Let Your Passion for Literature—and New Opportunities—Flourish
Discover new worlds and create new career possibilities with the MA in Literature degree program at IUP.
You’ll experience the excitement of immersing yourself in advanced literary study, and build the analytical, research, and presentation skills you need to share your expertise at a professional level. Upon graduation, you’ll be prepared to start—or advance—your career in any field that requires analyzing information, creating compelling arguments, and drawing defensible conclusions.
Why Choose IUP for Your Master’s Degree in Literature?
If you have a love for literature and are ready to grow your options for the future, this could be the program for you. Here are just some of the reasons that make the MA in Literature unique for you:
- Align your studies with your passions. Dig into what you love, conduct interdisciplinary research, and be trained to present your findings to other professionals who share your fascination with the world of imaginative literature.
- Develop as a teacher-scholar. You could reach students and professionals in a variety of fields and be well on your way to new opportunities post-graduation.
- Learn from supportive faculty dedicated to your success. IUP faculty are active researchers who publish regularly and can provide you with extensive chances to network.
- Complete your degree in less than one calendar year. As a full-time student, you can begin classes in June and complete your degree by May of the following year.
- Get hands-on work experience and reduce your costs through graduate assistantships and research grants.
Imagine Your Future
What will you do with your MA in Literature? Graduates of our program are well-prepared for careers in the public or private spheres, inside and outside of academia.
- Become an English teacher or professor. Interested in teaching at four-year colleges and universities? The program is great preparation for the pursuit of a doctoral degree.
- Combine your analytical and creative talents as a communications professional or in publishing.
- Embark on a career as an author or researcher. Our courses prepare you to develop and present your ideas in public, and to revise your work for publication.
- Step into roles as a team leader, project manager, or intelligence expert.
Similar Occupations
Explore these and other similar occupations you can pursue with a master's in English.
- Author
- Content writer
- Copywriter
- Director of communications
- Editor
- English teacher
- Grant writer
- Instructional designer
- Professor
- Public relations manager
- Publisher
- Technical writer
- Tutor
Classes and Requirements
As a master’s student in literature, you’ll be introduced to a variety of literary texts, approaches to literature, pedagogies, and career paths. Take theme-based courses to explore literature from around the globe across thousands of years. You’ll have ample exposure to a wide range of ideas, opening the door to new areas of research and new ways to share literary worlds.
Our 30-credit program is designed to foster the skillset and mindset you’ll need for a successful, fulfilling career, whether you’re entering your first job or aiming to advance in your field.
Detailed Course Descriptions Composed by Faculty
Faculty course descriptions and information, with reading lists, are posted each semester. Take a look at some recent course descriptions to get a feel for what you might study.
Spring 2023 MA in Literature course descriptions
Fall 2022 MA in Literature course descriptions
Summer 2022 MA in Literature course descriptions
Spring 2022 MA in Literature course descriptions
Fall 2021 MA in Literature course descriptions
Summer 2021 MA in Literature course descriptions
Spring 2021 MA in Literature course descriptions
Fall 2020 MA in Literature course descriptions
Full Academic Catalog Listing
The course catalog is the official reference for all our degree and course offerings. Check it out for a full listing of the classes available and requirements for this degree.
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Facts to Know
Here are just a few of the reasons why you can feel good about choosing the MA in Literature program at IUP.
- Proven preparation for a doctoral degree. Our 2017–2019 MA graduates had a 100 percent success rate for entry into a PhD program.
- Complete your degree in less than one year (June–May) by enrolling full-time.
- Dive into a broad range of perspectives. Explore traditional and nontraditional literary works, as well as critical and theoretical approaches in the field.
Enroll as a Full-time or Part-time Student: Your Degree, Your Way
Pick the MA path that’s right for you.
- Choose the part-time alternative, an ideal option for working professionals. Take classes around your work schedule and build your qualifications without sacrificing your current position.
- Enroll as a full-time student, and our 30-credit literature degree can be completed in just one calendar year.
- Select our summer class options, including a summers-only option. This path is ideal for working teachers.
Find Your Community at IUP
From journals to student organizations, there’s no shortage of ways to get involved and forge meaningful connections.
- Connect with our two graduate student organizations. Attend their regional conference, social outings, or presentation and publication workshops.
- Explore the Center for Film Studies and the Center for Digital Humanities and Culture.
- Join a student group, such as the Pop Culture Group.
- IUP has three firmly established peer-reviewed journals: Works and Days, Pennsylvania English, and Studies in the Humanities. Submit your original work for publishing or apply for a hands-on internship.
Ready to apply? Visit the School of Graduate Studies and Research to access:
- Admission requirements and application instructions
- Admissions application and international forms
- Tuition and fees information
For general information about graduate applications, please call the School of Graduate Studies and Research at 724-357-2222, or e-mail graduate-admissions@iup.edu.
In addition to meeting IUP’s general graduate admissions requirements, candidates to the MA in Literature program should be aware of the following:
- Minimum 2.5 overall GPA expected. If your GPA is below a 3.0, we recommend that you also submit a critical writing sample (normally an essay of 10–20 pages written for an upper-level English course or an excerpt from a senior thesis).
- Graduate Record Examination (GRE) not required, but you may submit it to bolster your application.
- If you have a strong academic record but a background in another discipline, contact mtwill@iup.edu and grad-eng@iup.edu for advisement prior to applying.
Priority review will be given to applications received by the following deadlines:
- For fall semester: January 15 for early decision or March 15 for second round, pending availability.
- Applications received after March 15 may be considered on a rolling basis, but only in the case that there are still openings in the program.
Adherence to these deadlines will ensure that accepted students are able to register with continuing graduate students in the program.
Financing Your Degree
When it comes to achieving your dreams, you have options for support at IUP.
- Competitive service and research awards enhance your professional profile and your curriculum vitae.
- Graduate assistantships can reduce your costs while providing hands-on work experience.
- Research grant opportunities are available to reduce your costs.
- Travel funding is available for professional conferences and presentations.
The Graduate Program in Literature and Criticism have created the following awards to recognize and reward exceptional MA-Literature or MA-Generalist students in our programs. The awards are be presented annually and carry a $100 honorarium.
Scholarly Excellence Award
For PhD students currently enrolled in the Literature and Criticism program and for MA students currently enrolled in both the Literature and Generalist programs, this award honors a single significant scholarly production published or presented in the past two years.
Service and Citizenship Award
This award honors positive, voluntary contributions made by a graduate student to the graduate programs, the English Department, the university, and/or the greater Indiana community. The award is intended to recognize the importance of work that graduate students perform outside the classroom to improve quality of life and education for all graduate and undergraduate students at IUP. Such service must go beyond the student's duties and responsibilities related to participation in a class, a thesis or dissertation, a graduate assistantship, or any other type of paid employment.
Nominations must come from faculty members of the Graduate Program in Literature and Criticism (self-nominations by students will not be accepted). The award winners will be selected from among the nominees by the Graduate Awards Committee.
If you have questions about the process, contact Dr. Thompson at Todd.Thompson@iup.edu.
Independent Seminar (English 797) and Independent Study offer students the opportunity to study selected topics of their choosing, including those not accommodated by course offerings. Students may take up to two three-credit courses in partial fulfillment of degree requirements.
Independent Seminar
Independent Seminar provides an opportunity for students to pursue interests not accommodated by course offerings. Each semester, three faculty members are scheduled to direct independent work. The student should select one of the faculty members to work with and contact that faculty member to design the plan for the independent seminar. Students wishing to take an Independent Seminar must file a completed application in the Graduate English office one month before the seminar is to begin. The form is available in the office as well as here online. Before it is submitted, the application must be approved by one of the faculty members teaching Independent Seminar in the semester for which the student intends to register. After the form is approved, the student may then register for the seminar. Online Application Form (pdf)
Independent Study
Students desiring independent work are urged to take the regularly scheduled Independent Seminar. In exceptional cases, however, students may be allowed to register for Independent Study with a faculty member not scheduled to teach Independent Seminar.
Students who plan to take an Independent Study (English 799) need to complete two forms available from the Graduate Office: the "Independent Study/Individualized Instruction Approval Form" and the "Request for Independent Study Approval" form.
Students are responsible for observing all university, departmental, and program policies, procedures, and standards.
Eligibility
Eligibility for independent seminar and independent study varies slightly from degree program to degree program as well as from student to student. Generally, a master's degree student is eligible to register for an independent study or independent seminar after successfully completing nine graduate credit hours at IUP and receiving approval to advance to candidacy. Normally, these prerequisite credit hours are core courses designated in the published information about these programs. Doctoral students, similarly, are eligible for independent study or independent seminar after advancement to candidacy. All independent study or independent seminar courses must be completed before the comprehensive examinations when the independent work is counted toward the minimum number of graduate credits for the degree. No more than six graduate credits of independent study or independent seminars may be applied to any of the degree programs. It should be noted that independent study or independent seminar is not a required part of the degree program; students may be advised to enroll in regular course offerings instead of independent study or independent seminar.
Content Criteria
The content of an independent seminar or independent study should meet the following criteria:
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The content should not duplicate course work offered in the degree program.
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The content should be appropriate to the specific goals of the degree program of which it is a part.
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The content must be substantial. A substantial independent study or independent seminar requires the student to perform an equivalent amount and kind of work to that normally required in a semester course in the program. Hence, the amount and kind of reading, of research, and of student requirements should be equivalent to a single course in a student's program.
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The content should be coherent as well as up to date and in-depth.
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The student should be capable of accomplishing the proposed work independent of daily advice and direction from the supervisor.
Not all appropriate areas of study can be specified in advance. Predesigned materials may be provided to master's degree students in order to facilitate their scheduling of independent study work. Master's degree students are not limited to predesigned studies, however. Doctoral candidates are encouraged to create independent work which will assist them in reaching programmatic goals as well as certain definite goals for their professional teaching circumstances.
IUP Organizations
Professional Organizations
- Modern Language Association (MLA)
- National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE)
- Pennsylvania College English Association (PCEA)