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Students in a Cultural Foundations class discussion.

Cultural Foundations - M.A.

Explore education in its social and cultural contexts through a range of disciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives with the M.A. in Cultural Foundations. This program will help you develop the knowledge and skills to analyze and critique policies, and promote innovative practices in schools, cultural institutions and civic associations worldwide.

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Program Information for Cultural Foundations - M.A.

Program Description

Full Description

The Master of Arts degree in Cultural Foundations explores education through a range of disciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives: philosophy of education, history of education, sociology of education, comparative/international education, anthropology of education, gender studies, multicultural studies and religious studies. Students examine the social contexts of education, with particular emphasis on structural inequalities, issues of access, and the distribution of educational opportunity, normative considerations about the purposes of education and the transformative potential of education.

The degree program promotes students' responsibilities as change agents in a range of educational settings, including schools, cultural and religious institutions and civic associations. Graduates of the program have the knowledge and skills to interpret and critique educational policies and practices and to promote innovative practices in a variety of educational settings, domestically and worldwide.

Students in the M.A. degree write a thesis on an educational topic of their own choosing. Thesis students work closely with their academic supervisor to generate a thesis topic and design a research study or undertake a scholarly analysis of an issue of interest to the student.

Admissions for Cultural Foundations - M.A.

For more information about graduate admissions, visit the graduate admission website. For more information on international admissions, visit the international admission website.

Admission Requirements

  • Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university
  • Minimum 2.750 undergraduate GPA on a 4.000-point scale
  • Official transcript(s)
  • Goal statement
  • Two letters of recommendation
  • English language proficiency - all international students must provide proof of English language proficiency (unless they meet specific exceptions to waive) by earning one of the following:1
    • Minimum 79 TOEFL iBT score
    • Minimum 6.5 IELTS score
    • Minimum 58 PTE score
    • Minimum 110 DET score

Applicants will be assessed holistically, considering academic credentials, related professional experience, academic or professional references, scholarly activities and professional activities, among others.

1

International applicants who do not meet the above test scores will not be considered for admission.

Application Deadlines

  • Fall Semester
    • Rolling admissions
  • Spring Semester
    • Rolling admissions
  • Summer Term
    • Rolling admissions
Learning Outcomes

Program Learning Outcomes

Graduates of the program will be able to:

  1. Demonstrate an understanding of the social, cultural, economic and political assumptions shaping educational policies and reforms in the United States and other societies.
  2. Understand the nature of the democratic challenge for schooling in answering such foundational questions as: "What should be taught?" "Who should be taught?" and "Who should teach?"
  3. Demonstrate an understanding of the convergence of social class, race, gender, sexual orientation and disability as barriers to and opportunities for educational change, domestically and internationally.
Coursework

Program Requirements

Major Requirements

Major Requirements
CULT 65530FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION AND HUMAN SERVICES 3
EPSY 65520CHILD AND ADOLESCENT DEVELOPMENT 3
or EPSY 65523 LIFE SPAN DEVELOPMENT
or EPSY 65524 LEARNING THEORIES
RMS 65511RESEARCH IN EDUCATIONAL SERVICES 3
Major Electives, choose from the following:15
CULT 60030
SOCIAL CONTEXTS OF EDUCATION: CONTEMPORARY ISSUES AND THEORY
CULT 69510
CLASSICS IN PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION
CULT 69521
MULTICULTURAL EDUCATIONAL PRACTICE AND POLICY
CULT 69522
ETHICS IN PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
CULT 69530
MULTICULTURAL THEORIES AND SCHOLARSHIP IN EDUCATION
CULT 69560
CONTEMPORARY PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION
CULT 69564
HISTORY OF AMERICAN EDUCATION
CULT 69569
INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION: FOUNDATIONAL ISSUES
CULT 69571
GLOBALIZATION AND EDUCATION
CULT 69575
ANTHROPOLOGY AND EDUCATION
CULT 69582
SOCIAL THEORIES IN EDUCATION
CULT 69591
SEMINAR IN CULTURAL FOUNDATIONS
CULT 69595
SPECIAL TOPICS IN CULTURAL FOUNDATIONS
CULT 69691
VARIABLE CONTENT SEMINAR: GREAT IDEAS IN EDUCATION
Other electives with faculty advisor approval
Culminating Requirement
CULT 60199THESIS I 6
Minimum Total Credit Hours:30

Graduation Requirements

Minimum Major GPA Minimum Overall GPA
- 3.000
  • Students have six years from the term of first enrollment to complete the program.
  • No more than one-half of a graduate student’s coursework may be taken in 50000-level courses.
  • Grades below C are not counted toward completion of requirements for the degree.
Program Delivery
  • Delivery:
    • Mostly online
    • In person
  • Location:
    • Kent Campus

Possible Careers and Salaries

Cultural Foundations Careers

Most of our students are already engaged in satisfying work and plan to use their advanced degree in the Cultural Foundations to open up new opportunities for themselves within their current setting or to move their organizations and institutions in new directions. Others see an advanced degree in the Cultural Foundations as a way of opening up new avenues in their professional lives while contributing also to their communities. In short, our students seek to bring a scholarly orientation to their educational, activist, and entrepreneurial endeavors.