Research Creation

The Research Creation stream allows students to develop various research-creation projects, including creative writing, visual arts and media activities, exhibition curation related to archival research on creators and topics in literary studies and literary history, among other undertakings. Examples of projects completed or in progress include the cataloguing of visual work related to Canadian authors, and a poetic re-writing of the Cassandra myth.

This stream is organized in an identical manner to the twelve-month Major Research Paper (MRP) MA stream, with two semesters of classes followed by a semester where students complete their research-creation projects. The project will include both a creative public text (approximately 35-40 pages of verse or 50 pages of prose for literary projects, or the equivalent, as determined by the program committee for other public texts projects) and a 30-page scholarly explanation, critique, and theorization of the text.

In addition to meeting the regular submission requirements for applying to the MA program, students applying for admission to the Research Creation stream of the English MA program must submit a Portfolio, that is, a collection of their current and past creative work that typically consists of approximately 2500 words for prose; and/or 20 pages of poetry and can include poetic sequences, long form prose, prose fiction, creative non-fiction, creative critical practice, and memoir, as informed by fluency in cultural/literary theory. For portfolios for other public texts projects to which these guidelines might not apply, please contact the Public Texts program office. The Portfolio will be assessed as part of the admissions process. Further, a minimum of 0.5 course undergraduate university credits in the creative area proposed for the project will normally be required for admission to the Research Creation stream.

Schedule

Throughout their first term, students will develop a project proposal with their supervisor and / or co-supervisor and complete a project agreement. The proposal will describe the project and its purpose in four to five pages, and include a bibliography. The agreement will specify a timeline that sees the project completed by the end of the student’s third semester (typically August). 

In early April, the student will make a public presentation of the final Research-Creation proposal at the Research and Professional Development Seminar. If the academic supervisor or co-supervisors deem the proposal to be satisfactory, the student will submit the project and the scholarly explanation, critique, and theorization of the project to the supervisor and a second reader by August 15, who will assign it a number grade by the end of August.

Evaluation

The Research Creation project will be assigned a number grade based on the average of the two grades assigned independently by the supervisor and second reader, or co-supervisors, in the case of Adjunct Faculty. Co-supervision of projects will involve local creative writers, artists, playwrights, archivists and librarians whose published work is deemed of sufficient quality and who will be appointed as Adjunct Graduate faculty for the purpose.