Master of Arts in Southern Studies

APPLICATION DEADLINE: rolling; February 1 for funding

The Center for the Study of Southern Culture welcomes student applications with the following materials. Additional details are found on the department website.

1. Complete the Graduate School’s Online Application.
2. Pay the application fee ($60). We have scholarships for the application fee. Contact the Graduate Coordinator with questions.
3. Submit official transcripts.
4. International applicants whose first language is not English may be required to submit scores from an acceptable English language proficiency test.
5. Upload Supplemental Application materials for the Center to the link provided by the online application.

• Statement of purpose: 500-word statement of purpose that articulates why joining the program is the next best step. Why is a degree in Southern Studies from UM is the best next move for you? How will it help you to achieve your personal and professional goals? What specifically appeals to you about the program?
• Writing sample
• Two letters of recommendation: provide contact information for two recommenders

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Students in the M.A. in Southern Studies program complete 30 credit hours and follow internship, thesis, or documentary track.

• S St 601: Southern Studies Graduate Seminar I
• S St 602: Southern Studies Graduate Seminar II

• African American Studies
  • AAS 504: Research in African American History
    
  • AAS 593: African American Literature
• Anthropology
  • Anth 511: Cross-Cultural Studies in Ethnography I
• Art History
  • AH 569: Black American Art
  • AH 586: African and African American Arts
• English
  
  • Eng 770: Studies in Faulkner
  • Eng 775: Studies in American Literary Regionalism
  • Eng 776: Studies in Southern Literature
• History
  
  • Hst 605: Readings - US through Reconstruction
  • Hst 606: Readings - US Civil War to Present
  • Hst 607: Readings - Southern US History
  • Hst 701: Research - US through the Civil War
  • Hst 702: Research - US from Civil War to Present
• Music
  
  • Mus 517: Afri-American Musical Traditions
  • Mus 518: History of Jazz
• Sociology
  
  • Soc 607: Studies in the Community
  • Soc 611: Studies in Population Analysis
  • Soc 613: Studies in Race and Ethnicity
• Southern Studies
  • S St 533: Fieldwork & Oral History
  • S St 534: Documentary Photography
  • S St 535: Anthropological Films
  • S St 536: The Southern Environment
  • S St 537: Documenting the South in Film
  • S St 538: Advanced Documentary Film/South
  • S St 540: Photographing Place in the U.S. South
  • S St 544: Advanced Documentary Photography
  • S St 555: Foodways and Southern Culture
  • S St 556: Heritage Tourism in the South
  • S St 560: Oral History of Southern Social Movement
  • S St 596: Queer Mississippi
  • S St 597: Special Topics I
  • S St 598: Special Topics II
  • S St 599: Special Topics III
  • S St 601: Southern Studies Graduate Seminar I
  • S St 602: Southern Studies Graduate Seminar II
  • S St 605: Advanced Individual Study

Students in the internship track must take S St 603 (Internship) and make a colloquium presentation.

Students in the thesis track must take 6 hours of S St 697 (Thesis) and complete a thesis defense.

Students in the documentary track complete the following courses and make a colloquium presentation.

• S St 533: Fieldwork and Oral History
• One of the following
  • S St 534: Documentary Photography
  • S St 535: Anthropological Films
  • S St 560: Oral History of Southern Social Movement
• 6 credit hours of S St 697 (Thesis)

Students who apply by February 1 will be considered for an assistantship. Assistantships pay roughly $13,000 per year (August-May). Students with a graduate assistantship receive a scholarship that covers some or all of the tuition and non-residency fee, if applicable, for regular semesters and subsidized health insurance. The CSSC will provide up to $500 per student per year for research or conference related travel.

The Graduate School’s financial aid webpage lists a variety of funding possibilities, including summer support and a recruiting fellowship program that promotes academic excellence and access to graduate education to groups who are historically underrepresented.