Master of Arts
Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies MA Concentration
The Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies (REES) MA Concentration is a collaborative program between CREES and KU's Department of Slavic, German & Eurasian Studies. Students in the program receive a Master's Degree in Slavic Languages & Literatures while gaining advanced training in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies.
The Program is interdisciplinary and draws on the participation of over 40 faculty members and courses from 19 different KU departments and schools. Students have the opportunity to specialize in a specific area of interest (including history, culture, politics, economics, and law) and can take advantage of the excellent language instruction offered by KU in 9 REES-related languages.
Since the beginning of its graduate program in 1968, CREES has trained hundreds of leading experts in Russian, East European, and Eurasian studies. Its alumni include ambassadors, academic specialists, policymakers, military officers, leaders of non-governmental organizations, and business executives.
The REES MA Concentration consists of 30 credit hours and is typically completed as a 2-year program. For Foreign Area Officers (FAOs) and others with advanced regional language knowledge, we offer the opportunity to complete the REES concentration MA in a 12-18 month period on an accelerated timeline. REES-related languages includes Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian, Czech, Polish, Russian, Slovene, Tajik/Farsi, Turkish, Ukrainian, and Uyghur.
Degree Requirements
Requirements for the degree include 30 credit hours with at least 50% of coursework at or above the 700 level. The requirements for the degree are distributed as follows:
- 1 course in a REES-related advanced foreign language (500-level or higher) for 3 credit hours.
- 7 graduate-level area studies courses focusing on the REES region for a total of 21 credit hours, taken in consultation with the advisor.
- Successful completion of one of the following research methods and capstone sequences, totaling 6 credit hours and culminating in a research paper using materials in the student’s chosen target language. Students may choose a given track based on their interests and the availability of courses. Students taking an equivalent methods/capstone sequence in another department may petition to substitute that sequence. Prior to enrolling in the second course in their selected sequence, students must have completed an advanced language course in the target language.
- Pass a progressive academic examination model known as the MA portfolio, a body of work that showcases the student’s interdisciplinary knowledge and expertise of the REES world area. At the end of the student’s final semester, the portfolio is read by a committee of three graduate faculty and tested through a 90-minute oral examination. Learn more about the MA portfolio.
Methods and Capstone Sequences
Global and International Studies Option
- GIST 710 Research Design for International Area Studies
- GIST 810 Graduate Writing Experience or GIST 898 Thesis and Research Project Writing
History Option
Literature and Culture Option
- SLAV 760 The Russian Novel in the Age of Realism
- SLAV 762 Russian Theatre and Drama from Stanislavski and Chekhov to the Present or SLAV 767 Post-Soviet Literature
Linguistics and Culture Option
- SLAV 710 Introduction to Slavic Languages and Linguistics
- SLAV 722 The Grammatical Categories of Russian: Linguistic Units, Functions and Meaning or SLAV 824 Pro-seminar in Methods of Teaching Slavic Languages I