English (M.A.)

Print Degree Planner (opens a new window) |

Program Admission Requirements

In addition to the Graduate School Admission Requirements , applicants must have achieved an average grade of B or higher in upper-level undergraduate courses in the major. The GRE General Test (gre.org) is required, as is a writing sample and two recommendations addressing the applicanaptitude for graduate study.

Program Description

The M.A. degree in English offers a choice of three concentrations: Literature, Professional Writing, or Rhetoric and Composition. A total of 33 graduate English credit hours is required: 12 hour core, 9 hour concentration, and 12 hours in one of the following options

Thesis Option: 6 hours of thesis and 6 hours of ENGL electives
Non-Thesis Option: 12 hours of ENGL electives

In addition to the coursework, all M.A. in English students must successfully pass written comprehensive examinations based on reading lists and content knowledge, which are specific to each concentration. For those writing a thesis, a final oral defense is required. For more information on the M.A. in English, see the current Guide to Graduate Studies in English available at gradeenglish.wcu.edu. (Any student who receives two final course grades of C or one final course grade of F will be dismissed from the program.

Core requirements (12 hours)

ENGL 618 - Research Methods in English

(3 credit hours) and one course from each concentration (9 total credit hours).

Concentrations (9 hours)

Electives (12 hours, of which 6 may be Thesis)

12 hours of courses selected from the three Concentrations above or from the following

Thesis students must take 6 hours of ENGL 699- Thesis Research and 6 hours of courses selected from the three concentrations above or from the following courses;
Non-thesis Options students must take at least 12 hours of electives selected from the three concentrations above or from the following courses:

ENGL 515 - Linguistics Credits: 3
ENGL 516 - Teaching English as a Second Language Credits: 3
ENGL 517 - Methods of Teaching Literature Credits: 3
ENGL 615 - Linguistic Perspectives Credits: 3
ENGL 617 - Historical Linguistics Credits: 3
ENGL 619 - English Grammars Credits: 3
ENGL 625 - Applied Phonetics and Pronunciation Teaching Credits: 3
ENGL 635 - Teaching Grammar, Reading and Writing to ESL Students. Credits: 3
ENGL 645 - Second Language Acquisition and TESOL Methodology Credits: 3
ENGL 655 - Professional Development of the ESL Teacher Credits: 3
ENGL 699 - Thesis Research Credits: 3, R12

TESOL Course Approval

English as a Second Language (ESL) and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) courses in this listing (ENGL 615, 617, 619, 625, 635,645, or 655) will need the approval of a TESOL faculty member.

Certificate Programs

The English Department offers the following post-baccalaureate certificates:

English (M.A.)

Core requirements (12 hours)

Concentrations (9 hours)

Professional Writing Concentration (9 hours)

Literature Concentration (9 hours)

Rhetoric and Composition Concentration (9 hours)

Electives (12 hours, of which 6 may be Thesis)

TESOL Course Approval

Certificate Programs