Curriculum: The M.A. in English at a Glance

Our curriculum is designed to emphasize the breadth, diversity, and interdisciplinarity of the field of English Studies. Students in the program move through coursework that involves them in the study of literary and cultural texts, literary criticism and theory, composition and rhetoric, theories and practices of writing pedagogy, professional and technical communication, and the digital humanities. Moreover, they gain an intimate working knowledge of where our discipline is in the contemporary moment – of the heterogeneous objects, methods, frameworks, questions, and debates that comprise its present horizon of concerns.

To be admitted to the Master of Arts in English, students must (1) hold a Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) from an accredited institution and (2) have maintained a grade point average of 3.0 for the last 90 quarter units (60 semester units). Non-native speakers should also submit TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) scores. At the discretion of the graduate coordinator, students without an English major may be admitted conditionally and required to take certain prerequisites prior to beginning their graduate coursework. (The prerequisites required of conditionally admitted students will be limited to 12 units or fewer.)

English M.A. students complete 46 units of coursework: 11 four-unit seminars, and a two-unit capstone portfolio project. In addition to our three required "foundations" courses and the capstone project, students must take at least four literature seminars – two in U.S. American literatures and two in U.K. and/or Irish literatures. The remaining 16 units of coursework are chosen from among our various course offerings in literary and cultural studies, technical and professional communication, rhetoric and writing studies, criticism, and theory.

The "typical" path through the degree entails taking eight units per quarter for the first five quarters, and six units (one seminar + the capstone project) in one's sixth and final quarter.

 

Required Courses (30 Units)

Course NUMBER	Course Title
ENGL 501	Introduction to English Studies (4 units)
ENGL 502	Introduction to Criticism and Theory (4 units)
ENGL 505	Introduction to Composition Theory (4 units)
ENGL 511*	(2) U.S. American Literature (2 x 4 units)
ENGL 512*	(2) U.K. and/or Irish Literature (2 x 4 units)
ENGL 598	Capstone Project: The Research Portfolio (2 units)

* These are variable topics courses; a diverse range of such courses is offered across every two-year cycle. Note that M.A. students must take at least one early period (pre-1850) literature course.

Further (Elective) Coursework (16 units)

Students' 16 elective units of coursework are to be selected from among the following offerings:

Course Code	Course Title
ENGL 506*	Pedagogical Approaches to Composition (4 Units)
ENGL 511	U.S. American Literature (4 units)
ENGL 512	U.K. and/or Irish Literature (4 Units)
ENGL 513	Global Anglophone Literature or Literatures in Translation (4 Units)
ENGL 518	Technical and Professional Communication (4 Units)
ENGL 519	Special Topics in Rhetoric and Writing (4 Units)

*ENGL 506 is strongly recommended for students admitted to the T.A. Program.