The Master of Arts in Rhetoric and Writing degree prepares students for advanced study in rhetoric, writing, and/or related fields, as well as for careers in areas requiring advanced skills in written rhetoric with an emphasis on writing in digital environments.
You will complete eight core courses, six elective hours, and a series of two thesis courses culminating in a successful defense of a written thesis. Students must complete the curriculum within seven years, though the program is designed to be completed within two years.
Students in the Master of Arts in Professional Communication program must maintain a 3.0 average and must have no more than one "C" grade during the course of the program. No more than one course with a grade of "C+", "C" or "C-" can be used to meet graduation requirements.
Required Courses
Introduction to the Field of Rhetoric and Writing | ENGL 500
This course surveys key texts, current trends and critical questions in the field of rhetoric and composition studies. Using primary debates within the field as a focus, the course explores the complex relationships between rhetorical theory and pedagogical practice, and the effect of both on the writing process and the teaching of writing, particularly in digital and multimodal environments.
Writing Theory and Pedagogy | ENGL 501
In this course, through discussion and close analysis of readings, students will become familiar with current theories, issues and debates concerning both the processes of writing and the teaching of high school and college writing. Throughout the course, students will be asked to continually reflect upon their own experiences as writers (and if appropriate as teachers) in relation to the readings in order to develop an informed position about writing theory and pedagogy.
Digital Media and Composition | ENGL 502
This course introduces students to writing in digital environments though it emphasizes a user-centered approach to web site design and content development. Topics covered include theories of digital writing, the relationship between traditional forms and emerging forms of writing, and the relationship between design and writing.
Language and Writing | ENGL 503
This course examines the influence of language on written communication within the secondary and postsecondary English classroom and within digital environments. Specifically, it will investigate teaching grammar in the context of writing and other linguistic-based approaches to the teaching of writing and multimodal compositions.
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Writing for Alternative Academic Careers | ENGL 508
This course focuses on writing processes for alternative academic careers including writing specialist positions in museums, government, law, corporate and editing and publishing sectors. In addition to writing for print, composing social media and other digital communications will be emphasized.
This course provides an introduction to classical rhetoric grounded in Greco-Roman antiquity and texts and themes that constitute "the rhetorical tradition." Readings for the course include primary texts by Greek and Roman classical speakers/writers as well as secondary readings on ancient rhetoric, connections to medieval and Renaissance rhetoric, and classical links to a multimodal rhetorical tradition.
Contemporary Rhetorical Theory | ENGL 505This course focuses on modern/contemporary rhetorical theories from the Enlightenment to the present by tracing the influence of the rhetorical tradition on current writing practices in various contexts, including their relationship to digital writing and multimodal discourse.
Digital Writing Research Methods | ENGL 506This course explores research methods of writing using digital data collection as well as methodologies of digital writing research. Topics include ethical issues related to fair use; human subjects and institutional review board policies; distribution of research findings in digital archives and online publications; and the relationship between traditional quantitative and qualitative writing research methods and digital environments.
This course focuses on teaching students to write more effectively through study of writing practices effective writers use, including the study of digital technologies used to execute, manage and disseminate writing. As part of the course, students will develop an electronic portfolio to display, study and share professional writing projects.
Thesis: Proposal and Literature Review | ENGL 600This course is the first in a two course sequence required for all students as part of the preparation for the thesis requirement. In ENGL 600, students will prepare a proposal for a thesis topic, and once the topic is approved by the adviser, write the literature review section of the thesis.
Thesis: Writing and Oral Defense | ENGL 601This course is the second in a two course sequence required for all students as part of the preparation for the thesis requirement. In ENGL 601, students revise the proposal developed in ENGL 600 into the introduction chapter for the thesis and develop the remaining sections of the thesis based on findings from the literature review completed in ENGL 600. In addition the student will defend the thesis project in an oral defense. Both the oral defense and the thesis must be completed no later than 30 days before the end of the semester in which ENGL 601 is taken.
Elective Courses (Six credit hours required)
Topics in Rhetoric and Composition | ENGL 550 This course will focus on special issues within the field of rhetoric and composition studies. It may be repeated, provided the topics are different.
Topics in Literature and Writing | ENGL 551 This course will focus on special issues within the field of literature that focus on writing. It may be repeated, provided the topics are different.
Topics in Technical and Scientific Writing | ENGL 552 This course will focus on special issues within the field of technical and/or scientific writing. It may be repeated, provided the topics are different.
This course will focus on special issues within the field of creative writing. It may be repeated, provided the topics are different.
Students in the English teaching assistantship program may also use ENGL 592 hours to count as elective hours. All English teaching assistants are required to enroll in ENGL 592 each semester they are teaching.
Students in the Communication teaching assistantship program may also use ENGL 594 hours to count as elective hours. All Communication teaching assistants are required to enroll in ENGL 594 each semester they are teaching.
To view the curriculum in the University of Findlay's Online catalog, please click here.