Department of American Studies

Graduate Requirements

Master of Arts

The M.A. in American studies may be a terminal degree or a degree preliminary to the Ph.D. in American studies or another discipline. It usually includes 12 courses totaling 36 s.h.

Requirements include the following:

• 045:200-201 Theory and Practice in American Studies I-II (6 s.h.)
• Two other core courses in American studies (6 s.h.)

In addition, master’s degree students select from five to eight additional courses relevant to a topic or period of cultural history; these courses may be grouped to address more than one topic, and they must be chosen from more than one discipline; they usually include at least two courses in American history and courses that center on American diversity.

Master’s degree candidates must perform satisfactorily in 045:400 Masters Preparation (3 s.h.), which includes a comprehensive examination on course work and basic concepts.

The M.A. also may be taken with thesis, for which a student may receive up to 6 s.h. of credit. Students should consult the program chair for details.

A joint program leading to the M.A. in American studies and the J.D. from the College of Law provides a broad cultural context for the study and practice of law. Similar joint programs can be arranged in other professional fields, including journalism and social work.

Doctor of Philosophy

The Ph.D. program in American studies requires a minimum of 72 s.h. of course work, which includes a core of American studies courses in interdisciplinary methods and substantial course work in two major fields.

Course requirements are as follows:

• 045:200-201 Theory and Practice in American Studies I-II (introductory seminars) (6 s.h.)
• Two or more additional core graduate courses in American Studies (6 s.h.)
• First major field (at least six courses) (18 s.h.)
• Second major field (at least six courses) (18 s.h.)
• Electives (6 s.h.)
• Dissertation (up to 18 s.h.)

Although American studies Ph.D. candidates are permitted considerable flexibility in planning a program, they must meet certain basic requirements.

The introductory seminars 045:200-201 Theory and Practice in American Studies I-II should be taken as early as possible, one during each of the student’s first two years in residence. The additional American Studies graduate courses provide further models for interdisciplinary inquiry.

The two major fields may be defined to correspond with the student’s strongest intellectual interests, but they must be interdisciplinary in concept and multidisciplinary in scope. Each must include course work from more than one of the University’s departments and programs. They also should be designed to emphasize a generous but well-defined period of American cultural history; therefore, historical knowledge is essential to all doctoral plans of study. The two major fields may, and usually should, bear an intellectual relationship with one another.

The program expects doctoral students to address the cultural diversity of American life in their course work and reading.

Admission to Ph.D. Candidacy

The department stresses the importance of advising. Each doctoral student and his or her faculty adviser map out a coherent plan of study that reflects the student’s particular interests in American cultural studies. Usually this plan of study is formulated tentatively by the end of the first year in residence. During the first semester of the second year, the student submits the plan to the entire faculty, which reviews it and then meets with the student to discuss it. When the faculty accepts the plan of study, the student is admitted to Ph.D. candidacy. In the next three or four semesters, he or she completes the established plan and begins to prepare for comprehensive examinations.

Comprehensive Examinations

The comprehensive exam comprises three written portions and an oral examination. Two of the written exams explore the student’s major fields; these are at least four hours in length but may, at the examiner’s discretion, be given on a take-home basis.

The third written exam, the position paper, is always written in advance of the rest of the exam and under the supervision of an American studies faculty member. In it, the student lays out his or her general approach to American cultural studies and provides an exemplification of that approach.

The oral examination covers material from the two written exams and the position paper.

Thesis

The final requirement for the Ph.D. in American studies is presentation of an acceptable thesis on an interdisciplinary topic whose investigation involves more than one field or discipline.

Internships

Qualified graduate students in American studies can arrange internships with a number of local agencies, including the State Historical Society of Iowa, the Division of Historic Preservation, the University of Iowa Museum of Art, the Iowa Humanities Board, Brucemore, the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, and the Putnam Museum. With special permission, candidates conducting research during such on-the-job training may receive academic credit through 045:320 Independent Study or 045:350 Material Culture Internship. Other internships in social agencies, government, or business also may be arranged.