Applicable only to students admitted during the 2014-2015 academic year.

African Studies

Interdepartmental Program
College of Letters and Science

Graduate Degrees

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

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

Advising

The M.A. program in African Studies is supervised by an interdepartmental faculty committee. The chair of this committee and of the program is also the graduate adviser. There is also a staff assistant to the graduate adviser. Students should remain in continuous contact with the graduate adviser and the staff regarding their program and academic progress. Students also have an informal faculty adviser in their area of concentration.

Areas of Study

Most concentrations are in the social sciences, arts, humanities, public health, or urban and regional planning. Sociology and anthropology may be taken as a combined specialization or area of study, as may interdisciplinary courses in development studies.

Foreign Language Requirement

Students are required to satisfy the language requirement by achieving elementary proficiency in an African language in one of the following two ways: (1) taking three courses (12 units) in an African language with an average grade of B or better (these courses may not be applied toward the nine-course minimum required for the degree); or (2) achieving an elementary rating on an oral proficiency examination arranged by the African languages coordinator. European languages spoken in Africa may be substituted by petition to the chair.

Course Requirements

A minimum of nine courses (36 units) is required for the M.A. degree, at least five of which must be at the graduate level. The courses must be distributed between disciplines as follows:

(1) African Studies 201A

(2) Major discipline: a minimum of five courses, of which three must be at the graduate level. Sociology and anthropology may be taken as a combined specialization or area of study. Other combined specializations must be approved by the graduate adviser.

(2) A minimum of three other courses outside the major area, of which two must be at the graduate level. Students who are enrolled in the concurrent degree program with Public Health may use up to two Community Health Sciences courses (eight units) toward these three elective courses.

Except for 500-series courses, University regulations indicate that a student in an interdepartmental degree program may not apply courses taken on an S/U grading basis toward the master’s degree. By petition, the program will consider an exception for one of the nine required courses. Such petitions must be approved by a graduate adviser and the Graduate Division. One course in the 500 series may be applied toward the total course requirement and toward the minimum graduate course requirement. With consent of the graduate adviser, other 500-series courses may be allowed but may not be applied toward the minimum course requirements.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Comprehensive Examination Plan

The comprehensive examination plan involves a four- to six-hour written examination that is taken in the last quarter of academic residence. The examination is set by a three-person faculty committee, two members of which must be from the major discipline or field of concentration. In consultation with the graduate adviser, the student selects the committee members for the examination. The chair of the committee receives questions from other members and is responsible for setting the examination questions and requirements. An additional oral examination may be held at the discretion of the examining committee. If the comprehensive examination is failed, it may be retaken only once. A student must take the exam within the next academic quarter.

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.

The thesis option is available by permission of the graduate adviser. Upon obtaining permission, the student, in consultation with the graduate adviser, selects a faculty committee to supervise and assess the thesis. Two of the three faculty committee members, including the chair, must be from the area of concentration; a third member must be from another discipline. The thesis must reflect the major discipline or field of concentration. An oral defense may be required in some circumstances.

Time-to-Degree

Normal progress from graduate admission to award of the master’s degree is six quarters. Normal progress for students enrolled in the concurrent degree program with Public Health is nine quarters.

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

A recommendation for termination of graduate study is first made by the graduate adviser to the interdepartmental program committee.