Students who do not write a thesis develop a writing portfolio and take both a written and an oral examination. The writing portfolio provides representative documents to illustrate communication expertise. The portfolio must be approved by a student's examining committee prior to the oral examination. Guidelines for the portfolio are available from the Director of Graduate Studies. The written exam, normally taken during the final semester of course work, is a take-home examination covering issues in rhetoric.
Students write on two questions from a list of four or five.
The exam, prepared by the Director of Graduate Studies, is normally picked up at noon on a Thursday and returned by noon the following Monday. The student may consult relevant literature, but all work should be done by the student without benefit of review by others. Students who do not pass the examination may take it a second time, normally after the elapse of one semester. Each year a limited number of graduate assistantships are available for qualified students. To be eligible, students must have regular admission status certified by NMSU's Graduate School.