English, Master of Arts with a Concentration in Rhetoric and Composition (M.A.)
Admission Requirements
Applicants must meet the general requirements of the Graduate School. Applicants with a cumulative undergraduate GPA of less than 2.5 are required to complete the GRE and achieve satisfactory scores of 150 or higher on the Verbal and 4.0 or higher on the Analytical Writing sections of the exam. They also should have completed at least an undergraduate minor in English and/or be prepared to do additional hours to remove any deficiency in their undergraduate preparations. Ordinarily a 3.0 standing must have been achieved in upper division English courses.
Program Requirements
CIP Code: 23.0101
Students must complete the 12 hours of the core curriculum as outlined below. Students choose one of three concentrations within the program: rhetoric and composition, literature, or generalist. Students in any concentration may elect thesis or non-thesis exit requirements to complete the program. Conferences between students and the program coordinator will ensure that elective hours are used to meet the program needs of the individual. At least half of the course work (i.e., 15 credit hours must be in courses open only to graduate students (800 level).
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Core Courses | ||
| ENG 801 | Introduction to Graduate Study | 3 |
| Rhetoric and Composition Courses | ||
| Choose from one of the following: | 3 | |
| Topics in Professional Writing | ||
| Seminar on Writing Pedagogy | ||
| Topics in Modern Rhetoric:____ | ||
| Studies in Modern Composition | ||
| Sem in Comp Resrch Methods | ||
| History of Rhetoric | ||
| Literature Courses | ||
| Choose from one of the following: | 3 | |
| Topics in a Genre:____________ | ||
| Topics in Textual Studies:__ | ||
ENG 825 | ||
| Textual Studies Seminar | ||
| Multimodal Criticism | ||
| Crit. Studies Contemp. Texts | ||
ENG 853 | ||
ENG 854 | ||
| Seminar in Medieval Literature | ||
ENG 873 | ||
ENG 876 | ||
ENG 878 | ||
| Seminar in 20th Cen Brit Lit | ||
| Language Studies/ESL Courses | ||
| Choose from one of the following: | 3 | |
| Intro to Linguistic Theory | ||
| English as a Second Language | ||
| History of English Language | ||
ENG 825 | ||
| Concentrations | ||
| Students must select one of the following Concentrations: | 18 | |
Rhetoric and Composition Concentration | ||
Literature Concentration | ||
Generalist Concentration | ||
| Exit Requirements | ||
| GRD 857E | 0 | |
| GRD 858E | 0 | |
| Total Hours | 30 | |
Concentration
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Concentration Courses | ||
| Choose from 12 hours of the following: | 12 | |
| Topics in Professional Writing | ||
| Seminar on Writing Pedagogy | ||
| Topics in Modern Rhetoric:____ | ||
| Studies in Modern Composition 1 | ||
| Sem in Comp Resrch Methods | ||
| History of Rhetoric | ||
| Electives in English | ||
| ENG 898 | Thesis (Thesis Option) | 3 |
| Choose from three hours of ENG electives | 3 | |
| Total Hours | 18 | |
- 1
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Must include ENG 808 Studies in Modern Composition (if not completed as part of the core)
Exit Requirements
Comprehensive Examination
All students are required to pass a written comprehensive examination (GRD 857E ). Comprehensive examinations will be scheduled approximately one month before the end of the student’s final enrollment period in graduate work for the degree. Non-thesis students will take a two-part examination:
- a breadth-of-knowledge assessment (common to all students in a given concentration) and
- a depth-of-knowledge assessment (tailored to the individual student’s scholarly interests).
Thesis students will take only the breadth-of-knowledge assessment for their concentration.
Thesis
The thesis is optional in this program. Students electing the thesis option must register for ENG 898 Thesis as one of their elective courses. A student wishing to write a thesis must prepare a prospectus and have it approved by the thesis committee before registering for thesis hours. The thesis must be prepared in conformity with the regulations approved by the Graduate Council and the Department of English. Students seeking to complete a thesis are required to pass an oral defense of their thesis (GRD 858E ). Oral examinations will be scheduled approximately one month before the end of the student’s final enrollment period in graduate work for the degree. Detailed information concerning the preparation and submission of the thesis may be obtained from the program coordinator.