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M.A. Handbook

Effective July 2000

Contents

• Expectations of Previous Preparation
• Appointment of the Advisory Committee
• Constructing the M.A. Program of Study
• Requirements for the M.A. Degree
• Requirements for All Students
• Additional Requirements for the Nonthesis Option
• Additional Requirements for the Thesis Option
• Deadlines
• A Step-by-Step Guide to Completion of the M.A.
• A Step-by-Step Guide to the Non-Thesis MA
• A Step-by-Step Guide to the Thesis M.A.
• Teaching Assistantships
• Requirements for students entering program between Fall 1997 and Spring 1999
• Requirements for students entering program between Fall 1999 and Spring 2000
   

Welcome

We are pleased that you have chosen the University of Maryland at College Park as the institution for graduate study in Communication. The following pages describe our M.A. program (for those entering the program after 1 July 2000). The program offers a competency-based degree which is particularly well suited to students who wish to pursue the following areas of concentration: Intercultural Communication, Persuasion and Social Influence, Public Relations, and Rhetoric and Political Culture.

This website provides the official requirements for your degree.  We recommend that you make a hard copy of this guide when you matriculate into the program.

We have tried to present you with a sufficient amount of information to guide you through to the completion of your degree. Still, you may have additional questions or concerns throughout your course of study. If so, the Director of Graduate Studies and the rest of the Graduate Faculty in Communication will be happy to try to answer your questions.

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Expectations of Previous Preparation

Normally our students will have a degree in a communication related discipline. Prior to entering our program, students should have a background which includes: (1) an introduction to statistical reasoning, (2) experience in the analysis of discourse, and (3) experience with writing in an academic context. In some cases, students from other majors and students who do not have this preparatory work may be admitted provisionally with additional course work required prior to admission, and/or additional credit hour requirements imposed as a part of the minimum requirements for the Masters degree.

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Appointment of the Advisory Committee

Upon entering the program students are assigned a temporary advisor to assist during enrollment for the first semester. During the semester of the sixth hour of graduate credits (normally the first semester), students should select a member of the graduate faculty in Communication to serve as their advisor. Once the faculty member agrees to serve as advisor, students should ask at least two additional graduate faculty to serve on the advisory committee. One of the committee members may be from outside the department. The advisor and committee should then be presented to the Director of Graduate Studies for formal appointment (use the departmental form, Request for Appointment of Advisor and/or Committee). It is possible to change advisors and/or committee members at a later date.

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Constructing the M.A. Program of Study

The graduate school requires that all students have a unified, coherent program. During the semester of the sixth hour of graduate courses (normally the first semester), students should prepare a preliminary program in consultation with their advisor. This program should be presented to the student's advisory committee. The committee may suggest changes, and finally must provide approval by unanimous vote.

Changes in the program after approval are possible and even encouraged if appropriate. To make changes, students and their advisors must submit the changes to their advisory committees and to the Director of Graduate Studies.

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Requirements for the M.A. Degree

Requirements for All Students

1) All students must complete COMM 700 (Introduction to Graduate Studies in Communication). This course must be taken during the first semester of a student's work.

2) All students must complete COMM 602 (Communication Theory).

3) All students must complete six hours drawn from the following methods courses with a grade of "B" or above: COMM 600 (Empirical Research in Communication), COMM 711 (Historical-Critical Research in Communication), COMM 714 (Introduction to Qualitative Methods in Communication Research).

4) Students must remain in good standing within the graduate program.  In addition to the requirement of the Graduate School that a student maintain a GPA of 3.0 or above, the Department requires that students promptly complete "incomplete" courses, file required planning documents on time, attend Departmental Colloquia, and move on a steady schedule toward completion of your degree.

Additional Requirements for the Nonthesis Option

Additional Requirements for the Thesis Option
 

Additional Requirements for the Nonthesis Option

Although this option does not entail preparation of the thesis, it does require completion of a writing project which revises a scholarly paper in the student's major area of concentration.

Following are the additional requirements for completing the nonthesis option:

5) Students must complete a minimum of 30 credit hours including a minimum of 18 hours numbered 600 and above. At least half of the hours must be in Communication. Limited internship credits (up to 3 credit hours of COMM 488 or 1 hour of COMM 688) may be counted toward satisfying requirements for the degree, but not toward satisfying the minimum credits in Communication. Programs must also identify the primary area of concentration in which the student will refine a seminar paper and take a comprehensive exam.

6) Students must revise a successful scholarly paper within their primary area of concentration. This revision should be completed in conjunction with the student's advisor. Following approval by the advisor, the Director of Graduate Studies will also review the paper to certify that it has been prepared in compliance with the Graduate School Thesis & Dissertation Manual (the format for the title page of scholarly paper submissions is illustrated as an appendix to this Handbook). Students are encouraged to complete the scholarly paper revision process in the semester prior to their graduation.

7) Students must successfully complete an area examination. The examination consists of two parts: (a) a written examination over the student's identified area of concentration, and (b) a one-hour oral examination. The area for the written exam is approved during the review of the student's program of study. At least two faculty examiners, appropriate for the subject matter of the area and appointed by the student's advisory committee, prepare the exam. The examiners do not have to be members of the student's advisory committee. Each student's exam may be unique. Normally the examination will be four hours and will be taken in-camera.  The oral exam takes place one to two weeks after the written exam and concentrates primarily, but not exclusively, on the content of the written exam. Both the written and oral portions are evaluated by the student's advisory committee and any additional faculty who have served as examiners.

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Additional Requirements for the Thesis Option

Students who wish to take the thesis option must fulfill certain preliminary requirements to establish the appropriateness of their more concentrated program:

5) A student who wishes to write a thesis must first present a general statement of the thesis topic to the advisory committee prior to the program review meeting. The committee must then recommend to the faculty that the student is a candidate for the thesis option. The graduate faculty must approve the recommendation as part of their review of the program of study. The decision will rest on the student's academic suitability, the development of a coherent area of expertise in which the student's thesis will be located, and the appropriateness of the thesis option for the student's career objectives.

6) A thesis student must complete a minimum program of 30 credit hours including six hours of COMM 799 (thesis research), and at least 24 hours in course work including a minimum of 12 hours in courses number 600 and above. At least 15 course hours must be in Communication. Internships do not satisfy the minimum requirements for the thesis option. The program will also identify the area of study within which the thesis research will be conducted.

7) In their review of the program, each thesis student's committee will consider additional methods courses which might be required beyond the basic methods requirements to prepare the student to conduct research for the thesis.

8) A student must prepare a formal proposal for a thesis in cooperation with the advisor. The proposal will be presented to the advisory committee at least one semester before the student graduates. After unanimous approval by the advisory committee, the prospectus functions as an agreement between the student and the committee about the scope and nature of the thesis project.

9) Once a student has obtained approval for pursuit of the thesis option, the thesis work should begin. A thesis project must meet the rigorous standards of academic research and must make an original contribution to the research literature in communication.

10) Students must defend their thesis at an open meeting of the thesis examining committee following completion of all other requirements for the thesis option. The degree will be awarded upon unanimous vote of the examining committee.

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Deadlines

The following pages delineate timetables for the completion of both the thesis and nonthesis options. For each milestone, we have provided (1) the steps students must complete; (2) the time by which student must complete each step; and (3) the appropriate form to verify completion of each step. The Graduate School requires a student to complete all of these steps within five years of matriculation.

The student is responsible for making sure that all requirements are met and all forms are turned in on time. The dates listed in the timetables are approximate. Each semester, the Department of Communication and the Graduate School announce exact dates for the completion of each step. Departmental deadlines may vary somewhat from semester to semester. For example, we may move the date for the area exam up or back a week if the specified week of the semester falls on a holiday.

A number of forms are required to process a student's progress toward the M.A. degree. Electronic versions of graduate program forms are available on the internal section of the departmental website.

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A Step-by-Step Guide to Completion of the M.A.

Non-thesis option

Thesis option

A Step-by-Step Guide to the Non-Thesis M.A.

• Step 1: Choosing an advisor and constructing the advisory committee
  When: during the semester you are enrolled in the 6th hour of coursework
  Form: Request for Appointment of Advisor/Advisory Committee (departmental form)
   
• Step 2: Constructing the plan of study
  When: during the semester you are enrolled in the 6th hour of coursework
  Form: Plan of Study (departmental form) and Approval of Plan of Study (departmental form); to make changes use Request for Change in Plan of Study (departmental form)
   
• Step 3: Submitting revised and approved scholarly paper
  When: begin to work on the paper no later than early in the semester before graduation. Due the 9th week of the semester.
  Form: Cover sheet for the Scholarly Paper should follow the design found on the website and should be velo-bound with a clear cover.
   
• Step 4: Applying for graduation
  When: approximately the second week of the final semester (consult Graduate School deadlines)
  Form: Application for Graduation (Graduate School form)
   
• Step 5: Submitting plan for area examination to Graduate Director
  When: the end of the fifth week of the final semester
  Form: Area Examination Plan (departmental form) and Approval of Area Examination Plan (departmental form)
   
• Step 6: Submitting approved program of study to Graduate School
  When: approximately the sixth week of semester (consult Graduate School deadlines)
  Form: Approved Program for the Degree of Master of [Arts] (Graduate School form)
   
• Step 7: Taking the area exam
  When: approximately the end of the 10th week of the final semester
  Form: none
   
• Step 8: Defending the area exam
  When: one to two weeks after the area exam
  Form: Report of the Advisory Committee on the Area Examination (departmental form)
   
• Step 9: Certifying that all requirements have been met
  When: approximately the 14th week of the final semester (consult Graduate School deadlines)
  Form: Certification of Master's Degree Without Thesis (Graduate School form)

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A Step-by-Step Guide to the Thesis M.A.

• Step 1: Choosing an advisor and constructing the advisory committee
  When: during the semester of the 6th hour of coursework
  Form: Request for Appointment of Advisor/Advisory Committee (departmental form)
   
• Step 2: Constructing program of study
  When: during the semester of the 6th hour of coursework
  Form: Plan of Study (departmental form) and Approval of Plan of Study (departmental form); to make changes use Request for Change in Plan of Study (departmental form)
   
• Step 3: Defending the thesis prospectus
  When: at least one semester before graduation
  Form: Approval of Prospectus (departmental form)
   
• Step 4: Applying for graduation
  When: approximately the second week of the final semester (consult Graduate School deadlines)
  Form: Application for Graduation (Graduate School form)
   
• Step 5: Submitting approved program of study to Graduate School
  When: approximately the sixth week of the final semester (consult Graduate School deadlines)
  Form: Approved Program for the Degree of Master of [Arts] (Graduate School form)
   
• Step 6: Submitting the thesis committee to the Graduate School for appointment
  When: at least two months prior to scheduled date for oral defense of thesis (consult Graduate School deadlines)
  Form: Nomination of Thesis or Dissertation Committee (Graduate School form)
   
• Step 7: Submitting thesis to committee
  When: at least two weeks before the student's defense
  Form: none
   
• Step 8: Defending the thesis
  When: no later than the next to the last week of the semester in which the student plans to graduate
  Form: Report of the Examining Committee (Graduate School form; the Graduate School sends this form to the student's advisor and it is subsequently signed by the committee members)
   
• Step 9: Submitting two copies of the thesis to the Graduate School
  When: no later than the next to the last week of the semester in which the student plans to graduate (consult Graduate School deadlines)
  Form: Report of the Examining Committee (Graduate School form)

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Teaching Assistantships

Many of our M.A. students receive financial aid in the form of teaching assistantships. Anyone who receives an assistantship typically teaches two sections of COMM 107 or another lower level course each semester. Assistantships provide a stipend and full tuition remission for up to ten credits a semester (Fall and Spring). M.A. students may be reappointed for up to four semesters of funding contingent upon satisfactory progress. M.A. students may not apply for additional semesters of funding.

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