Program Overview
The MA Degree Program in Russian, East European, and Central Asian Studies (REECAS), administered by CREECA, provides interdisciplinary area studies training for emerging professionals and future leaders. We welcome and encourage applications from Eurasia Foreign Area Officers (FAOs).
The REECAS curriculum is designed to promote:
- A broad understanding of the cultural, political, economic, social, and historical factors that have shaped the development of societies in Eurasia, Russia, and Eastern and Central Europe
- Professional-level proficiency in one or more languages of Eurasia and Eastern and Central Europe
- Knowledge of methodological and analytical approaches of different disciplines that will contribute to a better understanding of the region and prepare students for conducting advanced research.
Course Offerings
For an example of REECAS course offerings, click here.
Departments and Faculty
The MA Degree Program in REECAS is an interdisciplinary program. Currently, there are 27 tenure-line professors with a primary teaching and/or research interest in Russian, East European, and Central Asian Studies. Faculty represent 11 different disciplines, including: Agricultural and Applied Economics, History, Jewish Studies, Law, Political Science, Slavic Languages and Literature, and Sociology. See our Faculty page for faculty profiles and research interests.
Program Admissions
Students entering the Master’s Program must have:
- A Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution
- Minimum total grade point average of 3.0/4.0
- Minimum grade point average of 3.4/4.0 in related area courses
- 3 letters of recommendation
- Sufficiently high scores on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE)
While there is no minimum admission requirement for regional language, students are strongly advised to complete at least two years of language study before entering the program.
Program Length
The MA Program typically takes three or four academic semesters to complete, but students who enter with language skills and commit to intensive summer course work may complete the course of study within 12 calendar months.
Program Requirements
- One regional language class each term
- A one-credit “Introduction to REECAS” module their first semester
- 7 courses (21 credits) distributed across three departments
- At least two of these courses must be graduate-level seminars (700-900 level) using original language source material in papers
- Students may elect to write a Master’s Thesis for three of these credits; the thesis may not replace one of the graduate-level seminars.
Total: 22 credits plus one regional language class per term
Language Requirements
Language learning is an integral part of the program, and students will be required to enroll in language courses each term. In order to complete the Master’s Program, students will be required to take two years or the equivalent of a regional language (Czech, Polish, Kazakh, Russian, Turkish, Persian), with at least three years of study strongly recommended. Students who enter with no previous study of language who want to complete the program in three academic semesters need to enroll in a summer intensive language study course the summer prior to enrolling, or after the first year of study. Students already proficient in their main language are expected to choose another Slavic or Central Eurasian language.
Funding and Financial Aid
We strongly encourage qualified U.S. citizens and permanent residents to apply for the Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowship through our office. FLAS applications are due February 14 each year. Please note that the application form for FLAS is separate from the application for admission and can be accessed here. We regret that other sources of funding, such as teaching assistantships and project assistantships, are limited in our program, but we encourage all applicants to consult the CREECA funding page for additional resources.
Application Procedure
The application competition takes place once per year. For students wishing to matriculate in September 2025, the application deadline is Wednesday, January 8, 2025. The UW Graduate School opens the application beginning on the first day of fall classes (so for matriculation in fall 2025, the application opens on September 4, 2024). See Application Procedure for detailed instructions and our FAQs page for more information.
For more information regarding the REECAS MA Program and its requirements, consult the graduate advisor Jennifer Tishler.
Additional Program Information
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