GSAS BA/MA Option

The Columbia Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) affords highly qualified Columbia undergraduate students the opportunity to pursue and obtain a Masters of Arts (MA) degree in an academic discipline of their choice. Accepted students will receive their offer of deferred admission in their junior or senior year.  

Degree Offerings

The BA/MA option is available in the following academic disciplines:

• African-American Studies
• Classical Studies
• East Asia: Regional Studies
• East Asian Languages and Cultures
• Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation Biology
• English and Comparative Literature
• European History, Politics and Society
• French
• Global Thought
• Human Rights Studies
• Islamic Studies
• Islamic Studies and Muslim Cultures
• Jewish Studies
• Latin American and Iberian Cultures with a concentration in Hispanic Cultural Studies
• Medieval and Renaissance Studies
• Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies
• Oral History
• Philosophy
• Political Science
• Quantitative Methods in the Social Sciences
• Religion
• Religion- Journalism
• Russia, Eurasia, and Eastern Europe: Regional Studies
• Sociology
• South Asian Studies
• Statistics

Curriculum

Upon acceptance to the BA/MA program and in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies (DGS), accepted students may enroll in graduate level classes during the final semesters of their undergraduate studies. This coursework will apply to their MA program requirements upon completion of the BA and matriculation at GSAS. BA/MA students may be granted up to 9-12 credits of transfer credit and up to 0.50 residence units (RU) for graduate courses that exceed the 124-credit requirement for the Columbia and Barnard undergraduate degree. These courses may not be applied to fulfill requirements for the undergraduate major, concentration, or general education requirements. One quarter (.25) RU will be granted to students transferring fewer than 9 credits.

Admissions

Undergraduate students interested in the BA/MA option are advised to consult the DGS and their GS academic advisor in the earlier stages of their undergraduate degree, prior to applying. Applications should be submitted by the semester prior to the one during which students will begin taking classes that will be applied to their MA. Students will not be eligible to apply during their final semester of the senior year to the BA/MA option. At that juncture, they may apply for regular admission to the MA program of their choice using the GSAS online application. Applicants interested in the BA/MA option should not apply to the program using the regular admissions application found on the GSAS website.

Admission Deadlines

Please refer to the following admissions deadlines.

Contact Information

For more information regarding the BA/MA option, students should contact their respective undergraduate academic advisor, gsgradcoaching@columbia.edu, and/or relevant DGS.