Master of Science in Technical Communication

General Information

To meet the nation’s growing need for professional communicators who can bridge the gap between technology and users, Missouri S&T offers a Master of Science in Technical Communication. This graduate program, available both in-person and online, provides a comprehensive curriculum designed to help you further develop your written, oral, and visual communication skills. Technical communicators create help systems and tutorials for new software, design websites and multimedia presentations for special interest groups, write instructions and dialogue boxes for video games, edit documentation for government agencies, and lead project teams in industry.

Graduates of this program hold titles such as technical writer or editor, content developer, UX designer, content strategist, strategic communication specialist, and instructional designer. They have worked for such organizations as eClinical Works, Air New Zealand, Amazon Web Services, Mastercard, Cisco, Ameren, US Navy Intelligence, Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Texas Tech University, and Cigna Healthcare.

Admission Requirements

Students interested in our MS program in technical communication must meet the following requirements:

• Have a bachelor’s degree in any field
• Submit a statement of purpose (approximately 1000 words), a resume, and university transcripts
• Submit language-proficiency scores if English is not your first language

Our program does not require the GRE or letters of recommendation, nor have we set a minimum undergraduate GPA for admission. We will evaluate your application holistically, considering all information provided.

Program Requirements

• The non-thesis pathway requires a minimum of 30 hours of coursework.
• A minimum of 9 hours of 6000 level lecture courses.

Required Course (three credit hours):

• TCH COM 6600 Foundations of Technical Communication (LEC 3.0, Every Fall Semester)

List of Elective Courses (27 credit hours):

At least nine additional courses, including at least two at the 6000 level, selected from the following list:

• TCH COM 5001 Special Topics (LEC 3.0, Varies)
  
• TCH COM 5510 Technical Editing (LEC 3.0, Even Spring Semesters)
  
• TCH COM 5520 Help Authoring (LEC 3.0, Odd Spring Semesters)
  
• TCH COM 5530 Usability Studies (LEC 3.0, Even Spring Semesters)
  
• TCH COM 5540 Advanced Layout and Design (LEC 3.0, Even Fall Semesters)
  
• TCH COM 5550 Advanced Proposal Writing (LEC 3.0, Odd Spring Semesters)
  
• TCH COM 5560 Web-Based Communication (LEC 3.0, Odd Fall Semesters)
  
• TCH COM 5610 History of Technical Communication (LEC 3.0, Odd Spring Semesters)
  
• TCH COM 5620 Research Methods in Technical Communication (LEC 3.0, Even Fall Semesters)
  
• TCH COM 6001 Special Topics (LEC 3.0, Varies)
  
• TCH COM 6070 Teaching of Technical Communication (LEC 3.0, Every Fall Semester)
  
• TCH COM 6410 Theoretical Approaches to Technical Communication (LEC 3.0, Odd Spring Semesters)
  
• TCH COM 6420 Project Management in Technical Communication (LEC 3.0, Even Fall Semesters)
  
• TCH COM 6440 Advanced Theories of Visual Technical Communication (LEC 3.0, Odd Fall Semesters)
  
• TCH COM 6450 Advanced International Technical Communication (LEC 3.0, Odd Fall Semesters)

For more information, visit the department’s website at english.mst.edu or email Dr. Ed Malone at malonee@mst.edu.

Please note:  During the semester a student will have completed nine hours of graduate credit, the student must formally plan the remainder of their graduate program in consultation with their academic advisor, and submit a Form 1 for approval. It will go first to the academic advisor, then the department chair, and finally to the office of the vice provost of graduate education.