MA Requirements & Funding

The Master of Arts (MA) with a concentration in Composition and Rhetoric combines intensive study of current theory and practice within the discipline with carefully supervised training in the teaching of writing. Small classes with some of the most distinguished teacher-scholars in the field enable students to build individual research agendas shaped in relation to faculty expertise.

MA students must complete at least 16 hours of coursework in Composition and Rhetoric. Over the course of four semesters, students choose their Composition and Rhetoric courses from offerings that represent a range of emphases within our program including:

Foundation Courses (choose at least 2 courses (8 hours) from the following:

• ENG 732: Histories and Theories of Composition
• ENG 733: Histories and Theories of Rhetoric
• ENG 735: Research Methods in Rhetoric and Composition
• ENG 737: Contemporary Theories of Rhetoric

Special Topic Courses

Special topic courses are offered each semester. Recent special topic courses have included:
Writing Program Administration, Professional Writing, Digital Composition, Rhetorics of Public Spheres, Comparative Rhetorics, Rhetorics of Style, For more information see Recent Courses.

Other required coursework:

• ENG 605: Issues in the Profession (2 hrs.)

During their first year, students enroll in a full-year workshop that supports their classroom teaching and a two-credit introduction to issues of the profession required of new MA and PhD students in all degree programs.

Funding

MA Graduate Assistantships provide tuition remission and a stipend to support their graduate work that permits them to teach two sections of first-year composition in the College Composition program during their first year in the program, and three during the second.