GRADUATE PROGRAM HANDBOOK
4. MA DEGREE REQUIREMENTS (LANGUAGE OR LITERATURE)
4.1 Residence and Time Limits
4.2 MA without Thesis and MA with Thesis
4.3 Program Advising
4.4 Course Work
4.5 MA Thesis
4.1 Residence and Time Limits
Students may enroll in either full-time or part-time studies leading to an MA. Full-time students must be in residence in the Lower Mainland for at least one winter session. Students who are planning on taking an MA degree on a part-time basis must obtain approval of the Graduate Program Advisor and the Faculty of Graduate Studies prior to the beginning of the degree program. Part-time students are deemed ineligible for TAships or awards. All part-time students must show evidence of continuing progress each year they are enrolled in the program; that is, they must complete a minimum of 6 credits of work during each calendar year. For a full account of the Faculty of Graduate Studies policies regarding part-time studies, click here.
It is possible for full-time students who have no course or area deficiencies and no teaching or outside duties to complete the degree in 12 months, but most full-time students require 16-24 months.
All MA students, whether full-time or part-time, must complete their programs within five years of initial registration. Under exceptional circumstances, a leave of absence of up to one year and/ or an extension of up to one year may be granted. To read the Faculty of Graduate Studies description of different kinds of leave, click here.
All students are required to maintain their registration continuously, whether taking courses or not. Student who fail to register as required forfeit their status. Status may be reinstated only if an application for reinstatement is approved by both the Graduate Committee and the Dean of Graduate Studies. To read the Faculty of Graduate Studies policy on application for reinstatement, click here.
MA students returning after their five-year entitlement has lapsed must apply for readmission. Normally no credit will be assigned for courses taken previously. To read the Faculty of Graduate Studies policy on application for readmission, click here.
4.2 MA without Thesis and MA with Thesis
The Department of English at UBC offers the MA either without or with a thesis. Either degree qualifies the student to apply for the PhD program. Typically, approximately one-third of any given MA cohort in the department is working on a thesis-based MA.
For the MA in Literature or Language, without Thesis, students are required to complete: 30 credits of course work, of which not more than 6 may be 300 or 400 level courses (see section 4.4)
For the MA in Literature or Language, with Thesis, students are required to complete: 21 credits of course work, of which not more than 6 may be 300 or 400 level courses (see section 4.4); and 9 credits of MA Thesis and Oral Examination (see section 4.5)
4.3 Program Advising
All MA students must seek program approval before registering each year. New MA students should communicate with the MA Advisor (English.MA_advisor[at]ubc.ca) before classes begin in order to discuss their course work and other aspects of the program. Continuing students should seek program approval in the spring before registering.
Each candidate for the MA with Thesis should choose a thesis supervisor as soon as possible, preferably during the first year in full standing.
Any changes in a graduate student's program (for example, switching from a thesis to non-thesis program; switching from literature to language) must be approved by either the MA Advisor or the chair of the Graduate Program. With the approval of the Graduate Committee, a student may transfer from the MA program in literature to the MA program in language or vice versa, provided that area requirements are fulfilled. A student who fails in one program may not transfer to another.
In advising students, the Graduate Committee makes every effort to ensure that each student has satisfied all the requirements for the degree. However, it is the student's responsibility to ensure that, at the time of applying for the degree, all requirements have been met.
4.4 Course Work
All MA students are required to take ENGL 500 “Research Tools and Methods” and to complete either:
- 27 credits of additional coursework (coursework option) OR
- 18 credits of additional coursework and write a 9-credit thesis (thesis option; see 4.7).
Students in the Literature program must satisfy additional requirements listed in 4.4.1.
Students in the Language program must satisfy additional requirements listed in 4.4.2.
Although ultimately, program planning is their own responsibility, students should plan their programs prior to and during registration, in consultation with the MA Advisor (see 4.3).
MA students may take up to 6 credits of senior undergraduate courses (except for English 301, 302, and 303), which will be credited toward the MA. Ideally, these courses should be taught by graduate faculty and should not be distance education courses. Students must confirm the suitability of their plans with the MA Advisor. MA students may also take up to 6 graduate credits in related fields outside the Department.
Under the Western Deans' Agreement, students are permitted to take up to 6 graduate credits at other western universities (i.e. Athabasca, Alberta, Brandon, Calgary, Lethbridge, Manitoba, Northern British Columbia, Regina, Saskatchewan, Simon Fraser, and Victoria) and to count these credits towards their MA degree. More information about the program, the tuition waiver, and procedures is available through the Faculty of Graduate Studies; click here to visit the Western Deans Agreement page.
MA students are strongly urged to satisfy their course work requirements through the avenues listed above. In some cases, however, an MA student may wish to pursue a Directed Reading (ENGL 547) with an instructor. Normally such a course of study is taken in the second year of the program. ENGL 547 is usually 3 credits, although a 6-credit course may be approved in exceptional cases; in special circumstances, an MA student in Language may take two Directed Readings to a maximum of 6 credits. Faculty regulations prohibit any student from applying more than 6 credits of Directed Reading toward the credit requirements for a degree. The application and approval process for a Directed Reading is as follows:
1) The student discusses the feasibility of the planned course with the MA Advisor.
2) The student submits to the relevant faculty member a convincing statement in writing illustrating the content and goals of the proposed Directed Reading.
3) In consultation with the instructor, the student prepares a brief rationale and outline for the course, which will map out a schedule of meetings, a series of assignments, and a bibliography for the proposed course. Electronic forms are available through the Graduate Office.
4) The student submits these materials, signed by the instructor, to the Graduate Office before the first week of the term in which the course is to begin. Late applications are not considered. The Graduate Committee approves applications for ENGL 547 courses only if the student can establish that no suitable course is being offered during his/her program and only if the Directed Reading is essential to the student's academic development.
4.4.1. Course Work for MA in Literature
Students in the Literature program are required to take 1 course each in 4 of the following 5 categories, over the course of their degree program:
A. English Literature to 1700
B. Literature in English from 1700 to 1900
C. Literature in English from 1900 to the present
D. Transhistorical/ Cultural Studies
E. Theory, Rhetoric, and Language
4.4.2 Course Work for MA in Language
Students in the Language MA are required to take every 507 (“Studies in the History of the English Language”), 508 (“Studies in Structure of the English Language”), and 509 (“Studies in Rhetoric and Theory of Composition”) seminar offered while they are pursuing course work, unless otherwise advised.
Students in the Language MA are also encouraged to take relevant literature seminars. For example, History of English students whose focus is the medieval period should enroll in ENGL 510, 511, and/or 512; students whose focus is the Early Modern period should enroll in ENGL 515, 519, and/or 520. Students studying dialects of English should enroll in the appropriate Canadian, British, and/or American literature seminars. Students whose focus is Rhetoric should enroll in ENGL 553.
4.5 MA Thesis
MA students wishing to write a thesis must apply to the Graduate Committee to do so. As soon as the student has decided upon an area of specialization, preferably by the end of the first year with full standing, the student should formulate a topic and choose a supervisor. At this stage, the student must submit a prospectus for approval. Electronic submission is preferred.
The MA Thesis Prospectus offers a preliminary description of the proposed argument of the thesis and locates the argument within the broader parameters of the field of study. It also sets out the major steps through which the student plans to proceed in researching, writing, and structuring the thesis. The prospectus includes a bibliography, which should provide a comprehensive list of the required primary sources for the proposed research, and a list of the most relevant and influential secondary readings on or around the topic. The text of the prospectus, excluding the bibliography, is usually about 1500 words in length.
The prospectus is read first by the supervisory committee and, if satisfactory, by the Graduate Committee. Thus it seeks both to convince readers who are specialists in the proposed research subject and to explain the proposed research to non-specialist academic readers. The Graduate Committee may request changes, additions, or clarification, or it may approve the prospectus outright. The student should not begin to write until both the supervisory committee and the Graduate Committee have formally approved the prospectus.
The kind and amount of thesis supervision will be dictated by the needs of the individual student and the preferred methods of the supervisor. Preliminary drafts, either of individual chapters or of the whole thesis, should be submitted to the supervisor as the student proceeds. The student is encouraged to meet with all members of the committee. The entire supervisory committee evaluates the prospectus and the final draft of the thesis before each is submitted for examination. In consultation with the supervisor, the student should revise the thesis in accordance with the committee's critical suggestions. The committee members will not act as copy-editors.
The final thesis should be 60 pages in length, excluding bibliography. Documentation should follow the style sheet recommended by the supervisor. The final form of the thesis must be prepared in accordance with the regulations set down by the Faculty of Graduate studies. Students can consult the Faculty's thesis preparation page here. Theses which do not meet the specified standards may be rejected. The candidate should prepare four copies of the final form of the thesis: one for deposit in the University Library, one copy for the English Department, one copy for the supervisor, and one copy for the candidate.
Once the thesis is approved by the supervisory committee, a final oral examination on the thesis and its background is held. Students must not submit theses for oral examinations until all other requirements for the degree have been fulfilled. A final oral may be held at any time of the year, provided the approved committee can be assembled-- students should take into account that it can be more difficult to assemble the committee during the summer months. After the oral examination, a pass/ fail is assigned to the thesis. An outstanding thesis may be awarded the grade of Distinction. Revisions made after the oral examination will not alter the pass/ fail allocated to the work.
Students residing more than 800 kilometers from the university may request exemption from the oral when submitting the thesis. Where substantial revisions to the thesis are not required, such a request may be granted at the discretion of both the supervisory committee and the Graduate Committee.