Master of Liberal Arts

The Master of Liberal Arts program is designed to offer graduate- level education in the broad areas of liberal studies. It is a multidisciplinary, non-career oriented program that seeks to offer a wide range of educational opportunities to students of diverse educational backgrounds. The intent of the program is to make available to all college graduates an opportunity to satisfy their intellectual curiosity and to broaden their knowledge.

Application Procedures

A bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college or university is required for admission. Applications for admission are available online at www.mla.tcu.edu.

The application is considered complete when the following are received
Completed application form (online)
One certified transcript mailed directly from the applicant's degree granting university to the Office of the Dean of  AddRan College of Liberal Arts, TCU Box 297200, Fort Worth, TX 76129
A $60 application fee (Due at the time online application is submitted)

MLA Degree Requirements

The MLA degree requires successful completion of 30 hours of coursework. Only MLA courses will fulfill the requirements for the MLA degree. Twelve of the 30 hours must be in MLA courses designated as "Perspectives on Society." Courses so designated will relate a liberal arts discipline to a) issues of contemporary American society, b) issues of culture or cultural diversity in America, c) other world cultures and societies. No thesis is required. An average GPA of 2.75 is required for graduation. Graduate students pursuing their MLA degree are expected to complete all requirements within a period of five years from the date of the earliest credit to be counted toward that degree including transfer credit.

Online Program

The MLA Program offers courses that can be taken completely online. These courses are open to all MLA students. If students wish, they can complete the entire MLA Program exclusively online. No distinction is made between in-person courses and online courses in terms of degree requirements or in the actual granting of the degree.

Pass/No-Credit

At the election of the student, MLA courses can be taken on a pass/no-credit basis; however, no more than nine hours taken on a pass/no-credit basis will count toward the MLA degree.

Independent Study

Students may pursue travel/study courses by taking an independent study course under the supervision of an MLA instructor. In order to take an independent study course, a student must follow certain guidelines, which are available from the Office of the Dean of AddRan College of Liberal Arts. No more than six hours of independent study may count toward the degree.

Transfer Credit

Any request for transfer credit must be made on the appropriate form available in the Office of the Dean of AddRan College of Liberal Arts. An official transcript of the graduate work must be mailed from the registrar's office directly to TCU. Credit may be requested only for courses broad enough in content to meet the philosophic intent of the MLA Program. All requests are subject to approval by the MLA Advisory Committee. No more than six hours of transfer credit will be accepted. Courses, other than MLA, completed at TCU cannot be applied toward degree requirements.

MLA Courses

Courses in the MLA Program are offered on a rotating basis. Classes generally meet on weekday evenings; occasionally, day and Saturday classes are offered. MLA courses are also offered during the various summer terms. The Office of the Dean of AddRan College of Liberal Arts publishes course descriptions for each semester.