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Non-thesis students aren’t doing research so cannot usually get an RA, and don’t usually get to make the kind of connections that lead to a TA, and are not usually strong enough students to qualify for a fellowship… hence the difficulty in getting funding.</p>
<p>As far as the time, it is possible to do a non-research masters in a year at most schools, but 3-4 semesters is more common. Generally speaking, if you cannot complete in 2 years full time then you probably should not be in the program.</p>