School of Writing, Literature, and Film*

For graduate advising, please contact Professor Peter Betjemann, Graduate Studies Coordinator at peter.betjemann@oregonstate.edu. 

Graduate-Only Requirements:

• 4 credit hours: ENG 514 (Introduction to Graduate Studies)
• 12 credit hours: ENG/WR 503 (thesis)
• 16 credit hours: additional graduate-only courses (may include up to 8 donut/blanket hours; if some of the credits taken for the area of emphasis are 500-only, they may count towards this category but students must still have a minimum of 48 total credits) 

For English Department TAs:

• 2 credit hours WR 517 (teaching practicum)

Total: 32 credit hours (34 for English Department TAs)

Additional Requirements:

• 4 credit hours: pre-1800 literature
• 12 credit hours in an area of emphasis (Literature & Culture or Writing, Rhetoric, & Culture)

For Literature and Culture, choose from these options:

• ENG 512, ENG 516, ENG 517, ENG 518, ENG 519, ENG 520, ENG 525, ENG 526, ENG 530, ENG 533, ENG 534, ENG 535, ENG 536, ENG 538, ENG 540, ENG 545, ENG 550, ENG 552, ENG 554, ENG 557, ENG 558, ENG 560, ENG 565, ENG 570, ENG 575, ENG 580, ENG 582, ENG 585, ENG 586, ENG 588, ENG 589, ENG 590, ENG 595, ENG 597, ENG 598, WR 595

For Writing, Rhetoric, and Culture, choose from these options:

• ENG 595, WR 511, WR 512, WR 514, WR 516, WR 520, WR 527, WR 548, WR 549, WR 562, WR 593, WR 595, and WR 599

For English Department TAs:

• 4 credit hours from a pedagogical course on foundations in writing and rhetoric (WR 511, WR 512, WR 593, WR 595; if this course is 500-only, it may count toward the 16 required hours in graduate-only seminars listed above)

Total: 16 credit hours (16 or 20 for English Department TAs)

Total Core Requirements: a minimum of 48 credit hours (50 or 54 for English Department TAs) 

(Students who entered the program before Fall 2010 can find their program requirements here.)

Thesis Requirement:

All MA candidates are required to complete a thesis.  This may take one of two forms: 1) a sustained argument ranging between 40-60 pages, generally broken into closely related chapters or sections, or 2) two article-length essays developing arguments on distinct but related topics, each 20-25 pages, with a framing introduction that addresses their relationship.

Work on the thesis is directed principally by the student’s major professor.  This professor should be a member of the graduate faculty with significant expertise in the area of the student’s thesis project.  Other committee members’ roles should be determined by the committee as a whole on a case-by-case basis; if a student chooses the second thesis option, for example, a committee member might oversee one essay while the major professor oversees the other essay and the framing introduction.

Other Requirements:

Proficiency in a foreign language equivalent to a second-year university course is also required; for more information, see the OSU graduate catalog.  The MA is designed as a two-year program, but all requirements—minimum credits, foreign language, thesis, and examination—must be completed within seven years, with at least 30 credits taken in residence at Oregon State after admission as a graduate student.