Updated (3/06)—Please refer to the Table
of Contents for appropriate section links.
Department
of English
Advisement
Manual
For
Graduate Degrees in English
(For students enrolling in 2006 and
after.)
Ninth Printing,
March 2006
Department of
English
Advisement Manual
for
Graduate Degrees in
English
Note:
Because of mandated changes from the New York State Education Department
and NCATE, existing graduate programs are subject to change. Please check for
current information at the Office of Graduate Studies or with your advisor in
the English Department. The official policies of the College are printed in the
Graduate Catalog. The most up-to-date information about our programs can
be found online at: http://www.cortland.edu/english/adviseman.
Manual
compiled Fall 2001 (and revised January and June 2002, August 2003, March 2004,
September 2004, February 2005, September 2005, January 2006, and March 2006),
by Dr. Denise D. Knight, Coordinator of Graduate Studies in English. Special
thanks go to Dr. Ellen Jampole, Education Department, and Dr. Carol J. Bell,
Mathematics Department, at the State University of New York at
TABLE
OF CONTENTS
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Suggested Schedule
for the M.A.T. in Adolescence Education, English 7-12 |
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Suggested Schedule for the M.S.Ed. in Adolescence Education, English
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Introduction to Graduate Programs
in English
Welcome
to graduate study in the English Department! We are pleased that you have selected
SUNY Cortland to pursue your graduate degree in English and expect that you
will find the program a challenge as well as a basis for future intellectual
endeavors.
This
advisement manual has been written to clarify many questions that may arise during
your graduate study. Additional sources where you can have your questions
answered include the Graduate Catalog, the Graduate Studies Office, and
your advisor. You should consult with your instructor regarding questions concerning
a specific course. Please read this manual in its entirety and consult it
before contacting your advisor, since doing so may save everyone, including
yourself, time and energy. The Graduate Catalog that is in effect when
you enroll is the official document that outlines all the regulations by which
you must abide. Your advisor (either the Coordinator of the Master of Arts (MA)
Program in English, the Coordinator of the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT)
Adolescence Education—English, or the Coordinator of the Master of Science in
Education (MSEd)—Adolescence Education—English) is available to answer
questions left unanswered in the advisement manual or the Graduate Catalog.
PLEASE
TAKE CARE NOT TO MISPLACE THIS MANUAL. We encourage you to establish a secure
place, such as a drawer or folder, for all important documents received from
the College—including your acceptance letter, candidacy confirmation,
transcripts, and syllabi of completed courses. This manual, along with those
important pieces of correspondence, should be placed in that folder. Also, PLEASE MAKE A COPY OF ANY
CORRESPONDENCE THAT YOU SEND TO THE COLLEGE AND PLACE THIS MATERIAL IN YOUR
SECURE FILE. If you follow this
practice, you will never have to second guess whether or not you have completed
certain requirements, such as filing for candidacy. If you have an official
written record of transactions, you can avoid complications in progress toward
your degree completion. We wish you
success as you pursue your graduate program in English at SUNY Cortland.
The current program advisors in
English are as follows:
MA
Program—Dr. Denise D. Knight, knightd@cortland.edu
MAT Program—Dr. T.
MSEd Program—Dr. Noralyn Masselink, masselinkn@cortland.edu
List of Offices
The
offices and persons listed below will provide information and services to you
as a graduate student. Please note that most campus office hours are Monday
through Friday,
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Financial
Aid Office |
(607) 753-4718 |
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Graduate
Studies Office Contact: Dr. Yvonne Murnane |
(607) 753-4800 FAX:
(607) 753-5988 murnaney@cortland.edu |
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Graduate
Coordinator, M.A. Program in English Contact: Dr. Denise D.
Knight |
Old Main, Room
115-D (607) 753-2075 |
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Graduate Coordinator, M.A.T. Program in
English Contact:
Dr. T. Ellen Hill |
Old Main, Room
114-B (607) 753-5675 hille@cortland.edu |
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Graduate
Coordinator, M.S.Ed. Program in English Contact: Dr. Noralyn
Masselink |
Old Main, Room
111-D (607) 753-2068 masselinkn@cortland.edu
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English
Department Chair: Dr. Karla Alwes Secretary: Karen Knapp |
Old (607) 753-4307; alwesk@cortland.edu |
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Registrar’s
Office |
(607) 753-4702 |
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Matriculation,
Candidacy, and Graduation Requirements
Before
you read about the program to which you have been admitted, you should first
understand some terminology.
Matriculation means that you have been accepted
into and are enrolled in the Master’s degree program. The process for
matriculation is as follows: you first apply to the graduate program and then
you are accepted into the English Department. There is a College fee for
applying; contact the Graduate Studies Office for more information. You will
indicate the graduate program in which you wish to enroll on this form. You may
only take up to nine credit hours (three courses) before being matriculated
into the program.
You will
be notified of your status by the Graduate Studies Office if your application
is lacking any of the requirements such as proof of certification or
transcripts. Once the conditions of acceptance are met, you will be accepted
into the English Department. It is up to you to provide proof that conditions
have been met. If you are accepted
unconditionally, you will be notified. When you are accepted into the Master’s
degree program, you will be assigned an advisor.
Candidacy is another requirement that must
be met. You need to apply to be a “candidate for a Master’s degree.” You do
this when you have taken between 6 and 15 credit hours at
We offer
three Master’s degree programs in the English Department. One program is a
Master of Science in Adolescence Education, English 7-12 (AED), which leads to
a professional or permanent certificate for students already holding
provisional certification. A second program is a Master of Arts in Teaching in
Adolescence Education, English, which leads to an initial or provisional
certificate. Successful completion of either of these programs allows
Students
in any graduate program in English must meet several all-College requirements,
in addition to the program requirements, for completion of the degree
program. Below are the requirements for graduation.
1.
Total Credit Hours: A minimum of 30 credit hours must be earned for graduation in
the M.S.Ed.: AEN, English program. A minimum of 50-51 credit hours must be
earned for graduation in the M.A.T.: AEN, English program. A minimum of 30
hours is required for the M.A. in English. At least 9 of the hours must be at
the 600-level.
2.
Up to six credits from other accredited institutions may be
transferred with approval.
3.
Cumulative Average: A cumulative average of 3.0 for all coursework completed at
4.
Foreign Language Requirement: Students in all master’s programs in English are required
to complete one year of college-level study or the equivalent of a language
other than English. (Students enrolled in the M.A. program have the option of
demonstrating competency in a classical language.) If this requirement has not
already been met, the candidate may take language courses concurrently with
graduate study.
5.
Time to Complete: In January 2005, the New
York State Board of Regents approved a policy change that will allow students
who are enrolled in a master’s degree program leading to permanent
certification five years to complete the requirements. Specifically, the Board
of Regents approved an amendment to the Commissioner’s Regulations (8 NYCRR
section 80-3.3[a][1]) that extends the term of the initial certificate to five
years. This change will provide teachers with the flexibility to complete a
Master’s degree within a five-year period (rather than three) to qualify for
professional certification. The amended regulation became effective on
6. Culminating Activities: In addition
to the requirements listed above, all students in the M.A.
in English program are required to complete either a
comprehensive examination covering material from required courses, as well as
material studied independently, or a substantial (30-40-page) master’s
thesis. Students in the M.S.Ed.:AEN program must prepare a teaching
portfolio. M.A.T.: AEN candidates are
required to submit a student teaching portfolio that includes 4 components: a
copy of their AED 541 unit plan; a copy of their middle school unit plan; their
reflective essay; and a copy of the genre study developed out of the ENG 504
methods course.
7. Graduation: You must apply for graduation
through Banner Web.
The
following section outlines the policies and procedures you should follow as you
pursue your graduate study. The
selections are listed in alphabetical order.
Admission to Closed Courses
Individual
instructors may allow you to enter a closed course at their discretion with
written permission. Doing so, however, is a courtesy extended by individual
instructors rather than an obligation. Instructors are not required to allow
students into closed courses. You will normally have to wait until the Drop/Add
period before each semester to determine whether an opening in the course
becomes available.
All Those Forms
See the
“Checklist of Important Items” (p. 34) and record the date for each requirement
completed. Be aware of when each form is
due, such as filing for candidacy, transferring coursework, or filing for
graduation, which is now done online through Banner Web.
Appropriate Courses for Your
Degree Program
In order
to determine appropriate courses, you need to consult the page in the Graduate
Catalog for your particular Master’s degree. Then, read more about the
courses and the sequence in which you have to take them. It is your
responsibility to know the frequency of course offerings, which can also be
determined by consulting the Graduate Catalog. Look for the section
titled Frequency Code.
You are
also responsible for knowing which courses are prerequisites for other courses.
In addition, if you take a course at the graduate level that requires
undergraduate prerequisites, you must take those before you take the
graduate-level course.
Change of Address, Telephone,
E-mail, or Name
When you
change your address, telephone number, e-mail address, or name, please be sure
to notify the Graduate Studies Office and the English Department. This is very
important and will help ensure information gets to you correctly and will allow
us to keep your folder in order.
Change of Major
If you
decide to change your major in the Master’s program, you must file a “Change of
Status” form and it must be approved before the change becomes official. You
must file the Change of Status form so that you are coded correctly on the
computer network, so your transcript will be correct, and so on.
Class Cancellations
If the
weather is inclement, please listen to the radio stations or watch local TV
stations in your area to determine if classes are canceled. The professor
cannot cancel classes. A college administrator determines whether classes will
be held; this is typically done in early-to-mid afternoon. After the determination is made, the
appropriate radio and TV stations are notified. It is up to you to find out
which local stations in your area carry the news of the College closings.
Course Load
Students
wishing to enroll in more than 12 credit hours require permission of their
advisor.
Activities
As part
of your degree requirements you will need to complete a comprehensive
examination, a master’s thesis, or a teaching portfolio (depending on your
program). The department policies for each of these activities are outlined in
the section “Culminating Activities” (p. 14).
Degree Plan
Knowing
the frequency of courses and the prerequisites of courses will allow you to
determine a tentative degree plan. Because of the number of people registering
for courses, you may not get the courses you want exactly when you want them.
Therefore, you should have an alternative plan.
Make sure you plan for courses that are required and offered only in
certain semesters.
Dropping a Course
If you
have to drop a course, you need to obtain a “Change of Schedule” form and
follow the instructions. Before you drop a course, please consider what the
effect will be on your timeline for graduation and certification as well as
your financial situation.
Full-time Status
A
graduate student who enrolls in 9 credit hours per semester during fall and/or
spring is considered full-time. However, if you are receiving financial aid as
a full-time student, you may be required to register for 12 credit hours.
During the two summer sessions, seven hours is the maximum for each session.
You may, under certain circumstances, take more than the maximum allowable
hours, but you must receive prior approval from the Graduate Director and the
Assistant to the Dean of Arts & Sciences.
Grade Point Average
The
minimum Grade Point Average (G.P.A.) needed to remain in graduate school is a
3.0. If your G.P.A. falls to a 2.8 – 2.99, you will be placed on
probation. If your G.P.A. falls below a
2.8, you will be dismissed from the College.
Incomplete Grades
If you
did not finish coursework for one of your courses, and you received an “INC” as
the grade, you have one calendar year in which to make up the work. You should
not wait the whole year; you should make up the work as soon as possible. Work
from a specific course should be made up in consultation with the professor of
that course. A few weeks after submitting the necessary work to complete the
course, you should call the Registrar’s Office or check Banner to confirm that
a grade has been submitted. If not, please contact the professor for the
specific course. Work not made up within one calendar year automatically
converts to an “E” (failing) grade.
Lack of Notification from the
College
There
may be several reasons for not receiving items from the College: e.g., (1) you are not matriculated (admitted
to the program), (2) you have not been put on the mailing list (check with the
Graduate Studies Office), (3) you moved or changed your name and neglected to inform
the College, or (4) your address is listed incorrectly (please notify the
English Department for a correction).
Letters of Verification
Sometimes
other State Education Departments require you to submit a letter stating you
have graduated from an accredited institution, at what level, and so forth. If
you need this letter for CERTIFICATION purposes, please contact the Graduate
Studies Office.
If your
principal (or district) wants a letter stating you are enrolled in a program
for payroll purposes, contact the appropriate Graduate Coordinator in the
English Department. Be very specific as to whom the letter needs to be
addressed and what it needs to state.
Number of Years to Complete the
Degree
See
“Time to Complete” on p. 8. Students in all graduate degree programs
must complete their program requirements within five years after the date of
the first graduate enrollment, even though such enrollment may be on a
non-matriculated basis. Students who
wish to request an extension must apply directly to the Director of the Office
of Graduate Studies in the
Paperwork for Course Approval for
Your District
If the
district in which you teach requires you to submit paperwork for course
approval before you register for courses, it is always a good idea to include a
list of several required courses, as you are not guaranteed to get a spot in
your first-choice class.
Registration Procedures
Graduate
students can now register for courses using Banner Web Registration. See “How
to Register on the Web” by going to the Cortland Homepage (www.cortland.edu)
and clicking on “Registrar” in the Quick Links. Graduate students will need
only an active time-ticket to register and will NOT have a Registration PIN
number.
M.S.Ed
students registering for AED or ENG courses with two sections must register for
the 001 (non-majors) sections. M.A.T.
students registering for those courses will register for the 601 (majors only)
sections of the courses. Students in the M.A.T. program must register for
fieldwork courses (AED 669 and ENG 505) as soon as possible during the open
registration period to insure that they receive their placements in a timely
manner. Before you will be permitted to register for these courses, you must go
to the Field Placement Office (D-210 Cornish) where you will be asked to fill
out placement preferences and availability. From there, proceed to the English
Department, where, upon being shown the appropriate paperwork from Field
Placement, the Department secretaries will lift the flag allowing you to
register for these courses and the co-requisite courses (see p. 32 for
additional details).
Seeing Your Advisor
When you
make an appointment, be sure to know what you want or need. It is generally
best to make an appointment in advance so that your advisor can pull and review
your file prior to the meeting.
Taking a 400-Level Course for
Graduate Credit
You may
NOT take a course at the 400 level for your Master’s degree. The College
requires that all coursework for graduate programs be at the 500-600 level.
Transferring Coursework to
If you
wish to transfer courses from another institution to the graduate program at
Courses
are not automatically transferred to
When
sending the appropriate form for transferring a course, you will also need to
send an official transcript along with the syllabus and catalog description of
the course. If you have not taken the course, you need only to send the catalog
description of the course and your form; you will need to mail the syllabus as
soon as possible. It is also your responsibility to have an official transcript
mailed to the Registrar’s Office at
Any
courses that you wish to transfer may not be older than five years from your
first graduate registration at
Withdrawing from the Master’s
Program
If you decide to withdraw from
any of the Master’s programs in English for any reason, please contact the
appropriate Graduate Coordinator in the English Department. Your folder will
continue to be kept on file for five years. After a period of five years, if
you decide to continue pursuing a Master’s degree, you must reapply to the
program since no coursework more than five years old may be applied towards a
Master’s degree.
Culminating Activities
Culminating activities are
designed to demonstrate the advanced abilities you have developed in relation to
your graduate study in English. You must have all the core coursework
completed, have maintained a G.P.A. of 3.0, have your candidacy accepted, and
have no grades of incomplete. A choice of one of the following culminating
activities is required for Master’s Degrees in English.
Master of Arts (M.A.)
Comprehensive Examination
You have
the option of taking a comprehensive examination covering both material from
the required courses in English, as well as works that you study independently.
A six-hour comprehensive examination is given twice in a calendar year—in April
and in July. The guidelines for taking the comprehensive examination are listed
below.
1.
The date for each of the exams is determined during the previous
calendar year. You are responsible for knowing the dates and notifying the
Graduate Coordinator or the English department secretary that you will be
taking the comprehensive examination on a particular scheduled date. The exam
is typically held on the last Monday of April and July. Students who wish to take the
comprehensive exam must register for it by April 1 for the April exam and by
June 1 for the July exam.
2.
We offer the option of taking the exam either by
using traditional blue books or by computer. Computers are generally limited to
those with Microsoft Word or Word Perfect programs. Please indicate which method you prefer to
use when you register for the exam, and we will make every effort to have computers available if you wish
to exercise that option.