Thinking of Applying to the Classics M.A. Program?

The Classics Department at the University of Arizona in Tucson would like to
introduce you to our Classics M.A. program, which should be of interest to
both Classics majors and Humanities-oriented undergraduate students. Our
graduate program has enjoyed remarkable growth since its inception in 1985
and, along with our undergraduate program, continues to expand. It is now
one of the premier M.A. programs in the United States and attracts qualified
students from all regions of this country and from abroad.
Students in our M.A. program emphasize Classical Philology
, Classical
Archaeology ,
Ancient History or
Latin Pedagogy . A
number of Graduate Fellowships, Teaching and Research Assistantships, as
well as waivers of tuition and fees, are available. Graduate students take
courses and seminars, teach under supervision, and write their theses under
the directorship of the departmental faculty
.

M.A. concentrators in Classical Philology focus on ancient Greek and Latin
languages and literatures and study with the department's philologists: John
Bauschatz, David Christenson, Marilyn Skinner, Christopher van den Berg,
Gonda Van Steen, Bella Vivante and Cynthia White. Faculty in Classical
Philology are active researchers in a broad range of specialties, including
Homer, Greek and Roman drama, Augustan literature, feminist approaches to
Classics, ancient sexuality, neoteric poetry, ancient astronomy and
astrology, Greek papyrology, Greek and Roman historiography and social
history, textual criticism, the classical tradition, early Christian and
late antique Latin literature, medieval Latin and Greek, Latin paleography,
literary reception, rhetoric, and ancient and modern performance studies. In
addition, Julia Annas and Rachana Kamtekar of the Philosophy Department, and
Alison Futrell and Steven Johnstone of the History Department regularly
teach cross-listed courses and work closely with departmental students.
The Classical Archaeology option aims to provide students with broad
disciplinary training, including an introduction to a wide variety of field
methods and interpretative approaches to material culture, as well as a firm
foundation in Greek and Latin. Students wishing to pursue a Ph.D. in
Classical Art and Archaeology may do so through the Department of Art
. All students are encouraged to participate
in fieldwork throughout the Mediterranean region. David Soren takes students
to his excavations in Italy every summer, and Mary Voyatzis is a Co-Director
of the Mt. Lykaion Excavation and Survey Project
in the Peloponnese in
Greece. Students interested in the wider Mediterranean intercultural nexus
may work with Richard Wilkinson, who directs excavations in the Valley of
the Kings in Egypt . Eleni Hasaki, a
specialist in ancient craftsmen and technology, takes students to
excavations on Paros. Robert Schon, an expert in Minoan and Mycenean
society, is Co-Director of the Marsala Hinterland Survey in Sicily with Emma
Blake, an expert in the Western Mediterranean Bronze and Iron Ages who will
join the department in 2009.

The faculty of the Classics Department approaches ancient history from a
variety of angles‹political, economic, social, military, cultural,
religious, etc.‹and encourages this same approach in our students. Students
in the Ancient History emphasis work with the department's philologists and
archaeologists, as well as Alison Futrell and Steven Johnstone of the
History Department, to design M.A. programs tailored to their interests in
ancient history. They first master the names, places and dates, and then
move on to more in-depth analysis of ancient Greek and Roman history via
fields such as historiography, prosopography, papyrology, epigraphy and
numismatics. Those who obtain the M.A. in the Ancient History emphasis from
the Classics Department are well-qualified for study at the Ph.D. level. For
more information on this emphasis, contact John Bauschatz
.

Students whose interests are in Latin Pedagogy and teaching may earn
Secondary School Latin Teaching Certification

through the Department of Classics in association with the College of
Education. Students may also enroll in graduate level courses in second
language acquisition and teaching through the SLAT Program and participate
in language pedagogy workshops and seminars. As Graduate Teaching Assistants
they will have opportunities to teach in our Elementary Latin and Summer
Intensive Latin
programs, both directed by Cynthia White
. Our M.A. graduates who have earned the Latin Teaching Certificate have had
enormous success in securing secondary school and community college teaching
positions throughout the country.

Our Modern Greek Program
is one of the
most active in the western United States. Under the direction of Gonda Van
Steen , this program offers a four-semester
sequence in modern Greek language and further options at a more advanced
level in modern Greek literature. The program typically attracts graduate
students who plan to travel, study, or do field work in Greece, or who are
interested in post-classical Greek language and culture. Qualified students
may also serve as teaching assistants in the program.

To take full advantage of our M.A. program, an undergraduate applicant
should have basic preparation in the classical languages, ancient history,
and archaeology, and will be expected to demonstrate basic reading knowledge
of German or French by the end of the first year of graduate study.
Applicants who are not equally prepared in all these areas, but who have
shown promise in their undergraduate coursework in ancient Greek, Latin, or
archaeology (as well as courses in related areas) are also encouraged to
apply. The department generally expects students to earn the M.A. degree in
two years. Our faculty are
committed to promoting deserving M.A. students in every possible way and
routinely nominate them for regional and national scholarships, including
the new CAMWS Award for outstanding accomplishment in Classical Studies. Our
program has an excellent record of placing students in top Ph.D. programs.

The Department of Classics normally has about thirty graduate students in
residence. These students enjoy the breathtaking beauty of Tucson
and its surrounding mountain ranges,
its benign desert climate ("it's a dry heat"), and its relatively low cost
of living. Interested undergraduate students are invited to visit the
department in Tucson, or to contact any of our faculty or student
representatives.
Applications for fall 2009 are due February 15; the deadline for
international students is January 15. For information and application
materials, please contact the graduate school
or get in touch directly with us.

Haec Studia Floreant!
Bella Vivante (Director of Graduate
Studies)
Gonda Van Steen (Greek Program
Director)
Cynthia White (Basic Latin Program
Director)