Master of Arts in Liberal Arts (MA)

Admission Requirements

The Master of Arts in Liberal Arts is open to any qualified person holding a bachelor’s or higher degree from an institution accredited by a USDE-recognized institutional accrediting agency and having an overall GPA of 3.0 (B) or better in the last 60 hours of undergraduate study. In view of the broad nature of the program, no specific undergraduate major is required. GRE scores are NOT required for admission to the MLA program.

For regular admission, the applicant for the MLA program is required to write a statement of purpose that outlines the prospective student’s educational goals and the ways in which the program meets these goals. The statement of purpose is read by a faculty admissions committee and is thus an important step in the admissions process. The student must also schedule an interview with the MLA Director to discuss the suitability of the degree to the applicant’s needs and strengths. The applicant is required to submit official transcripts of all post-secondary education.

The regular admission of any applicant to the MLA program requires the recommendation of the Program Director, the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, and the approval of the Dean of Graduate Studies.

Course Requirements

The MLA offers the mature student a graduate program that is interdisciplinary in nature. There are two pathways through this 30-hour degree:

The thesis-track student will complete 6 semester hours in core seminar requirements, at least 15 hours in a minimum of two different Liberal Arts and Sciences disciplines that will develop a theme consistent with the interdisciplinary goals of the program, and 9 semester hours of thesis or project credit. The student, in consultation with the Director, designs the degree plan. While the courses for the 15-hour portion may be drawn from a variety of disciplines, the group of courses should move coherently towards a goal upon which the student and the Director have agreed.

The non-thesis-track student will complete 6 semester hours in core seminar requirements, 21 hours in a minimum of two different Liberal Arts disciplines, and the culminating 3-hour Capstone.

Graduate credit earned more than eight years before the completion of the degree is not accepted. Up to 9 hours of graduate credit earned while the student was classified as non-degree may be used to satisfy degree requirements if approved by the Dean of the College. If appropriate to the student’s degree plan, as many as 6 semester hours may be taken outside the College of Arts and Sciences. Any requests for an Independent Studies course (695) must be submitted in the form of a syllabus with assessment plan by the student and faculty member to the MLA Director for approval at least 2 weeks before the end of the semester prior to the one in which the student intends to take the 695.

NOTE: Only grades earned in courses applicable to the MLA may be used to determine continuation in the program or removal from probation.

Thesis or Equivalent Project

The thesis or equivalent project should demonstrate capacity for research, creative thought, and facility in organizing materials. It is designed to enhance the student’s ability to integrate knowledge from several fields of study. After consultation with his/her thesis director, the student must secure the agreement of two additional members of the graduate faculty in Liberal Arts or Sciences to serve as members of the thesis or project committee. These names are submitted to the MLA Director and forwarded to the Dean of the College and the Graduate Dean.

Upon the completion of three hours of core courses, the student may register for the first thesis course, LA797, and begin research towards the thesis prospectus. The prospectus must be approved by the student’s committee at the end of the LA797 semester and must be filed with the Director. The committee must have ample opportunity to guide the thesis or equivalent final project as the student’s work progresses. At least two of the members of the committee must approve the completed thesis or final project.

Instructions on the preparation and submission of the thesis or equivalent final project may be obtained from the College office or the MLA Director. The Manual for the Preparation of Thesis, Dissertations, and Final Projects is available here on the University website.

The thesis-track student must successfully complete a comprehensive examination on completion of the thesis or thesis-equivalent project. The examination is normally taken in the semester in which the candidate expects to receive the degree, ahead of the University’s published deadline for Completion of Thesis for that semester. The examination is administered by the three graduate faculty members in the College of Arts and Sciences who serve as the student’s thesis or equivalent final project committee. If the degree candidate does not successfully complete the examination with a two-thirds vote, the examination committee may require the candidate to complete additional requirements prior to repeating the oral examination. A graduate student on academic probation may not sit for the comprehensive examination until that probation is removed.