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Program Overview
MA Literary Studies
The Master of Arts in Literary Studies (MA-LIT) offers students the option to complete their degree by coursework or by a combination of coursework and a major project or a thesis. The program investigates historical and contemporary areas of British, American, Canadian, and English-language postcolonial literatures, alongside the theories relevant to their study. MA-LIT graduates are employed in publishing, private industry, government, educational organizations, non-governmental organizations, and in their own businesses; others go on to doctoral programs.
Program Requirements
- The MA-LIT can also be taken in the co-op stream.
- Full program information and regulations are available in the Graduate Calendar.
- Admission requirements and the application process can be accessed on the English (Literary Studies) - Master of Arts (MA) webpage.
- MA LIT specific requirements can be tracked with the help of department checklists.
Program Streams
Students can earn their MA-LIT by following any of the following streams:
- Course work
- Major Research Project (MRP)
- Thesis
Shared Requirements
The following requirements are shared between all streams:
Academic Integrity Workshop
All students are required to complete a University of Waterloo workshop on academic integrity and sign a pledge to conduct their research with scrupulous honesty. The workshop takes place before classes begin, and students will not be allowed to take classes until they have signed the pledge.
Stream-Specific Requirements
Course Work Stream
Courses
Coursework students must complete the following 8 courses:
- 4 courses designated as Literature
- 1 course designated as Rhetoric and Communication Design or Critical Media Studies (CMS)
- 3 elective courses
Program Schedules
The following table shows the recommended program schedules for different ways of completing the MA-LIT coursework degree: | Type of Coursework Degree | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Term 1 | Term 2 | Term 3 | Term 1 | Term 2 | Term 3 | Term 1 | Term 2 | Term 3 | | Full time Funded for 3 terms | 3 courses | 3 courses | 2 courses | | | | | | Co-op Funded for 3 terms (No funding during co-op terms) | 3 courses | 3 courses | co-op | co-op | 2 courses | | | | | Part time No funding | 1 course | 1 course | 1 course | 1 course | 1 course | 1 course | 1 course | 1 course |
- Part-time students can take more than 1 course per term, but must remain in the program for a minimum of 6 terms.
Major Research Project Stream
Courses
MRP students must complete the following 6 courses:
- 3 courses designated as Literature
- 1 course designated as Rhetoric and Communication Design or Critical Media Studies
- 2 elective courses
Program Schedules
The following table shows the recommended program schedules for different ways of completing the MA-LIT MRP degree: | Type of MRP Degree | Year 1 | Year 2 | | --- | --- | --- | | Term 1 | Term 2 | Term 3 | Term 1 | Term 2 | Term 3 | | Full time Funded for 3 terms | 3 courses | 2 courses MRP proposal | 1 course MRP work | | | Co-op Funded for 3 terms (No funding during co-op terms) | 3 courses | 2 courses MRP proposal | co-op | co-op | 1 course MRP work | Part time No funding | 1 course | 1 course | 1 course | 1 course MRP proposal | 1 course MRP work | 1 course MRP work
- Part-time students can take more than 1 course per term, but must remain in the program for a minimum of 6 terms.
Major Research Project
The MRP should be 40-50 pages in length, offering an in-depth inquiry into a literary studies problem and situating the proposed solution to that problem in relation to current theory. It is roughly equivalent to two courses and should involve a similar amount of intellectual labour. The passing grade is 70%.
Proposal
Students planning to complete their degrees through this option should arrange for a supervisor and a reader, both of whom must be members of the faculty, and under their guidance prepare a proposal to submit to the Departmental Graduate Committee. The MRP proposal must be approved by the student’s supervisor and second reader before going forward to the Graduate Committee.
An MRP proposal should consist of an overview of the entire project of no more than 500 words, exclusive of bibliography. It should include first-page headings with your name, your supervisor’s name, your second-reader’s name, and a title. Sections should be clearly signaled with subheads and blank space. Pages should be numbered.
The purpose of the document is to solicit feedback from the supervisor, the second reader, and the English Graduate Committee in order to ensure the successful completion of the project. The Graduate Committee must approve the proposal before it can go forward.
The proposal should outline the project’s major research goals and the corpus of texts or objects to be considered. It should briefly consider some major extant work in the field.
For a sample proposal, see LIT MRP Proposal Example.
MRP Submission
The MRP is due to the supervisor and reader in your last term of study. They will then assess it and submit your program completion form by that term’s grading deadline.
Hard copies of the completed and approved MRP should be supplied to the supervisor and reader(s) by the student, unless the supervisor specifies otherwise.
Thesis Stream
Courses
Thesis students must complete the following 4 courses:
- 2 courses designated as Literature
- 1 course designated as Rhetoric and Communication Design or Critical Media Studies
- 1 elective course from either within or outside the department
Program Schedules
The following table shows the recommended program schedules for different ways of completing the MA-LIT Thesis degree: | Type of Thesis Degree | Year 1 | Year 2 | | --- | --- | --- | | Term 1 | Term 2 | Term 3 | Term 1 | Term 2 | Term 3 | | Full time Funded for 3 terms | 3 courses Thesis proposal | 1 course + Thesis | Thesis | | | Co-op Funded for 3 terms (No funding during co-op terms) | 3 courses Thesis proposal | 1 course + Thesis | co-op | co-op | Thesis | Part time No funding | 1 course | 1 course Thesis proposal | 1 course + Thesis | 1 course + Thesis | Thesis work | Thesis work
- Part-time students can take more than 1 course per term, but must remain in the program for a minimum of 6 terms.
Thesis Details
The thesis should be 80-100 pages in length, offering an in-depth inquiry into a literary studies problem, and situating the proposed solution to that problem in relation to current theory. It is roughly equivalent to four courses and should involve a similar amount of intellectual labour. The passing grade is 70%.
Students planning to complete their degrees through the thesis option should arrange for a supervisor and two readers, all of whom must be members of the faculty, and under their guidance prepare a proposal to submit to the Departmental Graduate Committee. The MA thesis proposal must be approved by the student’s thesis supervisor and thesis-committee members before going forward to the English Graduate Committee.
A thesis proposal should contain an overview of the entire project, including a chapter outline, of no more than 1000 words in total, exclusive of bibliography. It should include first-page headings with your name, your supervisor’s name, your committee members’ names, and a title. Sections should be clearly signaled with subheads and blank space. Pages should be numbered.
The purpose of the document is to solicit feedback from the thesis supervisor, the readers, and the English Graduate Committee in order to ensure the successful completion of the project. The Graduate Committee must approve the proposal before it can proceed.
A thesis proposal should outline the project's major research goals and the corpus of texts or objects to be considered. It should briefly situate the project in its field.
For a sample proposal, see LIT MA Thesis Proposal Example.
Thesis Submission
The Thesis is due to your supervisor and readers in your last term of study. They will then assess it and submit your program completion form by that term’s grading deadline.
Once completed and approved, the thesis must be submitted for publishing.
Students are encouraged to consult the Thesis Regulations and Formatting Requirements.
