MA: Theater Arts

Program Overview

We offer students the tools to broaden their creative voices and define their paths as working artists and thinkers.

M.A. in Theater Arts

UC Santa Cruz offers a one-year Master of Arts in Theater Arts that prepares students for professional achievements in interactive media and performance, stage design, directing, dramaturgy, performance, and performance scholarship, arts management, choreography, technical theater and stage management. Our M.A. program also places students in an excellent position to pursue further graduate academic work, such as an M.F.A. or Ph.D., and our graduates have a strong track record of being placed into prestigious terminal degree programs.

The degree does not require students to focus exclusively on one aspect of theater-making. Instead, we encourage students to explore performance from a broad perspective, and then to hone in on a capstone project that will test them to the best of their abilities. These projects have included practice-focused and scholarly-based research. The degree combines intellectually rigorous coursework with challenging artistic practice. The program integrates diverse approaches to performance, encouraging collaboration and cross-disciplinary thinking.

Students in the program study with highly engaged faculty in the Department of Performance, Play & Design.

Coursework

Students are required to complete 40 units for the M.A. in Theater Arts. This includes three 5-unit graduate seminars (THEA 290A Research Methods, THEA 290B Practice of Theory, and THEA 290C Performance Analysis), for a total of 15 units. These courses are required of all M.A. candidates, regardless of their area of emphasis.

Students must also complete the 10-unit THEA 293 Performance Research Project which includes a professional internship of 300 hours. It is advised and is typical that the internship portion of the units be completed during the summer before the M.A. program begins. This work will be supervised by a representative in the internship host organization and assessed by a UCSC Theater Arts faculty member.

Students also complete the 5-unit courses THEA 295 Group Critique, THEA 294 Future Stages, and THEA 299 Capstone Thesis.

In addition, students may elect to take an optional independent study (THEA 297) or an undergraduate upper-division or graduate course in another department. These courses must be approved by the Graduate Committee and Graduate Director.

Teaching Assistantships

There are no teaching requirements for graduate students in the M.A program; however, students are encouraged to act as teaching assistants, as positions are available at UC Santa Cruz. Historically, Theater Arts has offered graduate students between one and three-quarters of teaching assistant (TA) positions. Other fellowships and grants are available to many students; students are encouraged to seek alternative sources of funding if needed. Students may elect to find and undertake a paid internship in a quarter in which they do not receive a TAship. Recommended links: UCSC Financial Aid and Federal Student Aid websites.

To Apply to the MA in Theater Arts

To be considered for admission to the M.A in Theater Arts, applicants must hold a bachelor’s degree, or expect conferment by August 1 before the beginning of the master’s program in September, and be able to furnish proof to UC Santa Cruz. Applicants who hold bachelor’s degrees in fields other than theater arts should submit evidence of relevant experience.

Applications for the M.A. in Theater Arts program are due by 11:59 pm (PST) on the deadline in early February for admission the following fall.

The online application requires a statement of purpose, a personal history statement, a résumé/CV, a work sample, a writing sample, transcripts from prior education and three letters of recommendation. The application to this program does not require the GRE.

Applicants will be asked to indicate a specialization for their capstone project: Arts Management, Choreography, Design, Directing, Dramaturgy, Performance, Performance Scholarship, Technical Theater, and Stage Management.

Theater Arts M.A. application information and submission portal on the Graduate Division website:

Application Instructions, including the Required Supplemental Application Materials section.
Application Requirements – you will submit these materials through the application portal.
Application portal – you will create an account here to submit your application.

All applications will be reviewed by the end of February. Selected applicants will be invited to an online interview with key faculty and a virtual “tour” of the campus facilities in mid-March. Acceptance/denial letters will be sent immediately following the interviews.

Application Fee Waivers

A limited number of application fee waivers are available. Requests will be evaluated on a case by case basis.

The fee waiver application deadline is JANUARY 15 – this is about 2 weeks earlier than the program application deadline; therefore, the program application must be submitted early if you want to be considered for an application fee waiver. Fee waivers will only be reviewed for applicants who have submitted a program application. At minimum, the following must be submitted to the application portal by the January fee waiver deadline: Statement of Purpose, Personal History Statement, Résumé/CV, Professional Internship Description, Work sample, Writing Sample, and Statement of Financial Need. Letters of recommendation may be received later, by the program application deadline in early February.

To Apply For An Application Fee Waiver/Exemption:

DO NOT PAY YOUR APPLICATION FEE TO THE UNIVERSITY BEFORE SUBMITTING YOUR FEE WAIVER/EXEMPTION REQUEST. Payments will not be refunded, even if a fee exemption is approved. You will be able to submit your application early to be considered for a fee waiver since payment is not due until the program application deadline. The program application will be forwarded for review after the application fee has been paid, either by you or via a fee exemption/waiver from the Graduate Division or the department.
Apply for a Graduate Division fee exemption/waiver in the payment section of the program application following the instructions on the Graduate Division’s Application Fee page (note: international applicants may not qualify for a Graduate Division fee exemption; however, please follow the instructions to allow the division to determine eligibility).
Submit a statement of financial need:
- The statement of financial need should not exceed one page and should fully explain, in your own words, your need for financial assistance.
- Upload the statement as a PDF with the program application.
The Graduate Division will review your request for a fee exemption once your program application is submitted.
If you are denied the Graduate Division exemption, you will be instructed to contact the department:
- Email theatergradprogram@ucsc.edu to let the department know that you were denied the Graduate Division fee exemption. The statement of financial need that you uploaded to the application portal will be reviewed by the department. If you are granted a department fee waiver, the department will provide additional directions for how to complete the fee waiver section in the application portal.
If you are denied a departmental fee waiver, you will need to pay the application fee via the application portal in order for your application to be considered for admission.

All applicants are eligible to apply for a fee waiver and we encourage you to submit the request if you have a need.

Application fee payments do not guarantee admission.

International Student Applicants

International students are required to take the TOEFL or the IESTL. It is critical that all students in the master’s program have excellent fluency in both written and spoken English.

International students who wish to be considered for Teaching Assistant opportunities must score an 83 overall, including a 26 or higher on the Spoken Word portion of the TOEFL iBT, or a score of 8 or higher on the Speaking portion of the IELTS Academic test.
Please see additional information on the Graduate Division’s Required Test Scores page and Language Requirements page.

Apply the the Theater Arts M.A. Program