MA
Comparative Studies
Application Deadline
Contact Information
Admission Requirements
Required tests
English Proficiency, if applicable
Additional Requirements
English Proficiency, if applicable
Additional Requirements
- A writing sample
- Intermediate level mastery of a foreign language or a specific disciplinary language (art history, film, etc.)
Program Requirements
This degree allows for study of the humanities within a comparative context not normally found in single-discipline graduate programs—that is, through interdisciplinary and comparative perspectives that permit a flexibility and breadth of study, without sacrificing rigor. Graduate students thus learn to combine the synthesizing and analytical skills of various humanistic disciplines in order to develop interdisciplinary and comparative approaches to the materials of human culture. Accordingly, program courses expand knowledge in humanistic disciplines and provide intense opportunities to develop wide-ranging research and writing.
Requirements for Degree.
Requirements for Degree.
- Credit hours (33): minimum 27 course work hours plus 6 thesis hours.
- Required courses: CmpSt 610, 615; two courses from CmpSt 620R, 625R, 630R, 640R, 650R, 660R, 670R.
- Electives: six courses in humanities, classics, comparative literature, art history, musicology, philosophy, history, film, or literature (up to 6 hours may be in upper-division undergraduate classes where equivalent graduate classes are not available). One or more of these may be comparative studies seminars, which, in addition to the two required, are chosen in consultation with the student’s academic advisor and are subject to approval of the department’s graduate council. No more than one directed readings course may be counted toward the MA degree in comparative studies.
- Special field: proficiency in a second foreign language or in a discipline other than literature (e.g., art history, musicology, philosophy, film, history, etc.), demonstrated by course work or examination, as determined by the student’s graduate committee and the program’s graduate council.
- Completion of a reading list, which is determined in consultation with a faculty advisor, subject to approval of the department’s graduate council.
- Thesis.
- Examination: final written examination on the reading list; thesis defense.
Program Outcomes
Disciplinary Proficiency with Interdisciplinary Focus
Develop mastery in a specific research area in one discipline within the humanistic tradition of intellectual and artistic creativity (e.g., literature, art history, philosophy, music, dance, film, etc.), enhanced by relevant interdisciplinary knowledge and skills that allow them to make connections across disciplines, languages, cultures, and scholarly fields.
Advanced Research and Scholarly Writing
Produce publishable academic writing in the form of a Master's thesis that demonstrates original scholarship and theoretically-informed analysis as well as mastery of existing scholarship, the revision process, and oral presentation in professional contexts. Whether or not they are formally published, our students' theses are often used as writing samples for successful PhD program applications.
Additional Disciplinary Proficiency
Demonstrate additional disciplinary proficiency either in a second foreign language (evidenced by completing a 300 level course with a significant literary component, but not the same course(s) used for the general language requirement) or advanced course work in a discipline other than literature (e.g., art history, history, philosophy, film, critical theory, etc.), which results in mastery of a specific disciplinary language. Graduate advisors must approve students' areas of emphasis.
Effective Critical and Analytical Thinking
Demonstrate critical and analytical thinking through extensive attentive reading in classes and on their own, participation in vigorous classroom discussions, practice in analytical and persuasive writing, and formal oral presentations of their research.
Develop mastery in a specific research area in one discipline within the humanistic tradition of intellectual and artistic creativity (e.g., literature, art history, philosophy, music, dance, film, etc.), enhanced by relevant interdisciplinary knowledge and skills that allow them to make connections across disciplines, languages, cultures, and scholarly fields.
Advanced Research and Scholarly Writing
Produce publishable academic writing in the form of a Master's thesis that demonstrates original scholarship and theoretically-informed analysis as well as mastery of existing scholarship, the revision process, and oral presentation in professional contexts. Whether or not they are formally published, our students' theses are often used as writing samples for successful PhD program applications.
Additional Disciplinary Proficiency
Demonstrate additional disciplinary proficiency either in a second foreign language (evidenced by completing a 300 level course with a significant literary component, but not the same course(s) used for the general language requirement) or advanced course work in a discipline other than literature (e.g., art history, history, philosophy, film, critical theory, etc.), which results in mastery of a specific disciplinary language. Graduate advisors must approve students' areas of emphasis.
Effective Critical and Analytical Thinking
Demonstrate critical and analytical thinking through extensive attentive reading in classes and on their own, participation in vigorous classroom discussions, practice in analytical and persuasive writing, and formal oral presentations of their research.
Program Stats
Characteristics of Students from Past Academic Year
Total Students
25.0
International
2.0
Male
8.0
Female
17.0
LDS
25.0
BYU Undergraduate
15.0
Five Year Average of Graduated Students
Average Years to Degree
1.89
Graduated Per Year
18.2
GMAT Quantitative Percentile
67.5
Five Year Average of Admitted Students
Applied Per Year
9.4
Admitted Per Year
7.6
Percent Admitted
80.85
Average GPA
3.66
Courses and Faculty