Programs by Campus
Bloomington
American Studies
College of Arts and Sciences
Curriculum
Departmental E-mail: amst [at] indiana [dot] edu
Departmental URL: http://www.indiana.edu/~amst
(Please note that when conferring University Graduate School degrees, minors, certificates, and sub-plans, The University Graduate School’s staff use those requirements contained only in The University Graduate School Bulletin. Requirements may or may not be reflected identically in departmental URLs.)
Program Information
For additional graduate student information, contact Ballantine Hall 521, phone (812) 855-7718, fax (812) 855-0001.
Degrees Offered
The American Studies Program provides an opportunity to pursue the interdisciplinary study of American society and culture. In the program, students acquire specialized training in one particular discipline as well as firm grounding in interdisciplinary study. They are encouraged to shape portions of their graduate studies to fit individual needs and interests. Courses in the program are also open to graduate students pursuing a master's degree in another department, special nondegree graduate students, and international students.
1. Doctor of Philosophy in American Studies
2. Combined Doctor of Philosophy, a combined degree program in American Studies and another discipline (including but not limited to: African American and African Diaspora Studies, anthropology, art history, communication and culture, comparative literature, criminal justice, education, English, folklore, gender studies, history, history of education, journalism, law, philosophy, political sicence, religious studies, sociology, Spanish, telecommunications, theatre and drama).
Special Program Requirements
See also general University Graduate School requirements.
Doctor of Philosophy Degree
Admission Requirements
Admission is by approval of the program’s Graduate Affairs Committee (GAC). Applicants must have a bachelor’s degree, a cumulative GPA of 3.0, and a major GPA of 3.5 and above. GRE scores are required. An MA degree is optional. We ask that students submit three letters of recommendation from faculty members familiar with their undergraduate work, a writing sample, and a brief personal statement. Furthermore, though we are especially interested in students who have a demonstrated interest in American Studies, we welcome applications from students with degrees in all fields.
Course Requirements:
At least 90 credit hours are required for the doctorate. Within this, students must complete AMST G603, AMST G604, and one section of AMST G620, at least four courses at the 700 level or higher, and relevant electives offered through American Studies, for a total of 32 credits in the field. With the consent of their advisory committee, students can count one class taken outside AMST towards these requirements, though it must be taught by an AMST core or affiliate faculty member. No substitutions are allowed for G603 and G604.
Advisory Committee:
The Director of Graduate Studies (DGS) is the initial advisor to each cohort of students. By the end of their first year, however, all students will select a specific advisor from among the core faculty, and will constitute a three person Advisory Committee, which may include members of the affiliate faculty.
Thematic Plan of Study:
Together with his/her advisor, the student will complete a thematic plan of study, organizing elective coursework—taken and planned—around a chosen focus, and submit it to the DGS at the beginning of every calendar year. The plan of study will be revised each fall, beginning in the second year of coursework, and resubmitted at the start of each year until the student has completed his/her coursework.
Qualifying Examination:
Students will take an exam in two parts: an examination conducted over the course of one day and an additional oral examination. The exam will be based on a master (common) reading list, as well as on a reading list prepared by the student and his/her advisor that reflects the intersection of their interests and the work of American Studies scholarship. The exam committee is composed of the student’s Advisory Committee plus a representative of the student’s minor concentration.
Dissertation Committee:
Students will work with their advisor to form a dissertation committee of at least four faculty members total, including a representative from their doctoral minor. Upon the constitution of the dissertation committee, the student’s advisor will become chair. If possible and relevant, the student will choose an additional representative from outside of IU. A member of the core faculty will chair, or co-chair, each dissertation committee. Untenured faculty members in AMST are allowed to chair dissertation committees.
The Dissertation:
The dissertation proposal shall be defended orally, as shall the dissertation itself. The proposal should be defended in the semester following the successful completion of the qualifying exam. All dissertation defenses are open to the public.
Minor Requirement:
Students must complete a minor in another department, program, or field. The minor should normally be completed by the end of the student’s third year. No courses may be cross-counted towards the minor.
Foreign Language Study:
All students will demonstrate advanced proficiency, as defined by the GAC, in a foreign language related to their field of study.
Combined Doctor of Philosophy Degree
Admission Requirements
Acceptance into the American Studies Program is contingent upon prior admission by the home department. Students should apply, indicating a desire to pursue the combined doctoral degree in their statement of purpose, which is to be submitted with the application. A copy of the statement of purpose and a letter indicating your interests should be sent to the American Studies Program Admissions Committee. Deficiencies in background may be removed by completing specified courses.
Course Requirements
A minimum of 90 credit hours, of which 32 must be in American Studies, 20 hours of core courses including G603 (4 cr.), G604 (4 cr.), G751 (3-4 cr.), and eight additional credit hours, such as G605 (4 cr.), G620 (3-4 cr.), G697 (1-6 cr.), G753 (1-4 cr.), or cross-listed and joint-listed courses taught by American Studies faculty members outside the student's home department. The 32 credit hours may include 12 credit hours of appropriate courses relevant to American Studies inside the student's home department. Strong encouragement is given to interdisciplinary diversification. The dissertation (minimum of 15 credit hours) should reflect interdisciplinary study and research.
Advisory and Research Committees
The Graduate School requires that students pursuing a combined Ph.D. have at least four faculty members on their advisory and research committees, with two from each of the major fields (see the General Requirements chapter in the Graduate Bulletin). While AMST-affiliated faculty in a student’s home department can serve as representatives of American Studies, the program additionally requires that at least one of the AMST representatives on the committee be from outside of the student’s home department.
Qualifying Examination
Students in the combined Ph.D. degree program must take a comprehensive written examination in the field of American Studies in addition to the qualifying examination given in the student's home department. The examination is to be taken after completion of the American Studies course requirements. The examination may be repeated only once.
Final Examination
The oral defense of the dissertation will be conducted jointly with the student's home department. At least two members of the American Studies faculty must be on the student's dissertation committee.
Ph.D. Minor in American Studies
Students choosing American Studies as a minor (minimum 12 credit hours) in their doctoral program must complete G603, G751, and either G604, G605, G620, G697, 4 credit hours in G753, or a cross-listed course outside their home department that has been approved by the program director.
Ph.D. Minor in Native American and Indigenous Studies
Students who pursue the Ph.D. minor in Native American and Indigenous Studies will focus their interdisciplinary study on the histories, cultures, and literatures of Native American and Indigenous peoples, chiefly in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, but also, where appropriate, in the broader Americas. This is one of a very few programs in the United States that focuses explicitly on Native American and Indigenous Studies at the graduate level, and that places the study of American Indians within the context of a broader, more sweeping and international inquiry into the nature of political power, colonial settlement, and global contact.
Program of Study
Students are required to submit a "Program of Study" to an affiliated American Studies faculty member for final approval. After approval, a signed copy should be sent to the Director. The Program of Study will provide the rationale for the student’s proposed curriculum and will list the courses, with alternative selections in the event such courses are not offered on a timely basis that will serve as the student’s minor program. With the Director’s approval, the student will become officially enrolled in the Native American and Indigenous Studies degree.
Requirements
Requirements for the Native American and Indigenous Studies Ph.D. minor encourage graduate students to develop a program of academic inquiry that complements their doctoral program and takes advantage of the wide range of College of Arts and Sciences faculty with a focus on Native American and Indigenous literature, politics, art, history, culture, and folklore. Students must complete at least 12 credits of coursework, including G605, "Introduction to Native American and Indigenous Studies," which is required. The remaining credits can come from any other American Studies course offered by faculty outside of the student's home department, including G620, "Colloquium in American Studies," with relevant Native or Indigenous content, and a section of G751, "Seminar in American Studies," with relevant Native or Indigenous content, or G753, "Independent Study in American Studies, also with relevant Native or Indigenous content.