4+1 Bachelor of Arts to Master of Arts in English

Who can apply

• Framingham State students majoring in English
• Junior status with an overall GPA of 2.70
• ENGL 204 Literary Study (or its equivalent) and three literature courses completed, with a GPA of 3.00 or higher in those courses

How to apply

Apply at the end of your sophomore year. You'll need:

• A 500 to 800 word statement of purpose
• Two letters of recommendation, both from English department faculty
• An undergraduate literature essay as a writing sample
• The 4+1 program application

• Years 1 to 3: Complete your English major and general education courses. Apply at the end of Year 2.
• Year 4: Finish your bachelor's degree and take two graduate English courses that count toward both degrees.
• Year 5: Complete your M.A., including your master's thesis and its oral defense.

Bachelor's degree

Complete all English major requirements, including distribution requirements, and the General Education requirements. In your senior year, take two graduate-level courses that count toward both your B.A. and your M.A. The courses offered change from year to year, so you'll choose yours with your advisor from areas such as young adult or children's literature, film studies, creative writing, linguistics and writing pedagogy.

Master's degree

• Nine graduate-level English courses, including ENGL 901 Introduction to Graduate Study in English and ENGL 980 Master's Thesis in English
• A thesis on an area of advanced literary research, approved by your thesis advisor, the Graduate Program Coordinator and the Chair of the English Department
• An oral thesis defense before a faculty panel

See the full requirements in the graduate catalog.

A 4+1 (or 4 + 1) program lets you earn a bachelor's and a master's degree in about five years. In this program, you take two graduate courses in your senior year that count toward both degrees, then finish your M.A. in English in one more year.

About five years: four years for your bachelor's degree and one more for your master's.

Framingham State students majoring in English, with junior status and an overall GPA of 2.70. You also need ENGL 204 Literary Study and three literature courses with a GPA of 3.00 or higher.

At the end of your sophomore year. Your two graduate courses then start in your senior year.

Yes. The graduate courses you take in your senior year still count toward your bachelor's degree.