Auburn University’s Department of English is accepting applications for our graduate programs. Among other programs, we offer a Master of Technical and Professional Communication, a Master of Arts in English with a specialty in Rhetoric and Composition, and a PhD in English: Rhetoric and Composition. We also offer a Certificate in Technical and Professional Communication that students can complete while earning the MA or PhD.
Please apply (or encourage your students to apply) by February 14, 2027. All of our programs offer guaranteed funding and the opportunity for teaching experience. GRE scores are not required.
MTPC and Certificate in TPC
In Auburn’s Master of Technical and Professional Communication program, you will learn the theory and practice of technical communication and prepare yourself for a job as a workplace writer, user experience (UX) specialist, editor, digital designer, content specialist, information analyst, or proposal specialist, as well as other interesting and often well-paid positions. Our graduates can do far more than write. Moreover, the MTPC program, taught by full-time MTPC faculty with both academic and workplace experience, will provide you with opportunities to practice document design, writing, editing, user experience, and production techniques for online and print media.
Students in any of our other graduate programs can earn a Certificate in Technical and Professional Communication while completing their program MA or PhD.
MA, Rhetoric and Composition
(also offering Creative Writing and Literature)
The Master of Arts degree in English at Auburn is designed to develop and professionalize you within a sub-discipline in English Studies, and to bring your writing and research skills to an advanced level while providing you with experience as university-level writing teachers. We offer three tracks: Rhetoric and Composition, Creative Writing, and Literature.
Our Rhetoric and Composition focus offers advanced training and practical experience in the study and teaching of writing. Students who enroll in the program can expect to join a vibrant community of scholar-teachers who specialize in multiple and intersecting areas of the field. Our curriculum reflects these commitments, centering around courses in rhetorical theory and pedagogy; digital, multimodal, and cultural rhetorics; public and community writing; and rhetorics of science and technology. In addition to coursework, students teach in Auburn’s Core Composition program, and through that experience, develop a foundation for pursuing related positions at the college and university level.
More information is available on our Creative Writing and Literature tracks upon request.
PhD
Our PhD program admits several new students per year with a departmental assistantship for five years, including a tuition waiver and a stipend with a work commitment. A typical program includes two years of course work, written and oral comprehensive exams, and two to three years of work on the dissertation.
Graduate assistants typically teach three classes in first-year composition per year, and there are many opportunities for editorial and writing program assistantships. PhD students have recently defended dissertations in rhetoric of health and medicine and in automated writing technologies. Writing Studies articles authored or co-authored by PhD students have been recently published in Written Communication and Journal of Technical Writing and Communication.
MTPC and MA Opportunities
All MA and MTPC students are offered tuition waivers and a GTA stipend. Conference travel funding is available from the department as well as the Graduate School.
MA and MTPC students serve as TAs for a large-format literature class in their first year, with training and continual guidance provided by a highly skilled teacher of record, and they complete a two-semester teaching practicum in composition. In their second year, they teach three sections of first-year composition over two semesters, complete their coursework, and prepare an e-portfolio that synthesizes their work as scholars and teachers.
We have a great track record of placing our MTPC and MA students in competitive PhD programs (Virginia Tech, Texas Tech, Notre Dame, North Carolina State, Vanderbilt, UNC, University of Minnesota) and, for creative writers, prestigious MFA programs.
All Graduate Students
Graduate students in our programs—at every level—have many opportunities for professional development outside the classroom, including organizing conferences, working with the writing program administrator, working in our Lab for Usability, Communication, Interaction, and Accessibility (LUCIA), working with Auburn University Libraries Special Collections, and more.
Our application deadline is February 14, 2027. Please get in touch with the Director of Graduate Studies, Anton DiSclafani (abd0025), if you have any questions.