English (M.A.)

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Program: Master of Arts (M.A.)
Department of English and Linguistics
College of Liberal Arts

Liberal Arts Building 145 ~ 260-481-6841

Troy Bassett, Graduate Program Director

To earn this degree, you must complete at least 36 credits in courses administered by the department (courses are generally 3 credits each). You must maintain a GPA of at least 3.0 or better in courses taken to fulfill degree requirements; no course with a grade below B will count toward the degree.

Your program must include one course in professional scholarship in your area of concentration, one course in critical theory, and for those students selecting a concentration in Literature or Writing Studies three 6000-level seminars offered by the Department of English. Your program must also include the selection of one area of concentration: (1) Literature; (2) Writing Studies or (3) TESOL/TENL.

You must complete all M. A. degree requirements within five years of your admission to the program.

Teaching Assistantships

Graduate students may qualify for appointment as a teaching assistant (TA). To qualify, the student must have completed 50501, Teaching Composition, with a final grade of B or better, be recommended by the instructor of that course, the Associate Director of Writing, and be approved by the Director of Writing. Newly appointed TAs must complete the one-credit-hour course 50601, Practicum in Teaching Composition, with a final grade of P(Passing) in one of the first two semesters of their teaching. To become and remain a graduate TA, students must be in good academic standing.

Limited spaces are available for teaching. New TAs will typically be assigned one or two sections of 13100, Introductory Composition. Subsequent assignments may include the assignment of 12900, Basic Writing, with the approval of that course’s Coordinator. TA appointments carry a stipend and partial remission of fees.

College Scorecard

The U.S. Department of Education has created a scorecard for each university and its programs. The scorecard shows data for the university such as graduation rate, average annual cost, and median earnings. Then, when certain minimum standards have been met, data are available for a specific program. That data could include median earnings, median total debt, and number of graduates. The link below will help you learn more:

https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?151102-Purdue-University-Fort-Wayne&fos_code=2301&fos_credential=5

Program Requirements

Core Courses: Credits 3

ENGL 60501 - Critical Theory Cr. 3.
ENGL 50501 - Composition: Issue And Critical Approaches Cr. 3. (required for TESOL/TENL Concentration)

Professional Scholarship Course: Credits 3

One professional scholarship course in the student’s area of concentration:

ENGL 50102 - Old English Literature Cr. 3.
ENGL 51700 - Professional Scholarship In Writing Studies Cr. 3.
LING 51901 - Language And Society Cr. 3. (required for TESOL/TENL concentration)

Concentration: Credits 15-24

Five courses from one of the following three areas of concentration:

Literature
Writing Studies

Eight courses to complete the TESOL/TENL Concentration

Elective Courses

Sufficient additional credits applicable to the degree to bring the program to a total of at least 36 credit hours.
For those seeking to earn both the Masters in Art in English and the TENL Certificate, LING 53500 - TESOL Practicum (3 cr.) must be completed along with an additional 3 credits of electives. Students are encouraged to complete the electives in writing, literature, or education. This will bring the graduation requirements for both programs to 39 total credits. Students must apply for admission to the MA and the Certificate programs separately.

Recommendations

It is recommended that a student who plans to pursue a doctorate in literary study demonstrate reading proficiency in an approved international language under the auspices of the Department of International Language and Culture Studies by passing:
- A 3000+ level literature course in an international language with a grade of A or B, or
- A written examination that demonstrates a student’s proficiency in reading and translating an international language.
It is also recommended that a student who plans to pursue a doctorate in literary study elect to write a Master’s Thesis (3 Credit Hours).

Total Minimum Credit Hours: 36

Student Responsibility

You are responsible for satisfying the graduation requirements specified for your selected program. Thus, it is essential that you develop a thorough understanding of the required courses, academic policies and procedures governing your academic career. If you cannot complete all program requirements by your stated graduation date but fail to remove those from your plan of study, the Registrar’s Office in consultation with your academic advisor will remove unmet pursuits from your plan of study. All requests for exceptions to specific requirements must be made in writing and may be granted only by written approval from the Graduate Director.