................................... 9 cr.
Electives chosen from 300-level (only those approved for graduate degree credit) and/or 400-level courses ..........9 cr.
ENGL-453 Thesis Seminar in English
or
Two additional 400-level courses ............................... 6 cr.
Total 33 cr.

Composition Track:
Students must complete the Core Curriculum coursework, plus 12 hours of approved electives; maintain good academic standing in the Graduate College; pass a comprehensive exam in the field of Composition; and, submit a thesis in Composition to be approved by a faculty committee appointed by the English Department.

Required Courses:

Core Curriculum ........................................................... 21 cr.
ENGL-433 Seminar in Composition Theory
ENGL-434 Seminar in Basic Writing Theory
ENGL-435 Writing Assessment: Theory and Practice
ENGL-436 Rhetorics of Composition
ENGL-438 Research in Composition
ENGL-453 Thesis Seminar in English

Electives ................................................................... 12 cr.
to be chosen with the approval of the Graduate Advisor in English and in accordance with the following provisions:
- no more than 6 hours at the 300-level (only those approved for graduate degree credit)
- no more than 9 hours in one area of study designated below:

Literature: American, British and/or International
Writing: Craft and Genre
(only those approved for graduate degree credit)
ENGL-376 Advanced Composition: Grammar and Style
ENGL-377 Argumentative Prose
Rhetoric: Theory and History
ENGL-430 Studies in Literary Criticism
ENGL-439 Stylistics
SPCH-COMM-322 Modern Rhetoric
SPCH-COMM-404 Communication Theory
Language: Theory and History
LING-401 Fundamentals of Modern Linguistics
LING-410 Techniques for Teaching English as a Second Language
LING-414 Theories of Teaching English as a Second Language
LING-446 Sociolinguistics (Prereq: LING-401)
Note: You may get permission from the Graduate Advisor to take other courses not included on this list to meet the elective requirement.

Advisor