Master of Arts in English
The English Department operates primarily under Plan B, as specified in the University Bulletin. This plan requires 27 hours of course work and a written examination. Students must take a minimum of THREE 500 level seminars (9 credits). English 590 (Special Reading or Research-Independent Study) does NOT count toward this 9 credit minimum. Six hours of graduate work may be transferred from another institution or another Case department, on application to the Director of Graduate Studies. Students must take English 510 (Research and Methods), English 400 (Teaching Composition), and English 487 (Critical Theory), ordinarily in their first year; in addition they may take a maximum of four courses in any one of the areas listed below, and must take at least one in each of the other three. These areas are:
- English Literature through the 18th Century
- 19th-and 20th-Century English Literature
- American Literature
- Other department offerings including film, linguistics, rhetoric, critical theory, and creative writing.
II. The MA Exam (Plan B):
Students must take the MA examination no later than one semester after completing courses and credit-hour requirements for the degree. The examination is given once in the fall and once in the spring, usually during the last week of October and the last week of March.
The exam reading list of 15 works (in the case of poetry, selections constitute a "work") is posted on the Graduate English bulletin board as soon as it is approved by the Graduate Committee each spring. Each year two new works are added and two older works are removed. The new list is good for both semesters of the next academic year. Students are responsible for reading some critical materials on these texts as well as on the genres and historical periods they come from.
A file of questions used on past MA exams is available from the department assistant for students to photocopy and to use in preparation. There are also a few sample answers available to study.
The exam itself is a take-home exam, completed over the course of one week, consisting of TWO essays based on TWO comparative questions, one provided by the student and one provided by the committee.
These essays will be approximately 10-12pp. each and will require each student to write a critically informed comparison of texts from different genres and historical periods. They will also require the student to demonstrate competence in close reading in both essays. Each student will be responsible for formulating ONE of these questions based on his or her individual interests; the Graduate Committee will formulate the second question and give it to the student one week before the due date of the exam.
Each student will submit his or her individualized question to the graduate committee in the second month of the last semester of coursework (i.e. February or October). The graduate committee will then either approve, amend, or send the question back for revision and resubmission. For the essay that is based on the student's own question, the texts will be chosen by the Graduate Committee. For the essay based on the Graduate Committee's question, the texts will be chosen by the student. Students will be required to discuss at least FIVE texts over the course of these two essays, and to include close readings (on passages of their choice) in each. Students will have ONE WEEK to complete and submit the essays after receiving the committees designated question and instructions about texts.
The due date of the exam the due date of the exam will be either in late October or late March, based on the GraduateSchool's deadline for graduation that semester. A student must be registered during the semester in which the examination is taken. If not registered for other courses, the student will be required to register for one semester hour of EXAM 600, Comprehensive Examination, in order to take the exam.
Failure on the Exam:
If an exam is deemed inadequate, the student will be required to retake the exam in the following semester with the same list of texts but new questions. This may include the summer term if the student feels adequately prepared for the retake and if there are enough members of the Graduate Committee available (minimum 3) to evaluate the exam.
If an exam is deemed not strong enough to pass, but not a clear failure, the Graduate Committee, instead of issuing an outright failure, will have the option to conduct an oral exam of one hour, asking the student questions about various texts on the list. If the student fails the oral exam, then the written exam will need to be retaken in the following semester, as described above.
III. Thesis Option (Plan A):
Students permitted to write a thesis will take, as part of the 27-hour requirement, six hours of thesis work (English 651), including an oral defense of thesis before a committee consisting of the student's thesis director and two other examiners appointed by the Chair of the Department (who may delegate this authority to the Graduate Director). The vote of the examining committee to accept the thesis must be unanimous.
Coursework: 21 hours (minimum of 9 hours of 500 level seminars)
Thesis: 6 hours
Total: 27 hours
Once registered for 651 (always for a minimum of 3 hours), a student must continue to be registered until graduating. After two semesters of 651 at three hours per semester, a student may register for 651 at 1 credit hour for two semesters. This is an inducement to finish. After this, the student must go back to registering for 3 credit hours. These hours would be above the 27 hours required for the degree.
Requirements for the MA in World Literature
(English and French, German or Spanish)
I. Hours and Courses
The degree requires a minimum of 27 hours of coursework, including twelve hours in English and American literature and 12 hours in the second language and world literature. English 487 is also required of all students. Of these 27 hours at least 9 must be taken at or above the 500 level.
II. Language Fluency
Students must be highly proficient in the second language. Three years of college-level foreign language coursework (or its equivalent) will normally be required for admission to the program. Students will be examined on their spoken language and listening comprehension and, depending on their skills, may be required to do additional developmental work (not credited toward the degree) in order to achieve proficiency.
III. Comprehensive Exam
For the general format see the description under the MA in English. In consultation with their advisor, world literature students will substitute equivalent major texts from French, German, or Spanish literature for up to half the English and American works in the yearly lists. At least one essay must be completed with texts in the second language, though both essays may be written in English.
Students must be registered during the semester in which any part of the examination is taken. If not registered for other courses, they will be required to register for one semester hour of EXAM 601, Directed Reading for the Comprehensive Examination.
IV. Thesis Option (Plan A)
Students permitted to write a thesis will take, as part of the 27 hour requirement, 6 hours of thesis work (ENGL 651, CMPL 601, FRCH 601), including an oral defense of the thesis as described under general requirements.
V. Teaching Experience
Students are encouraged to apply to the Department of English for teaching or tutoring positions. English 400 (Teaching Composition) will be required for anyone who has not had previous college teaching experience. Occasional lectureships in the teaching of foreign languages may become available .