The MA TESOL degree prepares its recipients for teaching English to speakers of other languages and other language-related professions. The MA is increasingly the degree expected for teachers both in the United States and abroad, where it is generally a requirement for university-level teaching.
Degree Requirements
Students must meet with an adviser regularly, starting in the first term of the program. In addition to the minimum graduate school requirements, students must have an adviser-approved program that meets the criteria below. (For those students who have completed the Certificate in TESL, adviser-approved courses will be used to substitute for some of the following requirements.)
Based on their professional goals and previous experience, and in consultation with their adviser, students choose one of the three tracks.
All electives must be adviser approved. All courses other than Ling 566 must be passed with a grade of B or better. Ling 566 is P/NP only and must be passed.
MA TESOL Program Options
With the MA TESOL at Portland State, you can fit the program to your goals by choosing the Teaching Track (to get complete training as an ESOL teacher) or the Applied Linguistics track (if you are not primarily interested in classroom teaching). Your choice needs to be made by the time you start your third term in the program.
Course Requirements | Track 1 (Teaching Track) | Track 2 (Applied Linguistics Track) |
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Foundations of Language Structure and Use | - Ling 513 Applied Phonetics & Phonology
- Ling 521 Applied English Grammar
- Ling 531 Language, Identity, and Culture
| - Ling 513 Applied Phonetics & Phonology
- Ling 521 Applied English Grammar
- Ling 531 Language, Identity, and Culture
- Ling 516 Discourse Analysis
|
Language Education | - Ling 538 Second Language Acquisition
- Ling 577 TESOL Methods I
- Ling 578 TESOL Methods II
- Ling 539 Language Assessment*
- Ling 509 Teaching Practicum
*Students with prior assessment experience may petition to substitute an elective | - Ling 538 Second Language Acquisition
- 1 Language Education Course or WLL 598 Methods of Teaching Foreign Languages
|
Electives | | - 4 graduate-level Ling courses (16 credits)
|
Research and Culminating Experience | | |
Total credits for all tracks: 48 credits or 50 credits with thesis option. Two academic years at 2 courses/term.
Second Language Requirement (required for all PSU MA degrees)
- If English is not your native language, then your proof of English proficiency for your application to the program fulfills the requirement.
- If English is your native language, you must provide proof of proficiency in another language in one of these ways: (1) two or more years of study at the college level, as indicated on a transcript or (2) passing a proficiency test at the second-year level. Further details for the second language requirement can be found on the Department of World Languages and Literatures.