Some students regard the M.A. as a terminal degree and use it as a qualification to teach in schools and community colleges. The program requires a balance of academic and practical courses culminating in a thesis project and is usually completed in two years. The course options offer wide latitude for choice among the different areas of theatre studies. Students are encouraged to take upper-division undergraduate courses in literature, history, and theory to cover specific gaps in knowledge. Most students take at least one graduate seminar per quarter, and most become involved in productions in some way.
All theses involve a written component.
They are evaluated by an M.A. committee of three faculty members chosen by the student. The Graduate Advisor and other members of the faculty will be available on a regular basis to help students shape their program and to consult with them on all matters relating to their studies. Students are encouraged to take advantage of the individual and careful advising that is possible in a small graduate program such as ours. Many fine students who have done well in the department's doctoral program came from the M.A. program. Students who make this transition have their course work requirement for the doctoral program reduced by one year and are assured of at least two years of funding for their doctoral study.