Academic Program

Cultural Studies situates culture as a site of struggle among structures of power, representation, and subjectivity. Our methods of study are critical in so far as we emphasize not only the ideological dimension of cultural practices but also their radical political potential. We are also reflexive in our approach in so far as we emphasize the ideological investment by cultural studies in the processes of its own production. The fields in which our faculty specialize include history, feminist and queer studies, critical race theory, film and media studies, literary studies, postcolonial studies, Transatlantic studies, psychoanalysis, science studies, historical perspectives on immigration, memory and nationalism, as well as the Frankfurt and Birmingham Schools.

We are concerned to link cultural theory to cultural practices and activist politics. Students are required to take courses in a variety of research methodologies appropriate to the discipline of Cultural Studies, including ethnographic field research methods, visual research methods, oral history, archival studies, and film or literary theory and analysis.

Instruction in Cultural Studies is carried on in seminars. Classes are small and each student’s program is designed individually. A favorable student-faculty ratio allows for an unusual amount of individual attention from faculty members. Students work with faculty advisers in planning their course of study; candidates for the Ph.D. work closely with a faculty committee composed of professors in the student’s fields of study.

Students have considerable choice in the design of their course of study, including choice of concentrations and minor fields. Working closely with faculty advisors, students devise a course of study that gives them intellectual depth in Cultural Studies as well as one other traditional humanities field. Cultural studies courses are also an attractive option for students obtaining degrees in the social sciences, religion, education, politics, or Arts and Cultural Management.

Advising
Each student is assigned an advisor upon entering the program. A student may change advisors, but the initial assignment guarantees immediate coordination and planning to each student. Advisors also work with students in selecting faculty committees for the MA final research paper and PhD exams and dissertations.

Concentrations and Graduate Certificates
In addition to the stand-alone Master's and Ph.D. in Cultural Studies detailed below, the department offers a concentration in Media Studies, and a concentration in Museum Studies, which are part of the Applied Humanities programs.  The School of Arts and Humanities also offers Graduate Certificates available to all CGU students.  Examples of student work in Cultural Studies are available in our in-house, Culture Critique.

Admissions

Admissions Applications for fall admission should be received by February 1. Applications received after this date will be evaluated on a space-available basis. For complete information on applying to the Cultural Studies graduate program at Claremont Graduate University, please visit the Prospective Students section of this website.

To apply to the Cultural Studies Program at Claremont Graduate University, please use the following links:

• Apply Online
• Paper-based Application

Note: M.A. and Ph.D. applicants to the Cultural Studies program are required to submit a 10 to 20 page writing sample along with the other application materials.

For more information about the Cultural Studies programs at CGU and how to apply, please contact the Admissions Coordinator for the School of Arts and Humanities via email or phone (909) 621-8612.

Institutional financial assistance is available in the form of fellowships. Applications submitted by February 1 have priority for the awarding of aid, although aid may be awarded to late applicants on the basis of available funds.

Federal aid, in the form of loans and work study, is awarded on the basis of financial need. In addition, students may actively seek opportunities for financial support which might be available to them from foundations and other institutions.  For more information on funding opportunities for Arts and Humanities students, click here.

You may, also, contact the Office of Student Financing, Claremont Graduate University, 160 East 10th Street, Claremont, CA 91711, by telephone 909.621.8337, by fax: 909.607.7285, or by email: finaid@cgu.edu.