master of arts in english
As suggested below, Wayland’s Master of Arts in English is a general program of study designed to prepare students for teaching, further graduate school, creative writing, and other related fields. Each of the four annual terms will offer at least one online course, as well as a combination of evening and/or weekend and hybrid classes in an effort to accommodate working professionals. Seek your literary dream with us. |
School of Languages and Literature
Professor Cindy McClenagan, Dean
Professors Arch Mayfield, Steve Michael, Michael Sewell
Associate Professors Timothy Brady, Deborah Kuhlmann, Joshua Mora, James Waller
Assistant Professors Ashley Faulkner, Brent Lynn
Master of Arts in English (M.A.) – The 37-hour Master of Arts in English program is designed to prepare students for teaching, further graduate work, creative writing, or related writing and research fields. Two options or tracks are available, each requiring a total of 37 graduate hours: The thesis-option track requires 6 hours of thesis and an oral defense, while the non-thesis track requires 6 additional hours of coursework. Both the thesis and the non-thesis track require a written comprehensive exam.
Admission Requirements (in addition to those listed for all graduate students):
Applicants for the Master of Arts in English must have the following:
- A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university;
- A minimum of 12 upper-division hours in English, with a 3.0 GPA in all undergraduate English courses;
- A reading proficiency in a foreign language approved by the School of
Languages and Literature. The proficiency may be met by the prior successful
completion of a minimum of 9 hours (generally three consecutive courses) in
one approved foreign language, or it may be met within the first year of enrollment
thorough undergraduate leveling courses equal to 9 hours in one approved
foreign language. (See current catalog for a general explanation of Leveling
Courses for graduate programs.)
Final admission to the program requires the Dean of Languages and Literature’s approval, which is based upon:
- Prior academic or undergraduate performance:
- Cumulative GPA
- GPA in all coursework in English
- Writing sample
- Two academic letters of recommendation
The MA in English application form - must be filled out for admission.
Thesis Track (37 hours total, 6 must be thesis hours) - The thesis hours require a student to demonstrate the ability to do independent research. A committee of three full-time English professors, selected by the student and approved by the Dean of the School, will supervise the thesis. One member of the committee will serve as the student’s chair or advisor throughout the thesis process. Once the student begins work on the thesis, continuous enrollment in thesis hours must be maintained until completion of the Thesis. (However, summer enrollment is required only if the student anticipates working on or completing the thesis in the summer term.) Near the completion of the thesis, the student must successfully present and support it before committee members, and then publically present it to the University audience.
- Non-Thesis Track (37 hours total) – In lieu of writing a thesis, students may choose to complete two additional courses.
- Comprehensive Exam (1 hour) – Students in both tracks, thesis and non-thesis, must complete a comprehensive exam one or two semesters prior to the completion of coursework. The exam requires students to familiarize themselves with specific texts from the current reading list and write responses to those texts. A committee of three full-time English professors, selected by the Dean of the School and approved by the full-time faculty, read and evaluate all comprehensive exams completed in a semester.
Results of the comprehensive exam fall into three categories:
- Pass with Distinction – student demonstrates outstanding mastery of material
- Pass – student demonstrates mastery of material
- Fail – student does not demonstrate mastery of material
*Students who fail the comprehensive exam on the first attempt may attempt the exam a second time in the next four terms. No student will be allowed to repeat an examination more than once without taking additional course work.
- Transfer Credit – Up to 12 hours of approved graduate credit from an accredited college or university may satisfy degree requirements. To attempt transfer credit from other institutions, a student must submit an official transcript of the courses to be considered, and may also be required to submit a catalog description and course syllabus from the institution where the course was taken. The Dean of the School and the Executive Vice President and Provost must approve transfer credit.
- Course Requirements – The Master of Arts in English requires a total of 37 hours; once a student selects a desired track—thesis-option or non-thesis option—he or she can fulfill the necessary hours by successfully completing the following:
7 hours of required coursework:
ENGL 5308: Literary Research Methods
ENGL 5102: Comprehensive Exam (generally completed in last semester of attendance)
Plus 24 hours from:
ENGL 5301: Seventeenth-century Prose and Poetry
ENGL 5302: Eighteenth-century Prose and Poetry
ENGL 5309: Young Adult Literature
ENGL 5345: Teaching English as a Second Language
These courses are not effective until fall 2010
ENGL 5304: Studies in British Literature
ENGL 5310: Early American Literature
ENGL 5311: American Romanticism and Realism
ENGL 5312: Modern American Literature
ENGL 5313: Studies in American Literature
ENGL 5315: Advanced Creative Writing
ENGL 5316: Special Topics in Literature
ENGL 5346: Teaching College Composition
And 6 hours of thesis, OR 6 hours of additional coursework from above (if non-thesis):
ENGL 5360: Thesis I (first term)
ENGL 5361: Thesis II (second term)
_______________________________________________________
For more information, please contact the main office of
the School of Languages and Literature:
Ms. Annette Coon, coona@wbu.edu, (806) 291-1100
Dr. Cindy McClenagan, Dean, cindym@wbu.edu, (806) 291-1100
CMB#480
1900 West 7th Street
Plainview, TX 79072
For fall 2010 enrollment, all application materials should be received by July 2010.