AAADS & English

Dual M.A./M.F.A. in AAADS and English (Creative Writing)

Requirements for the M.A. in AAADS – 26 credit hours minimum

  • Required courses in AAADS (10-12)
  • Electives (12 credits minimum): Students should take courses organized around a topical concentration, whether specifically regional or comparative. These courses are to be selected from the range of AAADS and those cross-listed AAADS in the College and several professional schools with the approval of the student’s major advisors in Creative Writing and AAADS.
  • A698 Field Study Seminar (4-8): research and preparation of thesis essay. Students can take two semesters of A698 at four hours per semester (one semester in thesis research and one semester for thesis writing).
  • Language requirement (two semesters – 6 hours)

Requirements for the M.F.A. in Creative Writing – at least 60 credit hours—48 in residence

  • 16 hours of workshops (poetry or fiction)
  • Four courses (12-16 hours) in AAADS literature, culture, and history, at least two of which must be at the 600 level or above
  • W554 Teaching Creative Writing
  • W664 Topics in Current Literature or W680 Theory and Craft of Writing
  • 10 elective graduate hours
  • Maximum of 12 hours for thesis credit
  • Thesis
  • Please see director of creative writing for course approval or AAADS director of graduate studies for courses outside the College of Arts and Sciences.

Foreign Language requirement (two semesters)

M.A./M.F.A. students may satisfy the foreign language requirement by showing satisfactory completion of course work or passing a language proficiency exam. Language requirements should be met as soon as possible, beginning immediately after graduate studies have begun. A student is expected to be working on fulfilling the requirement every semester until it is completed.

About the Dual Master’s Program

Students who are concurrently enrolled in two departments may qualify for two master’s degrees under a provision that allows credit earned to satisfy the major requirements of one department to count as elective credit in a second department. Dual master’s degrees require a minimum of 50 credits, with at least 21 credits earned in each of the programs.

To be eligible for this program, a student must be formally admitted by both departments and by the University Graduate School. All requirements of both degrees must be met, including passing any departmental examinations and satisfying foreign-language/research-skill requirements. If both departments require a thesis, the student may write a single thesis that meets the requirements of both fields. The thesis committee will comprise an equal number of representatives of both departments, and the thesis credit will be split between the two. All course work for the program must be completed within a period of six years.