Contact: Dr. Jim Elledge, Program Director
Office: (470) 578-2039
Fax: (470) 578-6524
Web address: www.mapw.hss.kennesaw.edu
MAPW Program Description
The Master of Arts in Professional Writing (MAPW) degree is a professional graduate degree program that prepares candidates for a wide variety of writing‑related positions in business, education, publishing, and the arts. Course work in three concentrations-applied writing, composition and rhetoric, and creative writing-allows students to gain theoretical and practical knowledge in various fields of professional writing. As students become experienced in producing and analyzing the business, technical, journalistic, and creative texts in these three concentrations, they develop a sophisticated understanding of style, structure, and audience. MAPW students will become writing professionals who can move in many directions during their careers; they will become flexible writers who can tune in to the writing conventions of a given genre, adapting their writing style to the requirements of various rhetorical contexts in today’s print and electronic environments.
Additional resources of special importance to the program faculty and students are the Kennesaw State University Writing Center and the Kennesaw Mountain National Writing Project.
General Requirements for Admissions to the MAPW Program
To be considered for MAPW admission, applicants must submit the following credentials to the KSU Admission Office:
- A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university with a minimum 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale;
- A minimum total score of 520 (verbal) and a minimum 4.5 (analytic writing) on the General Test of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). The GRE requirement is waived for applicants who have earned an advanced degree.
The following items should be submitted to:
MAPW Graduate Director, English Department,
Mailbox Drop 2701, Kennesaw State University,
1000 Chastain Road, Kennesaw, GA 30144-5591.
- An application letter that states the applicant’s goals for the MAPW program and a rationale for the choice of concentration and support areas;
- One copy of representative writing samples from both the concentration and the support area, not to exceed 25 pages;
- A letter of recommendation is optional.
*International applicants have additional requirements. See Graduate Admission section of this catalog.
Up to nine hours of graduate work from other accredited institutions may be transferred. To be transferred, course work from other institutions must correspond to Kennesaw State’s MAPW curriculum. Students will need to provide course descriptions and syllabi wherever possible, and the amount of credit granted will be at the discretion of the program director. A minimum grade of “B” is required for any course transferred. Such course work may be no more than five years old.
Students must earn a grade of “C” or better in every graduate‑level course. They must also achieve a GPA of at least 3.0 before they can advance to candidacy.
Petition to Graduate
MAPW candidates must petition to graduate at least one semester prior to completion of program requirements. Before MAPW students can petition to graduate, they must have a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0. The student should print the form located on the MAPW web site at: www.mapw.hss.kennesaw.edu.
The student must obtain the MAPW graduate director’s signature before submitting the petition to the business office and registrar.
Program of Study
The Master of Arts in Professional Writing Degree Program consists of 36 hours of course work. The MAPW Program is organized in three distinct parts: