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 Last Revised: 6 September 2006 © Jennifer MacLennan |
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COURSE & PROGRAM INFORMATION FOR UNDERGRADUATES
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Talks, Seminars, Workshops Rhetoric
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a message to: Burton Urquhart, Instructor and Program Administrator for the Graham Centre |
Applying for graduate study can be complex,
time-consuming,
and expensive, but you can make the process easier on yourself if you
get
started early. Here are a few general points to keep in mind if you are
considering the possibility of pursuing graduate study in Rhetoric and
Communication.
Coming soon: tips on selecting
your
grad supervisor
1. WHAT AREAS OF STUDY ARE AVAILABLE? WHAT IF MY
BACHELOR'S
DEGREE
IS NOT IN COMMUNICATION?
top For this reason, graduate programmes in communication are extremely varied, they may be housed in different departments from university to university, and they draw students with undergraduate degrees not only in communication but in a whole host of other disciplines. Undergraduate degrees in humanities or social science disciplines, the natural sciences, or education can all be accommodated in the vast and varied discipline that is communication. Programmes in communication are typically found in departments that specialize in some area of the discipline: journalism, applied communication, or speech communication. They may also be found in some surprising areas: for example, technical communication may be located in colleges of engineering or agriculture, rhetorical studies may be housed in a drama or English department, organizational communication may be located in a faculty of commerce. If you search carefully, you can find some fascinating specialized programmes. For example, Simon Fraser University offers a Master's in Publishing
programme. The University of Waterloo's English department offers a Language
and Professional Writing specialization that may be combined with
study
in literature. Concordia University offers undergraduate and graduate
degrees
and post-degree diplomas in Mass Media,
including broadcast journalism and film. At the University of Alabama,
you
can even enroll in a Master
of
Fine
Arts in the Book Arts -- specializing in such topics as book
binding.
Many universities (for example, the University of Washington)
offer
advanced degrees in technical communication. Within the discipline of
Speech
Communication you may specialize in Rhetoric, Organizational, Small
Group,
Interpersonal, or Educational Communication, Communication Theory,
Philosophy
of Communication, Political Communication, or Health Communication, to
name
only a few. You can find out about these and many more through the National
Communication Association's Directory of Graduate Programmes in
Communication.
The first kind of rhetorical study, usually found in departments of Speech Communication, Communication Studies, Theatre, or Rhetoric, studies rhetorical communication as a social phenomenon, and its criticism focuses on analysis of public discourses -- speeches, pamphlets, books, photographs, films, television, the internet, and other discourses addressed to a general public. Its concern is both pragmatic and theoretical, and it is interested in human motivation and interaction. My own field of specialization is this type -- rhetorical theory and criticism of public discourse. Course offerings in this field would include title such as Rhetorical Theory (Classical, Medieval, Renaissance, Modern, or Contemporary); Rhetorical Criticism; Rhetoric in Popular Culture; or Seminars in the Major Theorists (Kenneth Burke, Wayne C. Booth, Lloyd Bitzer, etc). The courses I offer might give you a better sense of the kinds of offerings you would find in this field. The second kind of rhetorical study is
frequently
associated with University Writing Centres, or sometimes with
professional colleges
such as Commerce or Education. This branch of rhetorical study focuses
on
the theory and pedagogy of composition,
which means that it's concerned with how the writing process occurs,
not only among practised writers but among beginners.
Course offerings in
this field
would include titles like Advanced Composition, Composition
Theory,
or Approaches to Teaching Composition. Technical or professional
writing courses frequently, though not always, fall into this category. The third area of rhetorical study, typically found in literature departments, focuses on the study of stylistic devices, particularly tropes and figures. It is a form of literary criticism rather than a study of communication as such, and it tends to be associated most strongly with the aesthetics of literature, particularly of the Renaissance. The word "rhetoric" may appear in the titles of articles and course offerings, where it may be paired with or interchangeable with "aesthetics" or "images." Courses will typically be heavily literary in emphasis, and might include specialized offerings devoted to Shakespeare, Donne, Marvell, Milton, or Blake, to give a few examples; they may also carry titles such as Images of Masculinity in Christopher Marlowe or Portrayals of Disability in Eighteenth Century Literature. When you're planning your graduate study, be sure to carefully
examine
the research profiles of the faculty and the courses typically offered
in
the department you are considering.Beware: just because the word
"rhetoric" appears in their offerings doesn't mean the programmes are
equivalent. Studying the course offerings and faculty interests will
help you to uncover which tradition is
followed
in the department you're considering. Be sure to look at the overall
departmental
offerings, since individual courses with similar titles may be offered
by all of these traditions. The difference is frequently one of
emphasis rather than absolutes, and it's important to find a department
in which you will be able to pursue the area of study that interests
you. 3. SHOULD I CONSIDER GRADUATE SCHOOL? top Before considering graduate study, you should honestly assess
your
motives and your ability -- not only your academic aptitude, but your
ability
to persevere and finish what you start. It might surprise you to know
that
as many as 80% of those who enter graduate study don't manage to finish
their
degrees -- and every one of them entered with the full intention of
completing
the required work. Graduate study in any
discipline is more
difficult
and demands stronger commitment and greater motivation than an
undergraduate programme, primarily because graduate study requires much
more independent
work.
4.
GRADUATE
STUDY IS NOT FOR YOU
IF:
top
Graduate study is not for everyone, and before you think about
applying,
you should assess your motives honestly. You will spare yourself a lot
of
grief if you understand what you're getting into, and you will not take
a
space from someone who is seriously committed to graduate study.
Graduate study is definitely NOT for you if
Be honest with yourself. If you are the sort of person who has trouble coming up with your own research questions, who habitually starts papers or projects only when the deadline is looming, and who has trouble meeting due dates for course assignments, you should possibly revisit your interest in graduate study. "Small weaknesses" like these have a way of translating themselves into major problems in the unstructured world of graduate school. If any of these sound like you, you should probably forget about graduate study and pursue other options. 5.
HOW IS
GRADUATE STUDY DIFFERENT FROM AN
UNDERGRADUATE DEGREE? top While there is a great deal of variation from institution to institution and from department to department, graduate programmes in Canada and the US normally require some combination of courses, comprehensive examinations, and a thesis or dissertation. It is becoming more common, at the MA level, to choose a programme option that does not require a thesis, but instead combines a greater number of courses with a research project and comprehensive examinations. The PhD, however, is always primarily a research degree, requiring (after the completion of an agreed-upon number of courses and comprehensive examinations) a dissertation that reports the results of original research. North American schools will also ask for a statement as to your general area of interest and a projected or suggested thesis specialization; this can be adjusted or altered as your focus is shaped by your course of study, but you should take seriously the writing of your initial statement because it may make the difference between acceptance and rejection by the school of your choice. top Be sure to read the material on the language requirements for
your
chosen school; despite the fact that this requirement is sometimes
little
more than an administrative hoop you have to jump through, some schools
may
ask for more. For example, the last time I checked, McGill University
required
fluency in English and French, in addition to the
language
requirement -- meaning that you would need English and French and
another
language. 6.CHOOSING
A
GRADUATE
PROGRAMME
top Because of the diversity of programmes and specialties, not
all schools
are the same in approach or emphasis: look carefully at their admission
and programme requirements, their course offerings, the specializations
of their faculty, and their tuition and other costs to find the school,
or the department,
that most closely matches your own interests, abilities, and financial
resources.
Another source of assistance is close by: ask your own professors for
advice
and help in locating a school. Until recently, few Canadian institutions have offered
opportunities
to pursue graduate study in rhetoric and communication, but happily
this is changing. Our own programme at the University of Saskatchewan
is one of several that have come into being in the last few years. It
is currently offered as a Special Case programme through the Graham
Centre. Three students have already earned graduate degrees, and five
more are in various stages of completion (see below).
Other courses and programmes can be found at Concordia University,
Simon Fraser University, the
University of Western
Ontario, McMaster University, the University of
Waterloo, or the University of Calgary.
You can browse calendars for these and other schools either in hard
copy or
on the world-wide web. You may also wish to check out the numerous programmes available at US universities. To find the right fit, you should consult the National (US) Communication Association's Graduate Programme Directory, which lists all of the member institutions of the Association, along with a brief outline of the specialties they offer at the graduate level. It available on-line at the National Communication Association's web site. From there, you can go to the web sites of the universities that interest you. You may also wish to investigate some of the communication links on this site; I have added links to some interesting specialized programmes in various fields of communication and will update these from time to time. 7. APPLYING FOR
GRADUATE
STUDY
top Be aware that even applying for graduate school costs money;
many
schools require an application or processing fee, which is usually
anywhere
from $50 to $75 or even higher (for US schools, the cost is in American
dollars,
meaning that an application fee of $50 US can cost as much as
$75-80
CDN, depending on the state of the dollar.) For this reason, as well as
for
others, you should choose your prospective schools carefully -- apply
selectively
to those you would really like to attend. As well, though applying can be pricey, you should apply to more than one graduate school. Admission is often very competitive, and not everyone who applies is granted a spot. Because you almost certainly will be rejected by some of the schools to which you apply (nearly everyone is), it's a nice idea to give yourself the luxury of a back-up plan. Many prospective graduate students apply to as many as ten schools; to ensure that you get accepted, you should plan to apply to at least three. If you are hoping to secure financial support in the form of a teaching assistantship (more about this below), you should probably double or even triple that number. Graduate schools in Canada and the US normally require three confidential letters of appraisal. Normally these are to be sent directly from your referee to the school(s) in question, and (unlike a job reference) your referees are expected to be professors or others who can comment on your suitability for advanced academic work. An employer's assessment, no matter how glowing, usually will not suffice for this purpose, nor will a "character reference" from a member of the clergy or a doctor. top
Securing letters of recommendation is your
responsibility, so it is up to you to do all you can to make it
easy and
pleasant for your referees to write in your behalf. Don't confound or
irritate
them by neglecting to supply addresses, forms, transcripts, postage, or
envelopes,
or by asking for letters at the last minute. Check with the graduate
school
to make sure that all your letters have been received and that your
file
is complete; if any are missing, approach the professor concerned with
a
polite reminder.
top
In Canada, letters of reference for graduate school are
automatically
considered confidential. This means that you will not necessarily
receive,
nor should you expect to receive, a copy of what your professor has
written.
Even in cases where the reference letters are given to you to be
submitted
along with your application form, they are presented to you sealed and
bearing
the referee's signature over the flap to ensure that confidentiality
has been
maintained. Conditions are slightly different in the US, where candidates have the right to look at their letters of recommendation unless they have signed a waiver stating otherwise. If you are applying to a US school, reference forms will include something called a "declaration of confidentiality waiver," which you may choose to initial or sign in order to waive access. If you choose not to waive your right to access, the letter will no longer be considered confidential, either by the writer or by the receiving institution, and this factor may affect the way the letter is written or read. If you're uncertain about what to do, ask the advice of your undergraduate professors before you choose an option. (And recognize that your right of access means the right to see the letter in the receiving institution's files, not the right to read the letter before it is sent. If you open a sealed reference letter, it will not be accepted by the school to which you are applying.) top If you're an undergraduate in a Canadian school, you may never have had the opportunity to specialize in the study of communication. If you have had this chance, great! You will have a credible source from which to seek a letter of recommendation. However, if you are interested in going to graduate school in communication after a degree in a different undergraduate specialty, don't despair. Letters from professors who know you and can comment favourably on your work are more important than the referee's disciplinary specialty. In fact, a letter from someone in another discipline can sometimes be an asset (for instance, a letter from a philosopher if you are interested in the philosophy of rhetoric or in rhetorical theory; or from a religious studies professor if you are interested in rhetoric of religion; or from a professor of engineering if you're interested in the rhetoric of science; or from an education professor if you're interested in communication education). With the increasing importance of interdisciplinarity these days, letters from adjacent disciplines can sometimes even be advantageous. top You will also need to submit transcripts of your academic record. Some schools require that you have these sent directly from the issuing office (the registrar) to the graduate institution; others allow you to include them with your application. Be sure to follow the regulations of your chosen school(s). An original transcript, certified with the university stamp, is required for each application for virtually all receiving institutions. Do not send photocopies; these will not be accepted. The official transcripts will cost you a modest fee, and it's sometimes cheaper to purchase several transcripts at once than to get them one at a time. British schools require an elaborate statement of your research or thesis plans (more on this below); Canadian and American schools will also require a statement of research intent. In all cases, this is something you should prepare carefully (ask one of your professors for help and advice on preparing this very important document). top All American schools, and a very few Canadian ones, require the results of the Graduate Record Exam as well. This standardized multiple choice test is written at major centres and all universities across North America several times a year. You should check the dates with Student Advising, who handle the administration details. There is a substantial cost associated with writing the GRE, and you have to apply ahead of time for a spot (approximately four to six weeks ahead). In recent years, the cost for writing the GRE has ranged from $120 to $216 US, depending on the number of tests you write. There is no discipline-specific test for communication studies; the general test will be sufficient. If you have intentions of attending a US school, or if your prospective Canadian school requires the test, prepare to write the GRE in the autumn prior to the year you hope to attend (that is, this fall for entry to grad school next fall). You should also be sure to prepare for the test by studying one of the many helpful GRE preparation books (available in most bookstores) and by getting a good night's sleep before taking the test! Finally, deadlines vary: American schools are usually earlier
than
most Canadian ones, but a reliable rule is about a year. The
applications
can be complicated to fill out, and require a great deal of thoughtful
preparation;
most cannot be done hurriedly. For this reason it's important
that
you think about initiating your application procedures in late summer
prior
to the year for which entry is sought (that is, this coming summer for
fall
of next year). 8. AWARDS AND
FINANCIAL
SUPPORT top Nearly all US schools, and most Canadian ones, offer support in the form of Teaching Assistantships, for which you often have to apply separately. The structure of assistantships differs from institution to institution, but in general, Canadian schools offer some financial support in return for the graduate student leading two or more "quiz sections" of under 20 students per week -- approximately 1/3 of an introductory course, the remainder of which is handled by a professor. The stipend for this work is usually enough to cover the cost of tuition, which the grad student must still pay. top By contrast, teaching assistantships at most American schools involve teaching a full section of a course, or even two, in your field -- a course in public speaking, interpersonal, or small group communication is a typical offering for an assistantship in a general communication department. In return for these duties, the student receives a (very) modest salary (enough to live on) plus a tuition waiver. Since "out-of-state" tuition costs can be as high as three or four times regular graduate tuition, a tuition waiver is a significant financial benefit to a graduate student. Unfortunately, there are limited numbers of these, even in the big schools, and for this reason there is a lot of competition for an assistantship, and many schools restrict these awards to PhD students. Canadian schools tend to offer more assistantships, but they are not usually quite as generous. The graduate student still has to pay tuition, and there are very few available to students of communication. Some schools also offer Research Assistantships, in which the graduate student assists a department member with research (usually, in English or communication, this means library work). Research assistantships are far less common than TAships, but they generally carry the same rate of pay. As well, if your programme is in broadcasting, journalism, media production, or another "applied" communication genre at a US school, you might also be able to secure an internship, which pays support similar to a TAship and carries a tuition waiver, but involves practical hands-on experience in a communication industry. Check with specific schools for details. top In addition to the internal financial support offered by a graduate school, there are also external funding sources that can assist you with the burden of graduate financing. Some major external awards include:
The Registrar's Office
has information on other funding possibilities as well; you should
consult
them for information on application procedures, deadlines, etc. As
well, when
you are writing to graduate schools, you should request an account of
what
awards and funding possibilities are available; many schools have a
booklet
or bulletin on such matters. Since not all schools will send this
information
automatically, you should ask specifically for it. Finally, you
should
conduct a search of the Internet for additional funding possibilities.
If
you're searching the web, try this Canadian scholarship information
site
first.
Deadlines for awards, especially major external ones, are
notoriously
early -- sometimes as much as a year ahead -- and the applications can
be
very elaborate. To repeat, try to start the application process
during
the summer a year before the date you hope to enter graduate
school. 9. SHOULD I SPECIALIZE OR DIVERSIFY MY INTERESTS? top How "multidisciplinary" you decide to become depends partly on whether you plan to enter the marketplace or stay in the academy. A degree in communication is very marketable in the professional world, and can take you almost anywhere, especially if it's combined with an interest in a technical or professional field and bolstered by a knowledge of communication technologies. I have suggested a few of the possibilities on this page; however, if you're curious about what else you might do with your degree in communication, the booklet Pathways to Careers in Communication (published by the National Communication Association) describes the wide array of career routes available to those interested in the discipline. This guide is available on-line at the NCA, where you may also order your own hard copy. There are also other informative web sites that can help you make a decision. If you decide to spend your professional life in the academy,
the
story is a little different, and the potential benefits of
multidiciplinarity
should be balanced against the sometimes surprisingly narrow
disciplinary
boundaries you could face. On one hand, a multiplicity of scholarly
interests
can have advantages, even in a university. For example, to do your MA
and
PhD in different areas of concentration can enhance your attractiveness
as a candidate for academic positions; as well, since areas of interest
can
easily change (or even sour) over time, it's nice to have a second area
of
expertise to "fall back on." It even seems to be healthier
intellectually
(and therefore more conducive to research productivity) not to be doing
the same thing all the time. If you are likely to end up teaching in a
college
rather than a university, the flexibility of a multidisciplinary
background
will be an unquestioned advantage, since you will be interacting with a
variety
of professional specialties outside your own field. top BUT... you should be aware that true multidisciplinarity can be a double-edged sword when it comes to publishing your work or finding a university position in a traditional department, and you should be aware of the dangers as well as the blessings. The primary danger is that you might well be considered insufficiently specialized by those on your potential hiring committees: for example, a Speech/English combination could lead colleagues in Speech to reject you as "too English-y" and those in English to view you as "too speechy" -- in both cases an outsider. It is also usually harder to find venues for publishing work that falls across traditionally defined disciplinary lines, and this fact might seriously compromise your "marketability" for an academic position, since your peers in more conventional programmes will more readily build up a dossier of published material. These factors are something else to consider in choosing your path of study, and something you should discuss with faculty who have been through the experience. Nevertheless -- despite the challenges -- you do find
communication
specialists in the most unexpected places, even within a university.
I'm
not the only rhetorician in a college of engineering, and there are
many
of us in commerce, psychology, media arts, general studies, political
science,
drama, and elsewhere. At the moment, because the study of communication
is
one of the "growth areas" in the Canadian academy, we are even
sometimes
more "marketable" than graduates of more "traditional"
disciplines. top 10. CAN I DO A
GRADUATE DEGREE
IN COMMUNICATION AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SASKATCHEWAN? top If you
are interested in Rhetoric and Communication at the University of
Saskatchewan, you
should take a look at my students' proposals as a guide to what can be
done;
copies
of their programme proposals may be found by clicking here.
According to the
university's calendar, students
interested
in pursuing a Special Case graduate programme where no established
degree programme
exists
-- as in communication -- are invited to discuss their study and
research
interests with faculty members and appropriate departments. Application
forms and procedures for Special Case graduate
may be obtained from the College
of Graduate
Studies For additional advice if you're interested in doing
graduate study in
rhetoric at the U of Saskatchewan, click here.
In the meantime, if I can be of help to you in figuring out where to go
for
such study, please e-mail
me. 11.
WHAT CAN I DO NOW
TO PREPARE MYSELF?
top
Finally, you consult with a faculty member who is familiar with your interests. Most will be happy to answer your questions about your major or to discuss your graduate school plans. It's a good idea, before making your plans for graduate study, to approach faculty who have attended the kind of programme you're interested in, who have specialized in the field that you wish to pursue, or who have otherwise successfully negotiated the path through graduate school. As well, I will be happy to answer your queries by e-mail or in person. To send me a note, just click here. If you're on campus at University of Saskatchewan, I may be reached in the Engineering Building, office #2A20.1 or by phone at (306) 966 5388. top
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