COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
www.memphis.edu/cas

HENRY KURTZ, PhD,
Dean

LINDA A. BENNETT, PhD,
Associate Dean for Graduate Studies & Research
and Director of Graduate Programs

JOY CLAY, PhD,
Associate Dean for Interdisciplinary Programs

*These academic units are part of the School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy.

The College of Arts and Sciences, which includes the School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy, contains fifteen departments and three divisions, each of which offers graduate degrees. The College also offers three interdisciplinary degree programs and several graduate certificate programs. Candidates for each of these degrees must pursue a curriculum plan that has the approval of their major advisor, the department chair or division director, and the Graduate Dean. All graduate students must comply with the general requirements of the Graduate School (see Admissions Regulations, Academic Regulations, and Minimum Degree Requirements) and the program requirements of the degree being pursued (see departmental or divisional listings in this section).

Individual program requirements described in the Graduate School Issue of the 2012-2013 Graduate Catalog of The University of Memphis are subject to change. Please consult your department or the Office of the Graduate School for changes that may occur before publication of the next issue of this Catalog; or consult the Graduate School Web site at: http://www.memphis.edu/gradschool for annual updates.

MASTER’S DEGREES:

The programs for the MASTER OF ARTS degree are generally open to those who have completed the Bachelor of Arts degree. Those with a Bachelor of Science degree may enroll in these programs if undergraduate prerequisites are met. Students majoring in the following areas may pursue the Master of Arts degree: Anthropology, Criminal Justice, Earth Sciences, English, History, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Romance Languages, and Sociology (see departmental listings).

The MASTER OF FINE ARTS IN CREATIVE WRITING is a 48-semester-hour program for students who plan to pursue a career in fiction writing or poetry. Admission to the program is based primarily on a portfolio of work in the student’s chosen genre. The course work includes both literature and writing classes, and culminates with submission of a publishable collection of fiction or poetry as the thesis.

The program for the MASTER OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION is generally open to students with preparation in the social sciences or in business courses. Students working toward this interdisciplinary degree complete a core curriculum in public and non-profit administration courses and a concentration in one of the following areas: General Public Administration or Nonprofit Administration.

The programs for the MASTER OF SCIENCE degree are generally open to students with a science background. Students enrolled in the following areas may pursue the Master of Science degree: Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Computer Science, Earth Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, Physics, and Psychology (see departmental listings).

The MASTER OF CITY AND REGIONAL PLANNING is a professional degree for students interested in government and business careers. Students complete the following: a core curriculum of 30 semester hours; a 15-hour elective curriculum with possible subjects in economic development planning, urban design, land use and transportation planning, planning information systems, housing and community development, planning law, and environmental planning; and a 3-hour Capstone Project that integrates one or more elective subjects with the core curriculum.

The mission of the MASTER OF SOCIAL WORK program is to educate advanced professional social workers for practice with at-risk populations, particularly children and families. Housed within the School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy (SUAPP), the Department of Social Work is dedicated to (a) educating social workers with knowledge, values and skills for evidence-based practice with children and families, (b) advancing the knowledge base of the social work profession and (c) providing regional leadership in the development and implementation of policies, programs and services for at-risk populations, particularly children and families.

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY DEGREE

The Doctor of Philosophy Degree is offered in the following departments within the College of Arts and Sciences: Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Computer Science, Earth Sciences, English, History, Mathematical Sciences, Philosophy, and Psychology. General requirements for the PhD Degree are outlined in these departmental listings. More detailed information about prerequisites, course work, research requirements, etc., may be obtained from the chair or graduate coordinator of the respective departments. Any of these departments may choose to admit a student to doctoral study without requiring the master’s degree as a prerequisite.

GRADUATE CERTIFICATES

Graduate certificates are offered in African American Literature (Department of English), Cognitive Science (Interdisciplinary), Geographic Information Systems (Department of Earth Sciences), Information Assurance (Department of Computer Science), Local Government Management (Public and Nonprofit Administration), Museum Studies (Departments of Anthropology and Art), Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership (Public and Nonprofit Administration), Teaching English as a Second Language (Department of English), and Women's and Gender Studies (Center for Interdisciplinary Studies).