Can the program be completed by attending part time?

Many MALS students attend part time. By taking two courses a semester, excluding summer, a student can finish the program in three years. Or, by taking one course a semester, including two summer terms, a student can complete the program in four years. An indeterminate variable is the amount of time spent on the thesis or project. All master’s students have six years to complete their degree programs.

Are evening classes available?

All MALS core courses are taught in the evening, as are many graduate courses.

Can previous graduate credit hours transfer to the MALS program?

Up to nine hours of credits, approved by the graduate school, can be transferred into a student’s MALS program. Included are credits earned at ETSU as a non-degree student. Keep in mind, however, that a student must finish his/her degree within six years from the date of enrollment in the earliest course transferred to the current program.

Can a student pursue both the MALS degree and the archives certificate?

A student in the regular (that is, not the archives concentration) may pursue as a separate program the 18-hour archives certificate.  Hours taken as part of the certificate program cannot be applied to the regular MALS degree program.

Does a student have a non-thesis option? 

MALS students may pursue either a culminating project or a thesis.  Project students must take 21 elective credits, while thesis students take 18 elective credits. For thesis and project guidelines, click on thesis and project guidelines. 

Is financial aid available for full-time students?

Full-time students (must take at least nine credits per semester) are eligible for federal loans, tuition scholarships (waives tuition and some fees; in return the student works eight hours at an assigned location), and graduate assistantships (waives tuitions and some fees and provides a $3000 stipend per semester).  MALS is allotted two tuition scholarships and one graduate assistantship.  A MALS student may, however, take a GA or TS in another department.  For further information on tuition scholarships and graduate assistantships, go to the School of Graduate Studies site. 

What Have Liberal Studies Graduates Done with Their Degrees?

Liberal studies graduates have gone on to doctoral programs; have found employment in social service agencies and educational institutions; and have enhanced their positions with current employers. Earning a MALS degree has allowed some of our graduates to teach part time at the four-year or two-year college level.