Degree Requirements

Students may choose from the degree tracks below to complete coursework within a focus area.

Focus Tracks are as follows:

• Film Studies
• Linguistics
• Literature
• Rhetoric and Composition

Degrees earned will be distributed as: "Master of Arts in English" without focus area track specifications.

Film Studies Track

Course List

Code	Title	Hours	Counts towards
Research Courses		6
ENG 587	Interdisciplinary Studies in English 1
ENG 676	Master's Project in English
Core Courses		15
Select nine hours of 500-level film coursework approved in conjunction with the academic committee 2
Select an additional six hours of elective courses approved in conjunction with the academic committee 3
Department Electives		6
Select six hours of coursework in Literature, Rhetoric and Composition, or Linguistics approved in conjunction with the academic committee
Open Electives		6
Select six hours of open electives in any area, including film or another area of complementary study, approved in conjunction with the academic committee 4
Total Hours		33

¹

An alternative course may be selected approved in conjunction with the academic committee

²

Excluding ENG 592 Special Topics in Film Styles and Genres

³

The electives may include an additional 500-level film studies course, ENG 592 Styles and Genres (this is a dual level/upper level undergraduate course for which ENG 592 students will do graduate-level work), or ENG 636 Directed Readings (S/U graded courses).

⁴

Courses may also include various sections of ENG 585 Studies In Film, ENG 592 Special Topics in Film Styles and Genres, or ENG 636 Directed Readings.

Linguistics Track

Course List

Code	Title	Hours	Counts towards
Distribution Requirement Courses		6
Select six credit hours of coursework in Literature, Film, or Rhetoric and Composition approved in conjunction with the academic committee
Linguistics Track Courses		24
Linguistics Courses
Select a minimum of five Linguistics courses approved in conjunction with the academic committee
Elective Courses
Select a minimum of three courses from English or complementary fields of study approved in conjunction with the academic committee
Research Course		3
ENG 676	Master's Project in English
Total Hours		33

Literature Track

Course List

Code	Title	Hours	Counts towards
Research Component Courses		6
ENG 669	Literature, Methods, and the Profession 5
ENG 676	Master's Project in English 6
Distribution Requirement Courses		12
Select one course from each of the following four areas listed under "Distribution Requirement Courses" listed below
Literature Elective Courses		9
Select three literature courses approved in conjunction with the academic committee 7
Open Elective Courses		6
Select two elective courses in English or complementary fields of study approved in conjunction with the academic committee 8
Global Perspective Requirement (Co-Requisite)
See "Global Perspective Requirement" for details below
Total Hours		33

⁵

ENG 669 is required in the first semester

⁶

ENG 676 is required in the final semester

⁷

Students may elect to explore broadly or to focus their coursework in an area of special interest.

⁸

Electives may be chosen from English or from complementary fields of study. TAs may count ENG 624 as an elective.

Distribution Requirement Courses

Select one course from each of the following areas listed below:

British Literature before 1600

Course List

Code	Title	Hours	Counts towards
ENG 509	Old English Literature	3
ENG 510	Middle English Literature	3
ENG 529	16th-Century Non-Dramatic English Literature	3
ENG 551	Chaucer	3
ENG 558	Studies In Shakespeare	3
ENG 561	Milton	3
ENG 578	English Drama To 1642	3
ENG 582	Studies in Literature (when topic applies)	3

British Literature after 1600

Course List

Code	Title	Hours	Counts towards
ENG 550	British Romantic Period	3
ENG 560	British Victorian Period	3
ENG 562	18TH-Century English Literature	3
ENG 563	18TH-Century English Novel	3
ENG 564	Victorian Novel	3
ENG 570	20TH-Century British Prose	3
ENG 571	20TH-Century British Poetry	3
ENG 572	Modern British Drama	3
ENG 579	Restoration and 18th-Century Drama	3
ENG 582	Studies in Literature	3

American Literature

Course List

Code	Title	Hours	Counts towards
ENG 531	American Colonial Literature	3
ENG 548	African-American Literature	3
ENG 555	American Romantic Period	3
ENG 565	American Realism and Naturalism	3
ENG 573	Modern American Drama	3
ENG 575	Southern Writers	3
ENG 576	20TH-Century American Poetry	3
ENG 577	20th-Century American Prose	3
ENG 580	Literary Postmodernism	3
ENG 582	Studies in Literature	3

Rhetoric, Linguistics, Composition, Film Studies, Criticism or Theory

Course List

Code	Title	Hours	Counts towards
ENG 505	Writing Program Administration: Theory, Practice, and Research	3
ENG 511	Theory and Research In Composition	3
ENG 513	Empirical Research In Composition	3
ENG 514	History Of Rhetoric	3
ENG 515	Rhetoric Of Science and Technology	3
ENG 516	Rhetorical Criticism: Theory and Practice	3
ENG 523	Language Variation Research Seminar	3
ENG 524	Introduction to Linguistics	3
ENG 525	Variety In Language	3
ENG 528	Sociophonetics	3
ENG 532	Narrative Analysis	3
ENG 533	Bilingualism and Language Contact	3
ENG 534	Quantitative Analysis in Sociolinguistics	3
ENG 536	Research Methods in Phonology	3
ENG 539	Seminar In World Literature	3
ENG 540	History Of Literary Criticism	3
ENG 541	Literary and Cultural Theory	3
ENG 549	Modern African Literature	3
ENG 554	Contemporary Rhetorical Theory	3
ENG 580	Literary Postmodernism	3
ENG 581	Visual Rhetoric: Theory and Criticism	3
ENG 582	Studies in Literature	3
ENG 583	Studies In Rhetoric and Writing	3
ENG 584	Studies In Linguistics	3
ENG 586	Studies In Theory	3

Global Perspective Requirement

The Global Perspectives requirement is intended to provide students with a greater understanding of language structure and a globalizing perspective on texts and culture. Student may fulfill this requirement in one of two ways:

1. Demonstrate language proficiency (by meeting one of the following options):
   1. Taking a reading exam administered by the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures. The Foreign Language Department offers optional preparatory courses for students planning to take the reading exam: FLS 401 Spanish Graduate Reading, FLF 401 French Graduate Reading, FLG 401 German Graduate Reading.  
   2. Enrolling in and passing with a C- or better a 300-400 level course taught in the language (not translation).^*
   3. Having an undergraduate major or minor in a foreign language within the past five years.^*
   4. Speaking a language other than English as your first language.^*
2. Take a World Literature course or an approved alternative.  This course will typically count toward the degree as a literature or unrestricted elective, but there may be some instances in which the course can fulfill a core requirement.

If you’re considering doctoral work in literary study, we encourage you to consult with your advisor. In some cases, certifying language proficiency via reading exam may help satisfy a doctoral language requirement later on.

*

To document language proficiency via option B, C or D, contact the Graduate Services Coordinator.

Rhetoric and Composition Track

Course List

Code	Title	Hours	Counts towards
Core Courses		15
Composition
ENG 511	Theory and Research In Composition
Rhetoric Course
Select one of the following courses listed under "Rhetoric Courses" listed below
Rhetoric and Composition Courses
Select two courses from "Rhetoric Courses" or "Research Component Courses" listed below 9
Linguistics Course
Select a Linguistics course approved in conjunction with the academic committee 10
Research Component Course		6
Select one additional course from "Research Component Courses" listed below
ENG 676	Master's Project in English 11
Department Electives		6
Select six credit hours of coursework in Literature, Rhetoric and Composition, or Linguistics approved in conjunction with the academic committee
Open Elective Courses		6
Select two elective courses approved in conjunction with the academic committee 12
Total Hours		33

⁹

May include special topics courses in areas such as computers and composition, emerging genres, writing across the curriculum, and writing program administration (usually offered as ENG 583 Studies In Rhetoric and Writing.

¹⁰

ENG 525 Variety In Language is recommended if you are planning a teaching career.  Note: If you choose a linguistics course to fulfill your research methods requirement (e.g., ENG 527 Discourse Analysis), you may take an additional rhetoric or composition elective in this slot instead.

¹¹

The capstone project should be on a topic that draws from scholarship in the area of rhetoric and composition or that is of clear relevance in the field. It should be conceived to address a specific audience and designed for a specific situation; thus, it could be composed as an article targeting a specific journal or conference; a curriculum plan or teaching materials for a particular instructional agenda; an online resource fulfilling a well defined need; etc. The master's project should be developed in consultation with faculty in rhetoric and composition and must be approved by the advisor for the concentration.

¹²

"Open Elective Courses" may be from rhetoric and composition, linguistics, literature, digital humanities or other areas within the English Department, or, when appropriate to meet particular goals, from the Department of Communication, Foreign Languages, History, Psychology, the College of Education, or other fields.

Rhetoric Courses

These courses address major issues and concepts in rhetoric ranging from Greek antiquity to contemporary poststructuralism, and applications from public speeches to popular culture to teaching to technical communication.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours	Counts towards
Select one of the following courses:
ENG/COM 514	History Of Rhetoric	3
ENG 515	Rhetoric Of Science and Technology	3
ENG/COM 516	Rhetorical Criticism: Theory and Practice	3
ENG/COM 554	Contemporary Rhetorical Theory	3

Research Component Courses

Before embarking on your capstone research, select one research methods course congruent with your disciplinary interests.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours	Counts towards
Select one of the following courses to fulfill the "Research Component Course" requirement:
ENG 506	Verbal Data Analysis	3
ENG 513	Empirical Research In Composition	3
ENG/COM 516	Rhetorical Criticism: Theory and Practice	3
ENG 527	Discourse Analysis	3
ENG 532	Narrative Analysis	3
ENG/COM 581	Visual Rhetoric: Theory and Criticism	3
ENG 583	Studies In Rhetoric and Writing 13	3
ENG 585	Studies In Film 14	3
ENG 587	Interdisciplinary Studies in English 15	3

¹³

ENG 583 Studies In Rhetoric and Writing when topic is methodological

¹⁴

ENG 585 Studies In Film when focused on pertinent methodologies

¹⁵

ENG 587 Interdisciplinary Studies in English when focused on pertinent methodologies

Accelerated Bachelor's/Master's Degree Requirements

The Accelerated Bachelors/Master’s (ABM) degree program allows exceptional undergraduate students at NC State an opportunity to complete the requirements for both the Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees at an accelerated pace. These undergraduate students may double count up to 12 credits and obtain a non-thesis Master’s degree in the same field within 12 months of completing the Bachelor’s degree, or obtain a thesis-based Master’s degree in the same field within 18 months of completing the Bachelor’s degree.

This degree program also provides an opportunity for the Directors of Graduate Programs (DGPs) at NC State to recruit rising juniors in their major to their graduate programs. However, permission to pursue an ABM degree program does not guarantee admission to the Graduate School. Admission is contingent on meeting eligibility requirements at the time of entering the graduate program.

Faculty