Note that this program, the Humanities Interdisciplinary: Film and Media Study MA is under the umbrella of the Humanities Interdisciplinary MA. The general spirit of the degree requirements are in line with those published there. Students should speak with their faculty advisor and the graduate coordinator, to ensure that they are meeting the degree requirements.
Course credits required for graduation must be distributed as described below. There can be some latitude in terms of what is considered a Film and Media Study course and what can constitute a secondary field.
Note regarding credit distribution: It is the intention of the department to switch most or all of its classes to 3 credits apiece beginning in the Fall 2021 semester. This may complicate getting the exact number of credits in each category. In the event that a targeted number of credits cannot be met exactly, it must be exceeded. The additional credit will count as elective.
Students must pick a single non-DMS Humanities or Social Sciences concentration. A list of departments considered to be in the humanities can be found here (History, English, Romance Languages, Africana and American Studies, Theatre and Dance, Philosophy, Music, Comparative Literature, Global Gender Studies). Students may petition to concentrate in a Social Sciences department (Geography, Sociology, Political Science, Communication, Environmental Sustainability, etc.) with written permission from the DGS of both departments. DMS students may not elect Art as their second concentration.
Students will take a minimum of 12 credits (aside from DMS 598 Project Guidance) from the Department of Media Study. Any DMS course can be counted here so long as they are able to contribute to the student’s eventual final project. Under some circumstances, a student may be able to count Film or Media courses which are offered in a department other than DMS in this category. In these cases, the student should contact the graduate coordinator.
Students will take a minimum of 12 credits in an area of concentration outside of the Department of Media Study. These courses will not include the Project Guidance that the student will take in this second area. The 12 credits may well be all in one department, but they do not necessarily have to be. It is required, however, for them all to coalesce around a single theme. The courses in this secondary field should inform the student’s final project. It is recommended, but not strictly required, that at least one class in the secondary field is taken with the student’s secondary advisor.
Students must take an additional 6 credits. These credits can be in DMS or in other departments, so long as these courses also contribute to the student’s overall course of study and final project. Students should obtain approval from their DMS faculty advisor before taking any elective courses which are not in DMS or their secondary field of study.
Students must take DMS 598 for 3 credits in order to complete their master’s project and they will also take a project guidance class in their secondary field with their secondary advisor. While most students take one 3 credit class in each department, these courses are variable credit so do not need to be taken all at once.