The Department of Anthropology is unfortunately not accepting new applications to our MSTS program. PhD students currently enrolled at UCI are still able to complete the requirements and receive the MA degree.

 

Degree Information

UC Irvine offers a Master of Arts in Social Sciences with a concentration in Medicine, Science, and Technology Studies (known as the M.A. in MSTS). This M.A. concentration is housed in the Department of Anthropology and prepares students to respond to the significant and rapidly changing impact of medicine and technology upon economies and societies around the world. The degree is designed to provide students with skills that can be applied to future careers in a variety of venues, including academia, medicine or public health, the nonprofit sector, and technology industries.

In the one-year M.A. in MSTS program, students take three courses per quarter for a total of nine courses (36 units). Students admitted for Fall 2014 will form the program’s first cohort and will be enrolled in courses with current Ph.D. and possibly B.A. students.

The M.A. in MSTS is the only terminal M.A. degree offered by the Department of Anthropology. Although the degree will provide students with skills they can use in future academic study, completion of the M.A. in MSTS does not guarantee admission into the Ph.D. program.

Deadlines and When to Apply

New M.A. in MSTS students are admitted to the program for the Fall quarter only. Accordingly, we encourage all prospective graduate students to begin the application process early to ensure ample time for the collection of all required materials.

To apply, please go to our Admissions Master's in MSTS page for detailed information.

Costs and Financial Aid

Tuition and Fees

The University of California's current fee and tuition rates are published online

United States citizens and permanent residents who relocate to California from other states may apply for legal residency here, following one year of continuous residence (although the M.A. in MSTS is only a one-year program). The required "procedures of intent" are outlined here: www.reg.uci.edu/residency/classification.html.

Financial Support

Most Master’s students are self-funded. Financial assistance based on need (loans, primarily) is available to qualifying student applicants through UCI Financial Aid & Scholarships. Subject to limited availability, M.A. in MSTS students may apply for part-time Teaching Assistant positions.

All students applying for need-based financial aid are required to file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

International students who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents are not eligible to apply for federal need-based financial aid.

Further information on assistantships and funding resources can be found here.
 

Concurrent Enrollment

The M.A. in MSTS may be earned as an interim step towards the doctoral degree for enrolled students in any of the Social Sciences’ various doctoral programs and for students in select, allied schools on campus, such as Nursing, Humanities, Medicine, Social Ecology, and the program in Public Health.

Current doctoral students at UC Irvine main campus do not need to apply for separate admission to the M.A. in MSTS program. Instead, they declare their intent to complete the M.A. by applying for M.A. in MSTS advancement to candidacy at least one quarter before the anticipated M.A. degree quarter. Advancement to candidacy for the M.A. in MSTS is subject to approval by the Dean of the candidate’s home school. The concurrent enrollment MSTS program is not elibigble for UCI Medical School and Law School.

Enrolled students undertaking the program as an interim step to a doctoral degree may begin at any time during the academic year and are not bound by the single-year, three-term structure followed by students earning the M.A. as a terminal degree.

All students intending to complete the M.A. in MSTS program (including current Ph.D. students) must successfully complete the comprehensive exam.

Please note that the M.A. in Social Sciences (Medicine, Science, and Technology Studies) degree is a separate program from the Graduate Specialization in Anthropologies of Medicine, Science, and Technology. Both programs build on the research strengths of faculty in the Department of Anthropology. The Specialization is available to current Ph.D. students only and requires the completion of four courses. After completing the Ph.D. requirements of their home departments, students may append “Specialization in Anthropologies of Medicine, Science, and Technology” to their curricula vitae. The M.A. in MSTS is a more extensive degree program that requires the completion of nine courses and a comprehensive exam. The degree is available as either a one-year terminal Master’s program or as a degree earned along the way to a doctoral degree.