Masters in English Literature
Chair of the Graduate Committee: Dr. Ayelet Ben-Yishai.
The English Language & Literature Department of the University of Haifa features innovative programming and dedicated teaching. Our advanced-level courses offer further in-depth knowledge and study of literature and cultures in English. Research seminars and electives are taught by outstanding academic faculty, noted for its concern for each individual student’s program and progress, and for its commitment to rigorous academic research and writing. 
Overview of M.A Program (PPT)
The purpose of the curriculum is to deepen and enrich students’ knowledge of English cultures and literature and to equip them with the tools and skills for academic research and writing on these subjects.
Admission Requirements:
1. Applicants with a bachelor’s degree with a weighted final grade of at least 80 in English literature from a recognized university in Israel or abroad and at least 76 in the second major of the graduate degree, who have successfully passed a written entrance examination. The entrance examination is intended to test writing and analysis skills and is not a knowledge examination. The applicant is not allowed to take the entrance exam more than once a year.
2. Applicants with a bachelor’s degree in other departments, who have completed their studies with a weighted mark of at least 80, will be admitted to the course of completion for presentation to the MA studies, in accordance with the decision of the department’s MA committee.
3. In addition to the entrance exam, the chair of the MA committee may require applicants to submit copies of seminar papers written under the bachelor’s degree, and/or to attend a personal interview.
4. All applicants will be admitted from the beginning of their studies to the track with the final exam (except for exceptional cases with the approval of the MA committee and a designated supervisor’s recommendation). A student who has earned credit points for 16 hours-per-week courses with an average grade of 86 and at least 85 in seminar work, And with the consent of a designated advisor, may apply to move to the track of thesis writing.
5. Applicants who are graduates of a recognized university abroad, as well as graduates from affiliated universities in Israel who work with the approval of the Council for Higher Education, will be required to successfully pass the GRE exam or supplementary studies under the bachelor’s degree. For further details, please check the standards of the Master’s Degree Program.
Duration of Studies:
– The standard duration of Track A (Thesis Track), including the submission of a research thesis (thesis), is up to three years.
– The standard duration of Track B (Non-Thesis/Exam Track), including a final examination, is up to two years (in accordance with the University’s regulations for graduate studies).
Curriculum: The program offers elective and seminar courses designed to deepen and enrich English literary and cultural studies with courses that cover the fields of early modern to contemporary literature, literary theories, and research and review methods.
There is an option for an interdisciplinary personal study program, which must be approved by the Head of Department and the Dean of Advanced Studies.
All MA applicants will initially be accepted to the Exam Track (see below). After completing 16 weekly semester hours (4 courses) with a grade point average of 86 or more, and a grade of 85 (at least) for a seminar paper, the student may apply to transfer to the Thesis Track.
Structure of the MA Program
The studies at the department are offered in two tracks:
The scope of study in this program track is 32 hours-per-week. The student must take seven courses within the department (4 hours-per-week each) as well as a methodological workshop (4 hours-per-week) according to the following details:
– 2 level 5 seminar courses that require seminar writing (and other assignments, according to the lecturer’s decision).
– 5 Level 4 elective courses that require writing papers and/or exams, according to the lecturer’s decision.
– A methodological workshop to improve academic research and writing skills.
– Modern or classical European foreign language of two semesters (these studies do not count towards the number of hours in the degree).
>> Students will be required to take the course: “Introduction to Criticism and Theory” as part of supplementary studies, (these studies are not counted as the number of hours in the second degree), unless they have taken a parallel course in the first degree. A student who has not yet completed his / her duties in this course will not be able to enroll in seminars or elective courses.
>> Students must attend at least 4 lectures per year of their choice as part of the afternoon seminar.
>> Students in Track A must submit a research thesis (thesis).
Research Thesis (Thesis):
The student must submit a research proposal of their research thesis (thesis) and it must be approved for by the beginning of their third year of study. The student must also complete all hearing duties by the end of his second year of study. The department will report on the approval of the thesis proposal and its guidelines for the Advanced Studies Department. Guidelines for writing the thesis proposal can be found on the department website. Guidelines for writing a dissertation (thesis) can be obtained from the Advanced Studies Authority’s website.
The weighting of grades (for a thesis track):
Component 1: Seminar papers – 25% of the final grade of the degree
Component 2: Other courses – 35% of the final grade of the degree
Component 3: Research Paper (Thesis) – 40% of the final grade of the degree
Total of 100 Percent
Info – MA Thesis – Department of English Language and Literature:
Length: 80 – 150 pages (about 20,000 – 40,000 words).
It is the student’s responsibility to complete the thesis within the time-frame permitted by the University, and to follow the rules set down in the Year-Book and on the homepage of the Graduate Studies Office.
While the proposal should be approved in the second year of study, the student should not begin writing the thesis itself until all the coursework, including the foreign language requirement, is complete, with final grades. The student does not attain the status of “research student” (thesis-writer) until that time. Note: the minimal passing grade in MA courses is 70, but the required grade average in the coursework is 76. 76 is the pass mark for the thesis.
Both the advisor and the second reader may require revisions or corrections. If so, the student must carry them out and resubmit to the English Department office.
The final grade is the average of the adviser’s and the second reader’s grades.
The student may approach a potential thesis advisor or may contact the head of the MA committee. Either way, the committee must approve the choice of the advisor (in some cases, dual advisers). The committee will make every effort to match the best possible adviser with the student’s research interests. If for any reason no reasonable match is possible, the MA committee will help the student find a new research topic or a new adviser.
The thesis proposal must be typed, double-spaced, and between 500 and 2500 words; with a provisional title; a well-defined research topic; a working or preliminary bibliography; a general outline of chapters or main sections; and indicating the name of the adviser.
The finished proposal must be submitted to the department office, and the date of submission recorded. The MA committee will decide on a second-reader of the proposal.
The MA committee will confirm the final acceptance of the proposal and will record this acceptance, the date, the adviser’s and the second reader’s names and evaluations of the proposal. Both our department and the Graduate School will keep this information on file.
Thesis Guidelines MA Students:
Please see Thesis Proposal GuidelinesThesis guidelines
Examination Track (Track B) Program:
The scope of study in this program track is 36 hours-per-week. The student must take the following courses:
– 2 Level 5 courses that require seminar writing (and other assignments, according to the lecturer’s decision).
– 6 Level 4 courses that require writing papers and / or exams, according to the lecturer’s decision.
– A methodological workshop to improve academic research and writing skills.
>> Students must attend at least 4 lectures per year of their choice as part of the afternoon seminar.
>> Students in Track Two must successfully pass a final exam.
>> In addition, all MA students must attend at least 4 lectures offered in the frame of the Department Seminars.
The final exam will be in writing.
The student must be tested by November 30th, at the end of their second year of study.
Examination Guidelines for the Final ExamThe weighting of grades (for a non-thesis track):
Component 1: Seminar papers – 30% of the final grade of the degree
Component 2: Other courses – 45% of the final grade of the degree
Component 3: Final Examination – 25% of the final grade of the degree
Total of 100 Percent
Examinations and Transition Terms for both tracks:
– A passing grade in an MA course is 70. Eligible for an MA degree is a student who has obtained an average grade of at least 76.
– If the student received more than one “failed” grade during their studies, or if their academic achievement is generally low, the Department will recommend to the Advanced Studies Authority to cease their studies.
– The MA committee reserves the right to transfer a student from track A to track B based on his/her academic achievements and/or pace of progress in his/her studies.
– A student enrolled in Track A must have obtained at least a grade of 76 in the research thesis.
– A student enrolled in Track B must pass the final exam with a grade of at least 76.
– No more than three courses must be taken with the same lecturer in Track A.
Info – Comprehensive Exam – Department of English Language and Literature:
In the student’s second year of MA studies-after having completed half of the course requirements – the student may consult with the MA Committee, which may recommend an advisor, or may speak directly with a potential advisor from the English Department. Once the adviser agrees to take on the student for the Comprehensive Exam, the adviser must notify the MA Committee, which must give its approval.
It is the adviser’s responsibility to help the student decide on a broad topic for examination and to prepare the Bibliography on which the student will be examined. Please note that the topic must be “comprehensive,” a major area of study in either literature or linguistics. Both the advisor and the student should make sure that the student has had some MA-level coursework in that area.
The student is eligible to take the examination only after completing all the coursework, including the foreign language requirement. The adviser should not set a date for the exam without consulting the MA Committee, which will check the student’s status in the program.
Once the student has been declared eligible for the exam, the time and place should be arranged through the Department co-ordinator.
The extent of the examination should be five to six hours (literature) or four to six hours (linguistics), which may be spread out over two days. Usually, students are permitted to bring books and articles with them, and sometimes notes as well. If the adviser wishes to see sample exams from previous years, s/he should consult the MA Committee.
Once the student takes the exam, it must be handed-in to the English Department, and the date recorded. The Department co-ordinator will then return the exam to the adviser, for grading. The adviser submits the graded exam to the Department, so that the date and the grade may be recorded. The MA Committee then selects a second reader, who grades the exam and returns it to the Department.
Please note that the teachers do not return the exam directly to the student.
The passing mark is 76, and the final grade on the exam is the average of the first and second readers’ grades.
In the rare case that a student fails, the student is entitled to a Second Term (Mo’ed B).