The Program

The MA degree is offered on either a thesis or non-thesis basis. Students work with their advisors to develop their program of study.

A student who opts for the thesis plan must complete 30 credits of graduate course work including six thesis credits. Six to nine of the student's credits may be taken outside the department in a subject area approved by the department.

A student who opts for the non-thesis plan must complete 33 graduate credits, nine to twelve of which may be taken outside the department in a subject area approved by the department.

All MA students must complete a minimum of 18 credits in 700-level courses. Students should plan carefully to be sure that they take a sufficient number of these courses as they proceed through their course of study. A student may take any of our upper-level undergraduate courses on the 700-level with the permission of the instructor.

Knowledge of a foreign language is not required but is highly recommended, especially for students intending to pursue graduate studies beyond the master's level.

In addition to course requirements, all master's students must enroll in Phil 795--Comp Exam--for 1-3 credits.  This 700-level requirement will not count toward the 18 credits of 700-level courses needed to complete the degree.