Applicable only to students admitted during the 2012-2013 academic year.

American Indian Studies

Interdepartmental Program
College of Letters and Science

Graduate Degrees

The American Indian Studies Program offers the Master of Arts (M.A.) degree in American Indian Studies.

Admission

Program Name

American Indian Studies

American Indian Studies is an interdepartmental program. Interdepartmental programs provide an integrated curriculum of several disciplines.

Address

3220 Campbell Hall
Box 951548
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1548 

Phone

(310) 825-6541 

Email

aisc@ucla.edu  

Leading to the degree of

M.A. 

Admission Limited to

Fall. Exceptions only in special cases. 

Deadline to apply

December 15th 

GRE (General and/or Subject)

GRE: General, recommended, not required 

Letters of Recommendation 

3 

Other Requirements

In addition to the University's minimum requirements and those listed above, all applicants are expected to submit a detailed account of their background, potential career plan, and interest in American Indian studies. Interest in American Indian studies must be demonstrated either by formal coursework, independent study, or practical experience.

Preference is given to individuals with undergraduate majors relevant to the proposed areas of concentration within the M.A. degree: anthropology, English, history, linguistics, literature, sociology, fine arts, or American Indian studies.

American Indian Studies, M.A./Law, J.D.

The American Indian Studies program and the School of Law offer a concurrent degree program whereby students may pursue the Master of Arts and the Juris Doctor degrees at the same time. For admission, applicants are required to satisfy the regular admission requirements of both schools. Applicants interested in the program should contact the American Indian Studies program. 

Master's Degree

Advising

The M.A. degree program in American Indian Studies is supervised by an interdepartmental faculty committee. Upon admission, the committee assigns students a faculty adviser from their major area of concentration and, if appropriate, from their area of specialization. Together, the students and their adviser(s) formulate the program of study for the first year. Students are expected to meet with their academic advisers at the beginning of each quarter for approval of their program of courses, and as often as necessary for review of their progress.

At the beginning of the second year in residence, students are expected to select a guidance committee, which is subject to approval by the Committee to Administer the M.A. in American Indian Studies. The guidance committee, which should be chosen from disciplines within the student's area of concentration, is responsible for the supervision, review, and the final recommendation for acceptance of the student's comprehensive examination or thesis as partial fulfillment of the M.A. requirements.

Areas of Study

The American Indian Studies M.A. program is an interdepartmental program with 12 participating schools and departments: Anthropology, Art, Education, English, Ethnomusicology, History, Information Studies, Law, Linguistics, Music, Sociology, and Theater. The disciplines are grouped into four areas of concentration: history and law; expressive arts; social relations; and language, literature, and folklore. Courses related to the American Indian Studies M.A. program are also offered in the following departments: Political Science, Social Welfare, and Psychology.

Foreign Language Requirement

Students must complete one of the following courses: (1) Linguistics 114; (2) Anthropology C243P; or (3) for native speakers of an American Indian language, an independent studies course (taken with consent of the instructor) in either Linguistics or Anthropology, designed and supervised by a consenting faculty member, in which the objective of the course is to impart a structural knowledge of the student's language. These courses are designed to show how American Indian languages and communicative norms are primary vehicles for understanding American Indian cultures.

Course Requirement

A minimum of 10 courses is required, at least seven of which must be graduate courses. Four courses are required: American Indian Studies M200A, M200B, and M200C, which must be taken in the first year, and one of the language/linguistics options described above, which must be taken by the end of the second year. In addition, one of the remaining six courses must be American Indian Studies 202 or a graduate methods course in another department taken with the written permission of the chair/director of the program.

Students select one area of concentration: (1) history and law; (2) expressive arts; (3) social relations; or (4) language, literature, and folklore. Students may petition for optional combinations of interdisciplinary work through the committee that administers the program. In addition to the four required courses, students must complete a minimum of four courses in an area of concentration. Three of these must be graduate-level courses. Two additional courses are to be chosen from other areas of concentration. Courses must be chosen from an approved list maintained by the program.

Two courses in the 500 series may be applied toward the 10-course requirement. However, only one 596 course may be applied toward the program requirement of seven graduate courses.

American Indian Studies, MA/Law, JD

Only 12 units of law courses are allowed to be double-counted toward the MA degree by petition to the Graduate Division.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Comprehensive Examination Plan

A proposed comprehensive examination committee, composed of three faculty members (two from the major area of concentration and one from the minor area), must be submitted to the Graduate Advisory Subcommittee by the end of the fourth quarter of study. The comprehensive examination normally consists of a written examination in the major area of concentration and in the minor area of concentration. The written examination is typically followed by an oral discussion of the student's answers involving both the student and the committee members. The examination is designed and evaluated by the student's M.A. committee. Students should work closely with their committee members in preparing for the examination.

Thesis Plan

Every master's degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research.

A proposed thesis committee, composed of three faculty members (two from the major area of concentration and one from the minor area), must be submitted to the Graduate Advisory Subcommittee by the end of the fourth quarter of study. Students must also submit a thesis proposal to their master's committee by the end of the fourth quarter of study. The master's thesis should demonstrate the student's ability to define and solve a significant problem in the area of concentration. It should provide evidence of mastery of theory and methodology relevant to the topic, familiarity with literature in the field, competency in research techniques, and ability to make an original contribution to the field. Copies of the thesis must be submitted to each member of the committee by the fifth week of the quarter in which students expect to graduate.

Time-to-Degree

Students are required to be in residence for a minimum of four quarters and should normally complete the program in two years.

Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

The Graduate Advisory Committee reviews a student's program at the end of spring term and makes recommendations regarding continuance or termination. The interdepartmental committee to administer the program decides on recommendations for termination. A student may appeal a recommendation for termination in writing to this committee.