Cinema and Media Studies

The Cinema and Media Studies Program in the Department of Film, Television and Digital Media offers two tracks for completion of the M.A. degree, an Integrated Degree Track (CMS-ID)intended for students who wish to continue their education at the doctoral level and a Research Professions Track (CMS-RP) intended for students who seek careers in the entertainment industry, archives, film festivals and related fields.

Prospective students should indicate their preferred track, study rationale and career goals as part of the Personal Statement at the time of application. The tracks are described below:

Integrated Degree Track (CMS-ID): The CMS-ID track is intended for those planning to continue into a doctoral program and who wish to build careers in University teaching and research.

The CMS-ID track emphasizes core area coursework in film and media history, theory and analysis as a preparation and foundation for doctoral study (at UCLA or another institution). This academically rigorous program is designed to move students into doctoral work after one year; however students can extend their studies for up to seven quarters.

Successful completion of at least nine courses is necessary to fulfill requirements of the CMS-ID M.A. degree. Four core courses are required, including a Capstone Seminar, which will produce a substantial research paper as the culminating project for the degree. The remaining five elective courses are elective seminars. Of the five electives, one must be in the area of Media History, one in Cinema and Media Theory, and two must be from outside the Cinema and Media Studies area, but within the Department of Film, Television and Digital Media. These courses allow students to firsthand experience in the practical areas of Film Production, Screenwriting, Producing and Animation.

Select, highly qualified applicants to the CMS-ID track may be directly admitted to a combined M.A./Ph.D. degree at their time of application to the CMS-ID M.A. program. Students admitted to the combined M.A./Ph.D. degree will be funded for five years of study and are guaranteed admission into the doctoral program at UCLA, pending satisfactory completion of the M.A.

Students admitted to the CMS-ID track, but who do not qualify for the combined M.A./Ph.D. degree at the time of initial application, are invited to apply for admission to Ph.D. program after completing at least one quarter of M.A. study. Students must adhere to posted Ph.D. application deadlines for internal Ph.D. candidates and must satisfactorily complete requirements of the M.A. degree prior to commencing doctoral study.

Research Professions Track (CMS-RP): The CMS-RP track offers an M.A. degree for those seeking expertise in critical analysis and research in formal preparation for a range of emerging careers in public and professional fields. The CMS-RP track directly responds to the new interdisciplinary and intermedial nature of contemporary film, television and digital media and provides support for those interested in careers in film festivals/media programming, film/media criticism, media archives and media industries research.

Students in this track are encouraged to enroll in Proseminars, which are courses specifically tailored to building the skills necessary for work in the field and are highly encouraged to take advantage of our professional internship opportunities which capitalize on UCLA’s unique geographical position within the film and media industries in Southern California.

Successful completion of at least nine courses is necessary to fulfill requirements of the CMS-RP M.A. degree. Four core courses are required, including a Capstone Seminar which will produce a report on the experience in a Professional Internship or a research paper as the culminating project for the degree. The remaining five elective courses are elective seminars. Of the five electives, one must be in the area of Media History, one in Cinema and Media Theory, and two must be from outside the Cinema and Media Studies area, but within the Department of Film, Television and Digital Media. These courses allow students to firsthand experience in the practical areas of Film Production, Screenwriting, Producing and Animation.

The CMS-RP track is aimed primarily at students who do not currently intend to go on for the Ph.D. However, students in the CMS-RP program are not prohibited from applying to the Ph.D.. While possible to complete the CMS-RP track as a one year degree, students can extend their studies for up to seven quarters.

I. Area: M.A. Cinema and Media Studies (See sections I to V for all requirements)

II. Summary:The M.A. in Cinema and Media Studies has the following time-to-degree requirement: a minimum of four quarters; maximum of seven quarters. The minimum total units required to graduate is 36 units (nine courses). Five courses must be 200 level courses in film and/or television history, theory, and criticism. Of the Five Courses, four specific courses, FTV 200, 206C, 208B and 217A are required. All five of the graduate-level courses must be completed with a grade of B or better.

Only eight units of FTV 596A, B, C and 598 may be applied towards the total course requirement, and none of these may be applied towards the minimum graduate course requirement.

III. Courses:

A. Required Courses:

A minimum of nine courses is required for the M.A. degree, five of which must be 200 level courses in film and/or television history, theory and criticism. Of the five courses, four are required M.A. Core Courses and should be taken in the first year of residence:

• 200 BIBLIOGRAPHY AND METHODS OF RESEARCH IN FILM AND TELEVISION
• 206C AMERICAN MOTION PICTURE HISTORY
• 208B CLASSICAL FILM THEORY
• 217A TELEVISION HISTORY

Elective Courses: Three courses should be taken outside the M.A. program. At least two of these must be from other programs in the Department of Film, Television and Digital Media, in consultation with the M.A. advisor that is assigned to you. All students admitted to the M.A. program must demonstrate basic competence in the areas of scriptwriting, television production or film production. Normally, competence is demonstrated through coursework, which may be used to fulfill the non-Cinema & Media Studies course requirements. However, students may also petition to use prior work to demonstrate their basic competence. Prior work may not be used to fulfill M.A. course requirements.

Seminars vary from year to year, but are selected from the following list of courses:

• 201 MEDIA INDUSTRIES AND THE CULTURE OF PRODUCTION
• 202 MEDIA AUDIENCES AND THE CULTURE OF CONSUMPTION
• 203 FILM AND OTHER ARTS
• 204 VISUAL ANALYSIS
• 206A EUROPEAN FILM HISTORY
• 206B SELECTED TOPICS IN AMERICAN FILM HISTORY
• 206C AMERICAN FILM HISTORY**
• 207 EXPERIMENTAL FILM
• 208B CLASSICAL FILM THEORY **
• 208C CONTEMPORARY FILM THEORY
• 209A DOCUENTARY FILM
• 209B FICTIONAL FILM
• 209D ANIMATED FILM
• 217A AMERICAN TELEVISION HISTORY
• 217B SELECTED TOPICS IN AMERICAN TELEVISION HISTORY **
• 218 CULTURE, MEDIA AND SOCIETY
• 219 FILM AND SOCIETY
• 220 TELEVISION AND SOCIETY
• 221 FILM AUTHORS
• 222 FILM GENRES
• 223 VISUAL PERCEPTION
• 224 COMPUTER APPLICATIONS FOR FILM STUDY
• 225 VIDEOGAME THEORY
• 246 ELECTRONIC CULTURE
• 270 FILM CRITICISM
• 271 TELEVISION CRITICISM
• 276 NON WESTERN FILM
• 277 NARRATIVE STUDIES
• 298AB SPECIAL STUDIES (select classes must see Graduate Counselor)

** - Core classes for M.A. students only 

IV. Comprehensive Exam In order to earn an M.A. from the UCLA Department of Film, Television and Digital Media, students must satisfactorily complete a Comprehensive Examination. The M.A. Comprehensive Exam is a take-home exam that is given in the spring quarter only, generally in the sixth week. Candidates will have several days to complete the exam, which will be evaluated by the Cinema & Media Studies faculty.

Requirements

• Have at least a 3.0 GPA.
• Complete equivalent to a 4 year US Bachelor’s Degree.
• If you achieved a score of 100 or higher on the TOEFL iBT, or 7.5 or higher on the IELTS, the ESLPE requirement is waived.
• If you scored below 100 on the TOEFL iBT, or below 7.5 on the IELTS, you mustsit for the ESLPE upon arrival at UCLA and immediately enroll in any assigned English as a Second Language courses.
• Upload Unofficial copies of all Transcripts.
• Submit Three Letters of Recommendation
• Upload and Mail the Statement of Purpose.
• Upload and Mail a Resume/CV.
• Upload and Mail a sample of Scholarly Writing.
• Mail an Official copy of all Transcripts from each Undergraduate and Graduate institutions attended.
• Applicants must complete equivalent to a four-year U.S. Bachelor’s Degree. International students who hold three-year ordinary pass degrees, or who hold professional diplomas in accounting, business, librarianship, social work, physical education, health education and so on, or four-year degrees, diplomas or higher certificates from technical, vocational or post-secondary specialized schools are NOT eligible for graduate admission.
• U.S. immigration law requires that international applicants, if admitted, show documented evidence that sufficient funds to cover all tuition, fees, transportation, and living expenses are available for the first year of their studies at UCLA. This must be proven before a Certificate of Eligibility (I-20 or DS2019) for a visa can be issued. 

Want to improve your English level for admission?

Prepare for the program requirements with English Online by the British Council.

• ✔️ Flexible study schedule
• ✔️ Experienced teachers
• ✔️ Certificate upon completion

📘 Recommended for students with an IELTS level of 6.0 or below.

Enroll in the course

Scholarships

DREAM Act

For non-US Citizens or non-Permanent Residents who are approved to pay in-state tuition because they graduated from a high school in California; they will need to complete the California DREAM application by the March 2, 2017 deadline. The DREAM application can be accessed at https://dream.csac.ca.gov. If applying after March 2, please check with the Financial Aid Office for available funding opportunities. www.financialaid.ucla.edu