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English (M.A.)

The English M.A. program at UMD provides broad training in literature, language and theory for students and professionals in the greater Washington D.C./Baltimore metropolitan area.

The English M.A. and Ph.D. program at the University of Maryland is characterized by scholarly engagement across various fields. The program has a wide reach within the English Department not only through our graduate courses, but also lectures, colloquia, and academic events that speak to the interdisciplinary focus of its students and professors. The program affords graduate students the opportunity of receiving credit for interdisciplinary work in a variety of fields. Certificates are available in Critical Theory, Digital Studies in the Arts and Humanities, Jewish Studies, and Women’s Studies.

Students in the M.A. in English pursue concentrations in their studies via the Academic Pathway in Literature, the Academic Pathway in Language, Writing, and Rhetoric, or the Teaching Pathway, a part-time program designed for educators in the DMV area. Students may pursue the program on a part-time basis in discussion with the Graduate Studies Office. However, part-time students will not be offered departmental funding packages.

A full-time student will finish the M.A. in four to five semesters. English M.A. students who are employed as professionals outside the university are permitted to pursue the program on a part-time basis, and timelines to degree will be discussed on an individual basis. This includes the brand new Teaching Pathway of the M.A. Program designed for DMV educators.

Academic Pathway in Literature

The Academic Pathway in Literature is the pathway for students interested in the field of English Literature who envision going on to complete a further advanced degree (MFA, Ph.D., etc.) in the field after the completion of the MA. This fully-funded pathway is intended to be completed as a full-time degree program. Goals of the pathway include: giving students a breadth of knowledge in the field of English language and literature; introduce students to the expectations of writing and producing knowledge in the field; prepare students for advanced study in doctoral or other programs; and, grant students opportunities in publishing, presenting, and developing scholarly works that can form the basis of a professional portfolio.

Course Requirements

  • Minimum of 9 courses (27 credits) at the graduate level, including 2 required courses, with a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.6, and 3 semesters of advising for 1 credit, equaling 1 course (3 credits) for a total of 30 credits in the program. 
  • 3 credits of ENGL 601 Introduction to Graduate Studies and at least 3 credits of ENGL 798 MA Non-thesis Research.
  • Requirements of Academic Pathway in Literature include:
    • 2 courses total in literatures of any of the following periods: (1) Beginnings and Medieval (2) Early Modern (3) Long 18th Century (4) Nineteenth Century (6 credits)
    • 2 courses total in literatures of either of the following periods: (1) Modern (2) Contemporary (6 credits)
    • 3 courses of electives (9 credits), with the recommendation that students take ENGL 602: Critical Theory
  • Successful completion of a Capstone Project 
  • Please note that students cannot retake courses for credit; only one course number can count towards their degree requirements. Courses that end in a letter can count towards their degree requirements, given that the ending letter is different for both courses.

Academic Pathway in Language, Writing, and Rhetoric

The Academic Pathway in Language, Writing, and Rhetoric (LWR) is the pathway for students interested in the fields of language, writing, and rhetoric who envision going on to complete a further advanced degree (Ph.D., etc.) in the field after completion of the MA. This fully-funded pathway is intended to be completed as a full-time degree program. Goals of the pathway include: giving students a breadth of knowledge in the fields of language, writing, and rhetoric studies; introduce students to the expectations for writing and producing knowledge in the field; prepare students for advanced study in doctoral or other programs; and, grant students opportunities in publishing, presenting, and developing scholarly work that can form the basis of a professional portfolio. Additionally, all students in this track are expected to be primarily advised by a faculty member in LWR who will oversee their course of study and their capstone project.

  • Course Requirements
    • Minimum of 9 courses (27 credits) at the graduate level, including 2 required courses, with a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.6, and 3 semesters of advising for 1 credit, equaling 1 course (3 credits) for a total of 30 credits in the program. 
    • 3 credits of ENGL 601 Introduction to Graduate Studies and at least 3 credits of ENGL 798 MA Non-thesis Research.
    • Requirements of Academic Pathway in LWR include:
      • 4 courses in Language, Writing, and Rhetoric (12 credits), or in a related field, selected under the guidance of the LWR advisor (at least 6 of these credits must be fulfilled in the ENGL department)
      • 3 courses of electives (9 credits)
      • Advising and capstone project are to be completed under the guidance of a LWR faculty member
    • Successful completion of a Capstone Project 
    • Please note that students cannot retake courses for credit; only one course number can count towards their degree requirements. Courses that end in a letter can count towards their degree requirements, given that the ending letter is different for both courses.

Teaching Pathway for Educators

The Teaching Pathway is designed for secondary educators in the DMV region who are seeking a means to advance professionally and to meet continuing education requirements. This pathway is not a means of certifying new teachers, but rather it is designed to support existing teachers through a combination of coursework in the Department of English and in the College of Education’s Department of Teaching and Learning, Policy and Leadership. This part-time pathway provides coursework across both departments and encourages students to build a course of study that reflects their interests and classroom needs. Students in this pathway are expected to complete a Capstone project in consultation with an advisor in the English Department.

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Capstone Project

The M.A. capstone project is a graduate-level piece of critical inquiry that contributes to an established area in English language and/or literary studies. The M.A. capstone can take various forms or platforms to be determined in collaboration by the student, their director and reader and the DGS. These forms and platforms may include an article-length (approximately 5,000-7,500 words) critical essay based on a traditional seminar paper, revised in collaboration with the student’s director and reader; a pedagogy portfolio with a critical component; a digital project with a critical component; a personal essay or literary ethnography with a critical component; a translation or edition with a critical component; or, a project done at the discretion of your capstone committee that meets the scholarly rigor expected of this project.

Completion of the M.A. capstone project does not involve any additional registration beyond the 30 credits of coursework. An independent study to revise an existing paper cannot be used as one of the 10 required classes for the M.A.

Committee: The committee consists of a director, a reader and a representative of the Graduate Studies Office (the director of Graduate Studies or a member of the Graduate Committee).  In many cases involving a paper revision, the director will be the professor for whom the paper was written and the reader will be a professor in the same field of study. In all cases, the director and reader oversee the capstone project; the representative of the Graduate Studies Office reads only the final version of the project.

Timing: Full-time M.A. students should begin the process of choosing a project and finding a director and reader during their second semester of study in time for the First Year Meeting. This meeting will be held with the student, a prospective director, and the Graduate studies Office to discuss the student's course of study, progress to degree, the capstone or thesis requirement, and their goals after the M.A.

Students should defend the capstone project sometime in the first 12 weeks of their final semester in the M.A. program. Students work with their directors to schedule the defense and must submit the project to their committee members at least two weeks before the defense. Students should contact the Graduate Office to reserve a room for the defense at least six weeks prior to the proposed date. At that time, the student should inform the Graduate Studies Office of the date, time and committee members of the capstone project.

Defense: The one-hour defense of the capstone project begins with the student giving a brief presentation of the project, focusing on the work completed for the capstone. In the case of revised papers, this includes a focus on the revision process. The presentation is followed by an open discussion of the paper by the committee members and the student.

At the conclusion of the discussion, the committee assigns to the writing project one of three grades: "High Pass," a recognition of truly exemplary work requiring agreement of all committee members; "Pass," a judgment by at least two committee members that the paper fulfills the main goals of the writing project; and "Fail," a judgment by at least two committee members that the paper does not fulfill those goals. Students who receive a "High Pass" or "Pass" will make final revisions at the discretion of the director; the final revision must be submitted to the director no later than the end of the semester. Students who receive the grade of "Fail" may resubmit a revised paper in a subsequent semester. A second "Fail" will disqualify the student from receiving the M.A.

Deadlines and Paperwork

The M.A. program takes two academic years to complete if pursued full-time.

Completing the M.A. involves careful attention to deadlines imposed and paperwork required by the Graduate School. 

Specific deadlines for students intending to graduate will be announced on the English graduate-student reflector and on the Graduate School's Deadlines for Graduate Students.

The forms required to apply for graduation and complete the M.A. are available at the Graduate School’s Forms for Graduate Students.

M.A. Application Instructions

Submit the complete application and all supporting materials by December 3, 2024. Please note that the system will close promptly at midnight, so you will be unable to edit your application past 11:59pm on this date. The system is set to Maryland time (EST). If you are uncertain about what time that the system will close in your timezone, please look it up. We are unable to make exceptions for late applications based on timezone.

University of Maryland's Graduate Application Process

The University of Maryland’s Graduate School accepts applications through its application system. Before completing the application, applicants are asked to check the Admissions Requirements site for specific instructions.

As required by the Graduate School, all application materials are to be submitted electronically:

  • Graduate Application
  • Non-refundable application fee ($75) for each program
  • Statement of Goals, Research Interests, and Experiences. The statement, which should be around 1000 words, should address relevant aspects of your educational experience, the focus of your academic interests, and reasons for applying to our program. If you are applying to the PhD program but would like to be considered for the MA if you are not selected for the PhD, please indicate that here.
  • Unofficial transcripts of your entire college/university record (undergraduate and graduate), including records of any advanced work done at another institution. Electronic copies of these unofficial transcripts must be uploaded along with your on-line application. Official transcripts will be required after an applicant is admitted to the program.
  • Three letters of recommendation. In your on-line application, please complete fully the information requested for your recommenders and ask them to submit their letters electronically. We do not accept letters through Interfolio.
  •  A single sample of critical writing of approximately 12-20 pages double-spaced (not including works cited/bibliography). While we encourage you to submit your best writing sample, we prefer a writing sample in your declared field of interest. If you are submitting an excerpted selection, please include a brief description or introduction to the selection. The MLA citation format is preferred.
  • Academic CV/Resume

The electronic submission of application materials helps expedite the review of an application. Completed applications are reviewed by an admissions committee in each graduate degree program. The recommendations of the committees are submitted to the Dean of the Graduate School, who will make the final admission decision. Students seeking to complete graduate work at the University of Maryland for degree purposes must be formally admitted to the Graduate School by the Dean.  To ensure the integrity of the application process, the University of Maryland authenticates submitted materials through TurnItIn for Admissions.

Information for International Graduate Students

The University of Maryland is dedicated to maintaining a vibrant international graduate student community. The office of International Students and Scholars Services (ISSS) is a valuable resource of information and assistance for prospective and current international students.  International applicants are encouraged to explore the services they offer, and contact them with related questions.

The University of Maryland Graduate School offers admission to international students based on academic information; it is not a guarantee of attendance.  Admitted international students will then receive instructions about obtaining the appropriate visa to study at the University of Maryland which will require submission of additional documents.  Please see the Graduate Admissions Process for International applicants for more information.

Contact

Questions related to the admissions process, prospective students may contact the Graduate School.

Prospective Student FAQ

Because many of our applicants share general questions about the application process, we have compiled a list of frequently asked questions to make applying a bit easier.

Prospective Student FAQ