The MALit evening degree program allows students the opportunity to study literature at Northwestern University. Students may choose to focus their course work under the following specializations: American literature, British literature, comparative and world literature, or they may devise an independent plan of study. The program accommodates the often-hectic schedules of part-time graduate students while providing a rigorous academic experience. Courses are offered year-round on both the Evanston and Chicago campuses of Northwestern University. The program provides a variety of courses every term, each one emphasizing the ways in which words matter in culture and encourages the students to develop their analytical and writing skills. Our distinguished and diverse faculty come from a wide range of academic areas, including comparative literature, French and Italian, Latin American studies, English, theater, classics, and African American studies. Each faculty member shares a commitment to teaching and research, and has experience working with nontraditional students. By offering intensive discussions about the importance of literature to life, the MALit program gives students a foundation in critical thinking that is relevant to many goals - pursuing advanced degrees, improving secondary teaching, professional development, and more. The focus on critical interpretation develops awareness of how we shape and are shaped by language in multiple ways. This awareness, in turn, can illuminate not only fiction, drama, and poetry but also political speech, legal discourse, television advertising, and journalism. Finally, the MALit program offers students the opportunity to partake in the aesthetic challenge and pleasure of writing and reading - of experiencing the pleasure of insight into literary form, narrative, meaning, and shifting cultural contexts.