School of Visual and Performing Arts

M.A. in Liberal Studies

About the Program

Program Coordinator

Dr. John Gruesser, Program Coordinator
CAS 223
908-737-0388
mals@kean.edu

The Master of Arts in Liberal Studies is designed for adults who seek interdisciplinary paths to knowledge, who wish to explore the values inherent in the liberal arts, who want to continue and deepen the life of the mind. For professionals in law, museum work, education, medicine, engineering, school administration, and business who wish to explore values inherent in the liberal arts and to continue and deepen the life of mind. Not intended to train students for a specialized vocation, the program has particular significance for students who wish to increase the range and depth of their knowledge in the liberal disciplines. With advisement by the coordinator, students plan a program that has concentration and diversity. The small seminar style classes place emphasis on in-depth knowledge and communication skills. Opportunities for graduate assistantships and scholarships are available.

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS
In addition to the University’s admission requirements:

· The most important elements are the maturity and motivation of the student, which is why we ask for an autobiographical essay of at least 500 words and require an interview with the program director.
· Candidates must hold a Bachelor's Degree from an accredited college or university with an overall average of B.
· Three letters of recommendation are required.

PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

· Three core courses (9 credits)
· Six courses in a concentration (18 credits)
· Two courses in any concentration (6 credits)
· Comprehensive examination

Core Requirements – 9 credits

• MALS 5210: Interdisciplinary Seminar in Liberal Studies 3 Cr.
• MALS 5290: Advanced Interdisciplinary Seminar I (after 21 credits) 3 Cr.
• MALS 5291: Advanced Interdisciplinary Seminar II* (after 24 credits) 3 Cr.

*Includes a final project, a significant, substantial creative activity; e.g. a major recital, long paper, or exhibition.

Area/Period Concentrations – 18 credits
6 classes to be completed in one concentration:

· American Studies
· European Studies
· The Modern World
· Classical, Renaissance, and Baroque Studies

Two additional courses – 6 credits in any area/period concentration

Comprehensive Examination to be taken after 21 credits.

MALS American Studies Course List

• ENG 5341 American Literary Renaissance: 1836 - 1856
• ENG 5350 American Poetry from 1900 to the Present
• ENG 5380 Readings in Contemporary Literature
• ENG 5410 American Drama from 1900
• ENG 5500 Modern American Novel
• ENG 5520 Contemporary Drama
• ENG 5555 American Autobiography
• FA 5715 Trends in Contemporary Art
• HIST 5050 Readings in the American Experience in Vietnam
• HIST 5301 Readings in American History I
• HIST 5302 Readings in American History II
• HIST 5303 American Scene: The Formative Years
• HIST 5304 Revolutionary Generation: 1760-1989
• HIST 5305 History of Blacks in America
• HIST 5310 Civil War and Reconstruction
• HIST 5340 Recent American History
• HIST 5345 American Foreign Policy Since 1945
• HIST 5350 The Urban Scene/America
• HIST 5355 The American Woman
• HIST 5820 Contemporary Latin America
• HIST 5830 Freedom: Black and Jewish Perspectives
• PSY 5510 Theories of Personality
• SOC 5110 Sociology of Performing Arts
• SOC 5150 Sociology of the Community
• SOC 5200 Women: A Changing Minority
• SOC 5300 Radical and Cultural Minorities

MALS Classical, Renaissance, & Baroque Studies and European Studies Course List

• AH 5702 Italian Renaissance Painting
• AH 5703 Baroque Art
• ENG 5340 The Romantic Imagination
• ENG 5345 Victorian Literature
• ENG 5451 Shakespeare: Tragedies and Histories
• ENG 5452 Shakespeare: Comedies and Romances
• ENG 5460 Studies in Yeats, Pound, and Eliot
• ENG 5465 Virginia Woolf
• ENG 5470 Chaucer
• ENG 5520 Contemporary Drama
• FL 5115 Women in French Film
• FL 5610 French Comic Spirit
• HIST 5201 Readings in European History I
• HIST 5202 Readings in European History II
• HIST 5225 Seminar: Russian History/Civilization
• ID 5211 Realms of Gold: Homer
• ID 5212 Realms of Gold II: Greek Dramatists
• ID 5241 Music Through Literature
• ID 5310 Travel in Europe
• MAHG 5004 Holocaust in Literature and Film
• MAHG 5000 History of Holocaust Part II – 1939-1945
• MALS 5001 Visions of the Holocaust
• MALS 52xx Topics in Renaissance and Baroque
• MUS 5240 Trends in Contemporary Music
• MUS 5250 Symphonic Masterpieces
• PHIL 5020 Philosophy of Humanism
• PHIL 5040 Freedom and Self-Knowledge
• PHIL 5060 Readings in Existential Philosophy
• PHIL 5080 Plato
• PHIL 5083 Philosophy of Moral Ideals
• PS 5310 Evolution and Devolution of the USSR

MALS Modern World Course List

• ECO 5200 Evolution of Economic Thought
• ENG 5340 The Romantic Imagination
• ENG 5345 Victorian Literature
• ENG 5350 American Poetry from 1900 to the Presents
• ENG 5380 Contemporary Literature
• ENG 5410 Modern American Drama from 1900
• ENG 5455 James Joyce
• ENG 5460 Studies in Yeats, Pounds, and Eliot
• ENG 5465 Virginia Woolf
• ENG 5500 Modern American Novel
• ENG 5520 Contemporary Drama
• ENG 5555 American Autobiography
• FA 5010 Interrelatedness of the Arts
• FA 5704 The Art of Africa
• FA 5715 Trends in Contemporary Art
• FL 5115 Women in French Film
• HIST 5050 Readings in the American Experience in Vietnam
• HIST 5225 Russian History and Civilization
• HIST 5305 History of Blacks in America
• HIST 5306 Women, Culture, and Power
• HIST 5310 Civil War and Reconstruction
• HIST 5340 Recent American History
• HIST 5345 American Foreign Policy Since 1945
• HIST 5350 The Urban Scene/America
• HIST 5355 The American Woman
• HIST 5401 Maoism & the Establishment of the People’s Republic of China
• HIST 5820 Contemporary Latin America
• HIST 5830 Black and Jewish Perspectives
• HIST 6500 Contemporary Africa
• ID 5241 Music Through Literature
• ID 5310 Travel in Europe
• MAHG 5000 History of Holocaust Part II 1939-1945
• MAHG 5004 Holocaust in Literature & Film
• MALS 5001 Visions of the Holocaust
• MUS 5240 Contemporary Music
• MUS 5250 Symphonic Masterpieces
• PHIL 5010 Social and Political Ideals
• PHIL 5060 Readings in Existential Philosophy
• PHIL 5083 Philosophical and Moral Ideals
• PS 5020 Contemporary Political Problems
• PS 5030 Readings in Political Science
• PS 5310 Evolution and Devolution of the USSR
• PSY 5510 Theories of Personality
• PSY 5600 Issues in Social Psychology
• REL 5069 Spirit of Eastern Religions
• REL 5700 Issues, Answers, Doubts in Religion
• SOC 5110 Sociology of the Performing Arts
• SOC 5200 Women: A Changing Minority
• SOC 5300 Racial and Cultural Minorities