Department of EnglishMA in Technical Communication

The Online MATC

Complete Your Degree Online

The online version of the MATC parallels the onsite version in everything but medium. If you complete the online degree, your diploma will be the same as those who complete the onsite degree. Texas Tech's Technical Communication and Rhetoric program is a leader in innovative course delivery and pedagogy to meet the needs of working professionals.

Texas Tech is proud to offer its MA in Technical Communication via distance education. The degree is identical to the one we have offered onsite since 1992; all degree, coursework, and exam procedures are identical to the onsite degree.

In distance learning graduate courses, students "meet" via the Internet rather than in classrooms at the university. Graduate distance learning courses are taught as organized courses on the semester schedule. Students are expected to meet course deadlines assigned by the instructor and to participate in a synchronous class discussions on one designated weekday during the semester. A graduate-level course requires a commitment of approximately ten hours per week for participating in group online activities, for reading, and for working on course projects. The online MATC is 100% online.

The online version of the MATC provides professional development for people working in technical communication. It also provides the qualifications for entering the career for people in other career fields. The specific goals of graduate study are the following:

• Knowledge of history, theory, research, genres, and practice of technical communication
• Knowledge of principles and techniques in the field
• Development of effectiveness in technical communication

Our Online MATC is an accessible program that allows students to attend classes while maintaining a full-time job. We make sure that all the courses you'll need to complete your degree are available for you to take online, and we make sure that those courses can suit your schedule.

In fall, spring, and summer semesters, we offer our courses on weekday evenings in two formats:

• some courses are entirely online, meaning that all students attend class via video link
• other classes are "hybrid," meaning that our online students join our onsite students in the classroom via video link.

In both types of courses, online students participate in classroom discussion every step of the way. The video apps we use for these courses—typically Zoom or Microsoft Teams—are simple to use and make it easy to be part of the conversation. You can see your professor and your classmates, and you can speak or type to make a contribution. This is just one of the ways we make sure that our online programs give you the same professors, same courses, same degree as you'd get face-to-face.