The Dual Master’s Degree
Students admitted to the Dual Master’s Degree Program will earn two master’s degrees through a combination of work in two departments of the College of Arts and Sciences Graduate Division that allows them to count credit earned to satisfy major requirements of one department simultaneously as elective credit in another department. Specifically, the dual master’s degree is governed by the following regulations:
- The student must be formally admitted by both departments and by the Graduate School. The student must meet fully all degree requirements of both departments (course credits, research and foreign language skills, examination, and essay or thesis or preparation of portfolio, etc.). Dual MA degrees in the College of Arts and Sciences require a minimum of 50 credits, with at least 21 credits earned in each of the programs.
- Where both departments require a thesis, the student will be allowed to write a single thesis that meets the standards and requirements for both fields with equal representation for both departments on the thesis committee and the thesis credit split between both.
- The dual degree program must be completed within six years from the semester in which the student first enrolled in courses counting toward a dual degree.
- The student must complete the requirements for both departments at the same time (did not receive a degree in one department before the other)
Dual MA students will have a file and an advisor in both departments. Both departments must certify completion of degree requirements.
Dual MA students who are subsequently admitted to the Ph.D. program can count the work done to satisfy the second MA degree towards an intensive minor.