Graduate Programs

The Department of English offers several vibrant face-to-face and online graduate programs. You can visit the webpage of each program, linked below, to learn more and apply.   

GradStudents

Graduate Students in the Department of English

The Peace Corps logo features a white dove on a blue backgrund atop a red and white wave

The English Department is part of The Paul D. Coverdell Peace Corps Fellows Program at BGSU and offers numerous opportunities for Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs). Learn more about the program.

Graduate Programs

MA in Literary & Textual Studies
MFA in Creative Writing
PhD in Rhetoric & Writing Studies

Online MA in English

The Department of English also offers an Online Master of Arts Degree in English with the opportunity to choose three different specialization.  
Online MA: Specialization in English Teaching

Specialization in English Teaching

Specialization in Professional Writing & Rhetoric

Specialization in Professional Writing and Rhetoric

Online MA: Individualized Track

Certificate Programs

The Department of English also offers several certificate programs at the graduate level. You can visit each certificate webpage, linked below, to learn more.

Online: Technical Writing Certificate
TESOL Certificate
Online: College Writing: Theory and Practice Certificate

The deadline for Fall 2024 applications for the MA in Literary & Textual Studies and MFA in Creative Writing is January 15, 2024. See program sites for more details.

**MA in Literary & Textual Studies Application Deadline Has Been Extended to Feb. 12, 2024

For other program deadlines, visit the specific program site, linked above.

Graduate Courses

Click here to read the Fall 2023 Graduate Courses and their descriptions.

Click here for an explanation on how to enroll in courses.

To learn more about each program's sequence and courses, select the specific program below. 

Annual Conference

Winter Wheat Festival

Winter Wheat Writing Festival celebrates writers and readers and includes generative workshops, guest readings, a bookfair, and an open mic. Created in 2001, the festival is produced by Mid-American Review and hosted on the BGSU campus. Sponsors include the Creative Writing Program, Prairie Margins, the Graduate Writers Club, the Ohio Arts Council, BGSU's Ethnic and Cultural Arts Program, and donations from attendees. The festival would not be possible without our donors. Donations for Winter Wheat and MAR can be made online at the BGSU Foundation here.

Learning Outcomes – Master of Arts in English (no specialization)

  • Develop writing projects that integrate knowledge about audience, rhetorical structures, organization, and the process of writing and revision. 
  • Generate original research that evaluates and expands scholarship in contemporary English studies. 
  • Examine in depth and develop expertise in one or more aspect of contemporary English Studies. 
  • Assess their learning and scholarship in English studies and further develop their own work. 

Learning Outcomes – Master of Arts in English with a specialization in Professional Writing and Rhetoric

  • Create effective written and visual documents for multiple audiences based on theories and concepts central to the fields of technical communication and rhetoric.
  • Evaluate the key theoretical, historical and cultural concepts of the fields of rhetoric and technical communication.
  • Plan communication strategies for creating documents for people from various cultural and ethnic backgrounds.
  • Create a capstone portfolio reflecting what students have learned over the course of their program.

Learning Outcomes – Master of Arts in English with a specialization in English Teaching

  • Formulate and defend theories and/or practices of English teaching that draw on a sophisticated understanding of contemporary English studies and pedagogical approaches.
  • Develop writing projects that integrate knowledge about audience, rhetorical structures, organization, and the process of writing and revision.
  • Generate original research that evaluates and expands scholarship in contemporary English studies.
  • Examine in depth and develop expertise in one or more aspect of contemporary English Studies.
  • Assess their learning and scholarship in English studies and further develop their own work.

Learning Outcomes – Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing with a specialization in Fiction, Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing with a specialization in Poetry

  • Develop individual, original approaches to writing fiction and/or poetry
  • Produce a book-length thesis comparable in quality to the published work of contemporary poets and fiction writers
  • Develop an understanding of their work’s place within the context of contemporary literature
  • Collaboratively assess literary work for publication
  • Apply craft knowledge to produce and distribute a literary journal through relevant technologies
  • Develop pedagogical skills sufficient to design and teach courses at the college level

Learning Outcomes - PhD in English with a specialization in Rhetoric and Writing

  • Appraise methodological, theoretical, and pedagogical approaches for engaging as scholars, teachers, and leaders who are responsive to the situated nature of rhetoric and to what students, campuses, cultures and society want from writing today.
  • Justify interventions in ongoing disciplinary conversations in rhetoric and writing studies through their own research, theory building, and pedagogies.
  • Develop impactful rhetoric and writing scholarship rooted in the developing literacies, literacy technologies, and needs of diverse learners shaping higher education today.

Accreditation and/or Program/Cluster Review

Bowling Green State University [BGSU] is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.  BGSU has been accredited by the Higher Learning Commission since 01/01/1916. The most recent reaffirmation of accreditation was received in 2012 - 2013. Questions should be directed to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness.

The English program went through Program/Cluster Review during the Academic Year 2016-17 and is in Good Standing.


Professional Licensure (If applicable)

Bowling Green State University programs leading to licensure, certification and/or endorsement, whether delivered online, face-to-face or in a blended format, satisfy the academic requirements for those credentials set forth by the State of Ohio.

Requirements for licensure, certification and/or endorsement eligibility vary greatly from one profession to another and from state to state. The English program does not lead to professional licensure.

Gainful Employment (If applicable)     

Under the Higher Education Act Title IV disclosure requirements, an institution must provide current and prospective students with information about each of its programs that prepares students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation.

The English program is not a recognized occupation that requires a Gainful Employment disclosure.

 

Updated: 01/19/2024 10:45AM