The Curriculum

The M.A. in Humanities is a 30-unit program supported by several Mount St. Mary’s humanities-related departments. The departments involved include English, Creative Writing, History, and Cultural Studies. Students in the program may elect to have a primary concentration in one of these areas by completing three additional courses (12 units)in their area of choice.

Core Courses: At the heart of the program is a series of three required courses (9 units), each of which is an interdisciplinary “Research and Writing in the Humanities” seminar designed to equip the student to work on his or her  thesis or project. Students may take these seminars in any order as long as they complete one seminar on each of the three core areas.  Students also have the opportunity to earn college credit by taking Travel Study courses to places such as Ireland, China, Hawaii, Ghana, El Salvador, etc. under the direction of one or more Humanities professors.

Elective Courses: The remaining five courses (15 units) may be chosen from interdisciplinary classes that offer students the opportunity to explore the interrelatedness of various disciplines of study.

Culmination Course: To complete the Master’s degree, each student submits an original, graduate-level project, or thesis (3 units). This work is done under the supervision of a thesis advisor.. If a student chooses to do a project in place of a traditional thesis, a written component is required that places the project in a context that reflects the student’s cumulative experience in the program.

Some students may opt for a traditional Master’s thesis. Others may be encouraged to consider a project or thesis that draws upon the resources of the community surrounding the Doheny campus. Faculty as well are encouraged to draw upon this racially and culturally diverse neighborhood in designing the content and methodology of their courses. 

Student learning is at the core of the MSMC mission.  MSMC faculty developed a plan to assess the student-learning outcomes that represent the knowledge, skills and attitudes expected of (someone in our major/a college student).  In your classes. one or more student learning outcomes will be assessed during the academic year.  Some of your class assignments may be used to evaluate overall student learning and to improve teaching and learning in this class, this department, and throughout the College.  For any questions about MSMC's assessment project, please email Jane Crawford, assessment liaison for the Humanities Program, jcrawford@msmc.la.edu