Carnegie Mellon University

Curriculum - Rhetoric Masters Degree

The Master of Arts in Rhetoric offers a wide range of courses that reflect our intellectual diversity and multi-methodological approaches to rhetoric. This breadth will also give you a solid foundation in rhetorical theory, practice and pedagogy—it will let you speak to issues that matter and pose genuine questions of your own. Here are some of the things you might choose to learn:

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Degree Requirements

The Rhetoric M.A. degree requires a minimum of 30 credit hours (90 units) of required and elective course work:

  • 24 credit hours (72 units) of which must be in rhetoric courses approved by the student’s advisor.
  • Rhetoric M.A. students normally take courses for 4 credit hours (12 units), but they may take up to 2 elective courses for 3 credit hours (9 units).
  • Of the 30 credit hours, no more than 8 credit hours (24 units) may be in independent study (76-900).

Students should consult with their advisors to select a course of study consistent with their educational goals.

Rhetoric Courses

The following is a partial list of Rhetoric courses that are offered regularly (every year, or every other year).

  • Argument Theory
  • Contemporary Rhetorical Theory
  • Digital Humanities: Corpus Rhetorical Analysis
  • Discourse Analysis
  • Environmental Rhetoric
  • Gender & Communication
  • History of Rhetoric: The Classical Age and Its Legacy
  • Intertextuality
  • Language and Culture
  • Law, Performance, and Identity
  • Leadership Dialogue and Change
  • Literacy: Educational Theory and Community Practice
  • Media in a Digital Age
  • Mediated Power and Propaganda
  • Process of Reading and Writing
  • Race, Nation, and the Enemy
  • Research Writing Pedagogy
  • Rhetoric and Public Policy
  • Rhetoric of Science
  • Rhetorical Analysis
  • Rhetorical Invention
  • Science in the Public Sphere
  • The History, Theory, and Practice of Writing Instruction 
  • Visual Verbal Communication