Graduate Programs
Students who earn a Master's degree in English find themselves well-prepared for further graduate study, community college teaching, and enriched secondary teaching as well as publishing, editing, and professional writing.
Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing, Editing, and Publishing
Launched in 2012, the Master of Fine Arts program in Creative Writing, Editing, and Publishing is a 48-hour workshop-based residency program that allows you to: focus on poetry, fiction, or creative non-fiction; enjoy intensive instruction with dedicated professors; gain practical publishing experience through SHSU's Texas Review Press and Texas Review. In addition, students participate in writing workshops in fiction and poetry, undertake coursework in literary periods and types, and study narrative and poetic theory. MFA candidates present an MFA thesis: a book-length work (minimum 80 pages for poetry and 160 pages for prose—novel, short-story collection, essay collection, or other work of creative non-fiction).
M.A. in English/M.F.A. in Creative Writing, Editing, and Publishing (Dual Degree)
Launched in 2012, the Master of Fine Arts program in Creative Writing, Editing, and Publishing is a 48-hour workshop-based residency program that allows you to: focus on poetry, fiction, or creative non-fiction; enjoy intensive instruction with dedicated professors; gain practical publishing experience through SHSU's Texas Review Press and Texas Review. In addition, students participate in writing workshops in fiction and poetry, undertake coursework in literary periods and types, and study narrative and poetic theory. MFA candidates present an MFA thesis: a book-length work (minimum 80 pages for poetry and 160 pages for prose—novel, short-story collection, essay collection, or other work of creative non-fiction).
Master of Arts in English
The Master of Arts in English is designed to prepare students for careers that require advanced verbal and analytical abilities, including the skills necessary for professional research and communication in diverse careers. The program aims to improve the professional competence of public school teachers, to ready promising scholars for college teaching, and to prepare students for doctoral programs. For this degree there are two plans: MA Plan I - (Thesis / with or without Minor) – Principally designed for students planning to pursue a PhD, this option is open to all MA students who wish to write a substantial piece of scholarship under the individual supervision of a faculty member during their career as an MA student. Under this plan, students may elect to complete a twelve-hour minor in another field that complements their research interests (common minors include Foreign Languages, History, and Education). MA Plan II - (Non-Thesis / with or without Minor) – This option frees students to explore a broad range of courses. As with Plan I, students may elect to complete a twelve-hour minor in another field.
Master of Arts in Technical Communication
The Master of Arts in Technical Communication provides students with advanced study of technical and professional writing. By learning theory and applying it actively to coursework, students in this program develop essential workplace skills: Communicating technical information clearly and efficiently for audiences who have nontechnical backgrounds. Designing documents that are both useful and appealing to users. Producing documents for print, web, video, and multimodal distribution. Managing large communication projects. This 36-hour program prepares students to enter a variety of fields, including medical writing, software design/documentation, procedural writing, web authoring, and more.
Graduate Certificate in English
To teach college-level dual credit classes in the State of Texas, high school teachers must hold a graduate degree (Master’s or PhD) and have eighteen graduate hours (six courses) in the teaching field. The dual credit teaching certificate program gives students who hold graduate degrees in fields other than English the eighteen graduate English hours required for certification; it concurrently gives them credentials required to teach English in two-year colleges in the State of Texas. The dual credit teaching certificate program allows students to work with specialists in literature, rhetoric and writing disciplines, complete the eighteen-hour program completely online in six semesters (including summer sessions), and apply all 18 hours of the certificate to the full MA degree in English at Sam Houston State University. Community College Affiliates: Partnership with Lonestar College Students who take a combination of face-to-face and online classes could complete the certificate within a year. Note: The entire program cannot be completed on-campus. Some of the required courses will only be offered online. Please check the schedule of classes for availability.