English Language and Literature
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In the Master of Arts in Literary Studies (MA-LIT), students have the option of completing their degree by coursework or by a combination of coursework and a major project or a thesis. We investigate 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.
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 through Discover Graduate Studies. MA LIT specific requirements can be tracked with the help of our department checklists.
You can earn your MA-LIT by following any of the following streams:
-
Course work
- Major Research Project (MRP)
- Thesis
The following sections outline the shared requirements of all streams and the individual requirements of each.
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
Major research project stream
| *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. The proposal must be forwarded in digital form with the signed proposal form (PDF) to the Graduate Coordinator by the first day of the third month of the second term of study: March 1 for Winter term, July 1 for Spring term and November 1 for Fall term.
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 (PDF).
MRP Submission
The MRP is due the first day of the last month of the third term of study: April 1 for Winter term, August 1 for Spring term and December 1 for Fall term.
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
| *Part-time students can take more than 1 course per term, but must remain in the program for a minimum of 6 terms |
Thesis
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. The proposal must be forwarded in digital form with the signed proposal form (PDF) to the Graduate Coordinator by the first day of the fourth month of the first term of study: December 1 for Fall term starts, April 1 for Winter term starts, and August 1 for Spring term starts.
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 (PDF).
Thesis Submission
The Thesis is due the first day of the last month of the third term of study: April 1 for Winter term, August 1 for Spring term and December 1 for Fall term.
Once completed and approved, the thesis must be submitted to UWSpace for publishing.
Submission Information
- Review the instructions for submitting your thesis to UWSpace.
- Theses submitted to UWSpace will be reviewed within 3 to 5 business days of the GSO receiving your 'Thesis Acceptance' form from your Faculty/department.
Submission Process
- Submit 1 copy of your thesis (.pdf format only) and any supplementary files to UWSpace for review by the GSO.
- You will be contacted by email after a review has taken place to advise you of any revisions that must be made prior to final approval.
- If revisions are required, your thesis must be resubmitted to UWSpace.
- You will be contacted by email once your thesis submission is approved.
- Retain a copy of the GSO/UWSpace approval email to submit to wPrint if paper copies of your thesis are required. An alternate printing service is pageforpage.com.
Students are encouraged to consult the GSO's Thesis Regulations and Formatting Requirements.