American Studies Program

Programs and Course Descriptions

Faculty

The American Studies Program

The American Studies Program has offered a rigorous, interdisciplinary course of graduate study at the College of William and Mary. The Program offers three degree tracks: the Ph.D., the M.A./Ph.D., and the M.A.. A joint degree with the School of Law that leads to the M.A. as well as J.D. is also offered

The Program offers assistantships to funded M.A./Ph.D. and Ph.D. students that provide practical experiences in American Studies-related fields like archive and manuscript collections, editing, and museum research. All Ph.D. students receive teacher training and serve as teaching assistants, and most have the opportunity to teach a course of their own design after passing their Ph.D. qualifying exams.

Program Structure

Our M.A. and Ph.D. programs consist of coursework and independent research. Graduate students have wide latitude to choose a program of study appropriate to their interests. Our special areas of strength include: African American Studies, Art History and Visual Culture, Early American History and Culture, Literary Studies, Material Culture, Popular Culture, Native American Studies, Ritual and Religious Studies, Women’s and Gender Studies, Cultural Studies, and Modern America. Together with an advisor, students will design an educational program for themselves that is both individualized and coherent.

Admission Requirements

All applicants are required to submit test scores, transcripts, letters of recommendation, a sample of writing up to 20 pages in length, and a response to an additional question. American Studies requires candidates to submit three scores for a GRE test taken within five years prior to application: Verbal, Quantitative, and Analytical Writing. The Miller Analogies test is not acceptable. Foreign applicants must also report scores on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). The application deadline for students intending to begin graduate work in the fall semester is January 1. There are no spring admissions. Only applicants intending to enter as full-time M.A./Ph.D. or Ph.D. students are considered for financial funding support.

Programs and Course Descriptions

Programs

Courses

American Studies

Description of Courses

Unless otherwise noted, all courses are graded using standard grading [A, B, C, D, F] scheme (See Grading and Academic Progress in the section entitled ‘Graduate Regulations’) and may not be repeated for credit (See Repeated Courses requirements in the section entitled ‘Graduate Regulations’).

See the Open Course List to search for open seats in a term.

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