The MA in Writing: Teaching Experience Program

Overview

Offered by the Master of Arts in Writing, the Teaching Experience Program (TEP) allows students to teach college composition as paid adjunct instructors while completing a Master of Arts in Writing. Students can then earn money at the same rate and on the same biweekly schedule as adjunct instructors, applying this money toward tuition or other expenses. 

This is not remitted tuition but rather a paid position, wherein students may earn money approximately equal to or above tuition and fees. Another important benefit of the program is that students will gain experience teaching on the college level, which is often a requirement for students looking for higher education teaching positions. 

Students accepted into the MA in Writing and TEP will teach at least one class every semester as they take their own classes in creative and professional writing. There is a two-year and a three-year program, so students can complete the 30-credit program relatively quickly or at a slower pace if they wish. 

Before the fall semester begins, there will be an orientation for new TEP students. Then, in the first semester, as TEP students teach their first college-level composition class, they will take a teaching practicum course that will guide them through the process.  The professor teaching Practicum will be their mentor, and they will be working with a community of students who are teaching the same course.

In their second semester, TEP students will take a second required course, either Writing Assessment or Issues in Composition Studies. This will give them a larger vision of the theory, discussions, and debates going on regarding the teaching of college composition.  After that, as students continue to teach, they will take a sequence of courses that they can work out with the MA Program Coordinator.

Selection Criteria and Eligibility

The application for the MA and TEP is a two-step process: 

1. Apply for the Master of Arts in Writing program through Rowan Global. It would be best to indicate your interest in TEP as part of your application essay. To apply for Fall 2023 admission, the Early Decision Deadline for the MA in Writing is February 15, 2024. Prospective students who are interested in TEP should apply for the MA by this deadline.
2. Once accepted to the MA in Writing program, students wishing to apply for a TEP position must submit a Google Form to the Program Coordinator with a one to two page Letter of Intent explaining their interest in teaching and what makes them a good candidate for TEP. The top of the first page should have the heading: “Application for Teaching Experience Program.” The deadline to apply for TEP is March 15, 2024. ​
3. TEP applicants will be interviewed by the Practicum instructor, Graduate Coordinator, and First Year Writing Coordinators to determine recipients of TEP positions. These interviews will take place in April and/or May 2024.

Additional Criteria

• TEP instructors must receive a “B” or above in all of their graduate coursework.
• First year TEP instructors must receive satisfactory student evaluations and teaching observations from both (a) the Practicum and/or Issues instructors and (b) a member of the First Year Writing faculty who will be conducting classroom observations as part of the adjunct review process.
• During the second year, TEP students will be required to complete the adjunct review procedure already in place in the First Year Writing Program.
• Students not meeting these requirements will not be eligible for renewal as TEP instructors. 

If you have questions or need further explanation of any of the above, or if you wish to discuss how the compensation package works, please contact: 

Katie Budris, Senior Lecturer
Program Coordinator - Master of Arts in Writing
Department of Writing Arts
budris@rowan.edu 
856-256-4858