Master of Arts in Modern Languages

Overview

The Master of Arts in Modern Languages with a concentration in French or Spanish is a 36-hour degree designed to enhance students' competence in the French or Spanish language and knowledge of the literature and culture of the French- or Spanish-speaking world.

About The Program

Specific objectives are to prepare students for a career in teaching or in any area in private or public life in which knowledge of modern language is essential, and to help them develop the techniques of independent research necessary for work beyond the master's level.

Career Opportunities

• Teaching
• Translation & Interpretation
• Health, Legal, and Social Services
• Research, Writing, Publishing, and the Media
• Government
• International Relations & Diplomacy
• All other professional areas that require excellent writing and communication skills in French/Spanish

cottonbro / pexels

Degree Options

Master of Arts in Modern Languages with Concentration in French

Students will take a minimum of nine hours in the core MODL courses, along with 27 hours in French courses, or alternatively, a maximum of 12 hours in the core MODL courses and 24 hours in French courses. The M.A. in Modern Languages-French is a non-thesis degree and culminates in a comprehensive exam on the coursework and the appropriate reading list.

Required Course

MODL 5304: Currents in European and Latin American Literature and Thought

Other Requirements

Knowledge of a second foreign language will be required, including listening, speaking, reading and writing skills, as demonstrated by one of the following: the successful completion of two semesters of coursework at the second-year level; MODL 5301: Modern Languages for Graduate Reading; or an appropriate examination.

Master of Modern Languages with a Concentration in Spanish

Students will take a maximum of six hours in the core MODL courses, along with Spanish courses in linguistics, literature, culture, and translation studies. The M.A. in Modern Languages-Spanish is a non-thesis degree and culminates in a portfolio.

Required Courses

All students are required to take two of the following three courses:

SPAN 5300: History of the Spanish Language

SPAN 5302: Spanish Dialectology

SPAN 5303: Applied Spanish Linguistics

Other Requirements

Knowledge of a second foreign language will be required, including listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills, as demonstrated by one of the following: the successful completion of two semesters of coursework at the second-year level; MODL 5301: Modern Languages for Graduate Reading; or an appropriate examination.

Graduate Certificate in French or Spanish

Students who have earned an M.A. degree in a language from an accredited institution may seek admission into the Certificate Program in order to earn 18 graduate hours in the discipline to meet minimum SACS accreditation requirements for teaching at institutions of higher education in the State of Texas.

Requirements

Students will be accepted into the graduate certificate program only after showing proof of proficiency in French or Spanish through an already acquired degree in that language or by passing a proficiency exam.

Generally, a student with a bachelor's degree in a field other than French or Spanish may become an unconditionally admitted graduate student after fulfilling the upper-level requirements in the language:

• 18 hours of upper-level French or Spanish, or
• a combination of coursework and testing.

All students who are accepted into the certificate program, regardless of the language of concentration, will be required to take 18 graduate hours in the language. Students in the certificate program will not be permitted to take courses with a MODL prefix.

Fast Track Program in Modern Languages

The Fast Track Program allows outstanding undergraduate students in French or Spanish at UT Arlington to take up to three graduate courses in Spanish or French that will earn credit toward both the bachelor's degree and the master's degree in Modern Languages. It is designed to encourage high standards of performance, facilitate the transition from undergraduate to graduate study, and reduce the time needed to complete the M.A.

Why Choose Us?

• UTA is both a Research-1 and a Hispanic-Serving and Minority-Serving Institution
• Work with award-winning and internationally renowned faculty
• Train with sworn/certified translators and interpreters
• The low student-faculty ratio allows personalized attention to students
• M.A. graduation rate is roughly 95% over the past four years

Admission Requirements

Unconditional Admission

The criteria for admission below are used, without specific weights, as positive indicators of potential success in the program. All four criteria for unconditional admission must be met in order to receive unconditional admission.

• degree in the language to be studied of 18 upper-level hours in the language or equivalent1
• 3.0 undergraduate GPA (last 60 hours)
• submission of GRE scores2
• 3 letters of recommendation (from faculty if possible) were sent to the Department of Modern Languages Graduate Advisor.

1 A student with a bachelor's degree in a field other than French or Spanish may become an unconditionally admitted graduate student after fulfilling the upper-level requirements in the language:

• 18 hours of upper level Spanish, or French or
• a combination of coursework and testing.

(A person with a bachelor's degree in a major other than French or Spanish must have the equivalent of 18 hours of upper-level French or Spanish in order to become a master's student. The equivalency may take one of the following forms: A student may obtain 18 hours at the 3000 and 4000 levels, or s/he may attempt to test out of nine hours of grammar, composition, and conversation. If a student tests out of grammar, composition, and conversation, s/he must take nine hours of literature, in order to demonstrate the ability to do literary studies).

2 Under specific circumstances the GRE may be waived for those who received their B.A. from UT Arlington or have already earned an advanced graduate degree. See GRE Waiver or Advanced Admission. International students must also take the TOEFL test and score 550 on the paper-and-pencil test or 213 on the computerized test, in order to qualify for unconditional admission.