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A unique, customizable graduate program

As a Master of Interdisciplinary Studies student, you will work with your advisor to create a customized degree plan tailored to your specific interests and career goals. While the combinations of graduate courses have few limits, here are a few examples of what our students are interested in and what they have studied:

  • a student interested in social justice and advocacy: public administration, social work and counseling 
  • a student interested in campus life and wellness: kinesiology, student affairs and business
  • a student interested in working for a Texas state park: public history, environmental science and public administration.

Required coursework

The Master of Interdisciplinary Studies is available in a thesis or non-thesis option.

  • Students who choose the thesis option must complete 30 hours of graduate coursework, plus six hours of graduate research and writing.
  • Students who choose the non-thesis option must complete 36 hours of graduate coursework. Nonthesis students also must pass a comprehensive written or oral examination based on their areas of study.

Admission requirements

A student may be granted clear admittance to the program with an overall undergraduate GPA of 2.6 and 2.8 for the last 60 hours of coursework. At the discretion of the division director, students who do not meet these criteria may be granted probationary admission to the program and must fulfill specific GPA and/or course requirements before the start of the next semester.

M.I.S. - arts entrepreneurship concentration

Many emerging artists are frustrated by the challenge of turning their passion into a profession.  However brilliant their music, visual art, theatre, dance, filmmaking, or writing, they long for the knowledge to manage and promote their work effectively.  Some are happy with careers in established educational or arts institutions, but others want to launch their own enterprise: a production company, a nonprofit organization, an ensemble, a gallery, a school, or even a coffeehouse.  This arts entrepreneurship track in the Master of Interdisciplinary Studies degree program is for creative adventurers with that “start-up” energy.

Students may pursue a thesis or nonthesis option in this 36-hour degree.

All students in this track must take the following:

  • DRAM 5175  - Advanced Graduate Studies (topic: Enterprise in the Arts)
  • MCOM 5355 - Seminar in Public Relations
  • ACCT 5311 - Accounting for Management or PADM 5315 - Public Budgeting and Financial Management
  • two to four courses in an artistic field of choice (art, music or theatre)
  • additional business, mass communication and/or public administration courses selected in consultation with advisors.

M.I.S. - cultural heritage concentration

Spend one semester of your degree living in Firminy, France at a UNESCO World Heritage Site for the same cost as studying in Nacogdoches! From history to public administration and cultural traditions to outdoor resource communication, our students gain the tools to pursue careers in public and private sectors.

Cultural Landscapes and Heritage

Imagine a master's degree program where you spend a semester studying at the Université Jean Monnet while living at a UNESCO World Heritage site in France. Imagine the career possibilities a proficiency in French and an interdisciplinary knowledge base can give you. Do you believe in historical, environmental and community preservation? Then a Masters in Interdisciplinary Studies with a focus in cultural landscapes and heritage might be a fit for you.

Now imagine you can do all of this while you pay your regular SFA tuition. In our program, students combine public history with two other areas of study, such as resource communication, public administration, museum studies, hospitality, anthropology, geography or sociology. Students explore concepts of preservation from multiple applied perspectives.

The M.I.S. is a 36-hour degree with thesis and non-thesis options. Students also will pursue nine to 12 hours in public history.

M.I.S. - sustainability management concentration

SFA now offers a concentration in sustainability within its online Master of Interdisciplinary Studies program. Designed to accommodate working professionals or new graduates of four-year programs, the degree follows sustainability's traditional interdisciplinary format, with core courses in sustainability and options to take complementary courses in business, public administration, and social science/community development. Internships in areas such as renewable energy, community gardens, transportation planning, sustainability monitoring and grant writing also are available, along with an option to complete a four-course certificate in nonprofit management within the degree.

Since the 1990s, sustainability coordinators, departments and themes have emerged within corporations, large municipalities, nonprofit organizations and higher education. As renewable energy costs continue to drop and retrofitting incentives emerge, the ability to save money while conserving the environment and serving the community has brought sustainability thinking to the forefront. The degree also builds general business and management skills to prepare students for higher-level opportunities.

Degree requirements

Students will fulfill all requirements for the degree while focusing on a tailored selection of courses designed to give you a multifaceted understanding of sustainability. All courses are three hours unless otherwise indicated. Students pursuing the thesis option only take 30 hours of coursework plus six hours of thesis research and writing.

Students must complete the following:

  • SUST 5300 - Principles of Sustainability
  • SUST 5395 - Field Experience in Sustainability
  • SUST 5375 - Special Topics in Sustainability
  • Two to five courses from in a field of choice (nonprofit/municipal management, business, or community development/social science)
  • Minimum of six hours of electives from forestry, interior design, business, social work and more

Contact

Division of Multidisciplinary Programs
936.468.2803
mdp@sfasu.edu

Ferguson Building
Room 273

Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 6082, SFA Station
Nacogdoches, Texas 75962