Graduate Programs


M.A. and M.S.
Master's Programs Goals
 Master of Arts Degree
 Master of Science Degree
 Thesis/Practicum
 Select a Thesis/Practicum Committee
 Present a Thesis/Practicum Proposal
 Submit a Thesis
 Submit a Practicum

M.A. and M.S.

Through a blend of course offerings and internship programs, the Master of Arts and Master of Science programs in Technical and Scientific Communication seek to provide students with communication skills and training that will enable them to build productive careers in industry or academia. They also introduce students to the most current communication technologies used to produce documents of professional quality. Finally, students learn the kinds of communication, analytical, and reasoning skills that will allow them to become leaders in their fields.

The programs provide students with not only the knowledge and skills required for careers in industry, business, or government, but also the research skills and communication theory that will prepare them for doctoral study in communication and rhetoric. The long-range goal of the Master of Arts and Master of Science degrees, then, is to enable program graduates to grow as professionals and, ultimately, to contribute to the developing field of technical and scientific communication.



Master's Programs Goals

    The specific goals of the Master of Arts and Master of Science degrees are to help students
  • define what effective communication means in technical and scientific environments,
  • enhance their understanding of how and why communication works,
  • learn how to identify and eliminate barriers to effective communication,
  • improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their managing communication,
  • develop research skills, and
  • create for themselves a cognate area of study within the scientific or technical field in which they intend to work as professional technical communicators.


To achieve these goals, the programs combine work in communication theory, writing, document design, and analysis of communication systems and contexts to help students to acquire the knowledge and skills needed to begin careers in technical or scientific communication. The programs emphasize scholarly, humanistic and social scientific perspectives on the function and application of technical and scientific communication.

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Master of Arts Degree

While studies in both the Master of Arts and Master of Science programs provide students with a sound foundation in writing, editing, and document production, the Master of Arts degree typically attracts students with undergraduate work centered in the humanities. Although these students often supplement their TSC program with courses in the sciences, they are primarily interested in developing extensive writing and editing skills that are not related to a single technical or scientific field but, rather, are applicable to multiple technical or scientific areas.

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Master of Science Degree

The Master of Science degree plan of study typically attracts students who want to complement their undergraduate degrees in the sciences with advanced training in communication. Such complementary training in technical and scientific communication enables Master of Science graduates not only to perform more effectively as technicians or scientists but also to move laterally into writing, editing, or production positions or vertically into management positions.

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Thesis/Practicum

    Degree candidates have two options for satisfying the thesis requirement for the TSC M.A. or M.S. degree:
  • to complete a traditional research-based master's thesis on a technical communication topic, or
  • to complete a practicum that results in a work-world document (e.g., an online or bound computer tutorial, a user manual, a procedure manual).


If you intend to continue your education and apply for a Ph.D. degree, your best option is probably the thesis. If, however, you want to work in the industry immediately after you get your degree, practicum might work best for you. In either case, you should consult with your academic adviser to make the right choice.

To complete a thesis or practicum successfully, you must follow certain procedures:

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Select a Thesis/Practicum Committee

By the end of the third semester in the program (or before completing 18 graduate credit hours toward your TSC degree), you should select a graduate faculty member within the program to direct your thesis/practicum. You should choose a thesis/practicum director based on mutual research interests and the faculty member's willingness to direct the thesis/practicum. You and your thesis/practicum director will select the other members of the thesis/practicum committee. The committee must include at least three members, one of whom may be from outside the Institute (such as a professor in a scientific or technical cognate area of an M.S. candidate). You should formally request the approval of all the members of your thesis/practicum committee. When you have decided on the members of your thesis/practicum committee, you should send a memorandum to all of them, through which you formally request their participation on the committee, describe the topic of your thesis/practicum, and explain why you have chosen those particular faculty members to be on your committee. Before formally seeking the committee members' signatures, you must sign a thesis contract for each member. Allow space for the date and signatures of all the committee members on your memorandum.

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Present a Thesis/Practicum Proposal

    Before beginning work on the thesis/practicum, you must receive formal approval of the thesis/practicum proposal from your thesis/practicum committee. The thesis proposal might address the following questions:
  • What thesis do you intend to explore in your research?
  • What is currently known about the thesis, topic, or research question?
  • How do you plan to develop the thesis, critically address the topic, or answer the research question?
  • Of what consequence is the proposed research?
    The practicum proposal might address the following questions:
  • Why have you chosen that particular field of work?
  • How will your practicum contribute to your professional development?
  • How is your practicum related to the TSC graduate courses you have taken?
  • How do you intend to carry out your project?
  • What are the practical consequences of your practicum?


Proposals should include a working bibliography that the committee deems sufficiently comprehensive. Before you start on the thesis itself, the thesis/practicum committee must formally approve the proposal (and any significant changes). You should submit your proposal to your committee with a cover memorandum requesting approval. The memorandum should have a place for your committee chair's signature accepting the proposal.

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Submit a Thesis

You should submit one copy of your thesis to the Graduate School and one to ITSC. You are responsible for knowing and following all Graduate School deadlines regarding thesis submission. Allow at least two weeks for the committee members to read and return each draft of your thesis. You must have at least one draft submitted before you submit the final draft, and you should expect and plan for revisions.

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Submit a Practicum

The same deadlines for the submission of thesis apply to the practicum. Please allow at least two weeks for revision (not including the finals week). You will have two sets of deliverable for your practicum: one to the Graduate School, and one for ITSC.
    The Graduate School needs the following documents:
  • The approval page for your practicum, with the original signatures (in black ink) of the members of your practicum committee - 3 copies
  • The title page of your practicum, which should be just like the title page of a thesis
  • Abstract page of your practicum project. The same page should include at the bottom a statement that says that the practicum document is not on file at the Graduate School, but retained at the ITSC.
    The ITSC needs the following documents:
  • One copy of each of the materials submitted to the Graduate School.
  • The practicum document. You should turn in the practicum in the form it is designed to be used (e.g., a manual, a presentation CD, a URL an online file/website)
  • An accompanying report in memorandum format. The report is an overview of the practicum project, and should discuss your audience and provide a detailed justification for all your design decisions.
If the committee approves your practicum, they will inform the graduate school that you have met all graduation requirements. You are required to be aware of and meet all the deadlines regarding graduation.

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