The Master of Arts in English

The Master of Arts in English program at Chico State University welcomes all students in the major who are interested in further postgraduate studying in English. The program is designed for students to study literature, linguistics, rhetoric and composition, grammar, literacy, and creative writing at advanced levels.

View English (MA) in the Catalog

Course of Study

The MA in English offers a diverse and engaging curriculum in English Studies, including graduate coursework in literature, rhetoric, composition and pedagogy, literacy studies, and creative writing.

The program is committed to advancing knowledge and creativity by nurturing a community of students, scholars, teachers, and creative writers. We believe that broad reading in historical and contemporary literary, critical, and theoretical texts provides a foundation for more specialized study and research.

We offer students an introduction to graduate research in a range of critical, rhetorical, and creative modes, giving them the intellectual background to pursue a specialty. Through internships and seminars in pedagogy, our Teaching Associateship Program provides teacher training and helps our students develop their teaching philosophies and hone their professional skills.

Certificate in Teaching College-level Writing

The Certificate in Teaching College-Level Writing

This certificate is a post-baccalaureate program in teaching pedagogy for graduate students interested in writing instruction at the college level. To prepare students to teach writing in a variety of contexts, this certificate engages students in the study of composition pedagogy, rhetoric, literacy, and writing program design, with additional course options in teaching multicultural literature and creative writing. It allows graduate students to address individual situations, needs, and interests while learning within a diverse community.

Requirements

• Continuous enrollment
• At the discretion of the academic program, a maximum of 6 semester units of special session credit earned in non-matriculated status combined with all transfer coursework may be counted toward the degree requirements.  
  • This applies to special session credit earned through Open University, or in courses offered for academic credit through Regional and Continuing Education. 
• All requirements for the degree are to be completed within five years of the end of the semester of enrollment in the oldest course applied toward the degree.

Who can apply?

The Master's program in English is available to students whose undergraduate record qualifies them according to the standards set forth by the Office of Graduate Studies and the Department of English. Students who don't have the equivalent of a major in English must complete the equivalent of a general English minor.

Contact Us

Laura Sparks
Graduate Coordinator
lsparks@csuchico.edu
530-898-5124
ARTS 272

Application Requirements

Submit application for the CSU graduate program and upload supporting materials online at Cal State Apply.

(1) Statement of Purpose: Describe your reason(s) for pursuing graduate study and include any additional information concerning your preparation that is pertinent to the objective specified.

(2) Writing Sample: All applicants must submit a writing sample demonstrating critical and analytical skills. Please submit one of the following:

• A 5-10 paged writing sample from coursework in English Studies. In addition, please include a brief (no more than one page) explanation of the context and aims of the writing sample.
• A portfolio of 2-3 representative academic and/or industry writing samples totaling no more than 12 pages. This may include multimodal or reflective writing samples, but please no creative prose or poetry (see separate section for uploading optional Creative Writing samples). In addition, please include a brief (no more than one page) explanation of the context and aims of the portfolio contents, especially for multimodal texts or writing outside of English Studies. 

(3) Optional Creative Writing Sample: Applicants interested in creative writing are highly encouraged to upload a creative writing sample of 8-12 pages of poetry or 10-20 pages of creative prose (fiction and/or creative nonfiction), in addition to the analytical writing sample.

(4) Recommendation Letters: Within Cal State Apply, request two letters of recommendation, preferably from English department faculty who know the student’s work. Recommenders will directly upload their letters to the system