Accelerated Master's Degree in Southern Studies
This accelerated program lets undergraduate students begin taking graduate-level courses during their final years of undergrad, saving time and money while deepening expertise and advancing careers sooner.
Current UM Students: Get a Head Start on Your Master's Degree in Southern Studies
Undergraduate students at UM that are interested in graduate study in Southern Studies can get a head start through the Accelerated Master’s Degree Program.
Undergraduate students that would like to qualify for the Accelerated Master's Degree Program must meet the following requirements:
- 3.5 minimum GPA overall
- 90 completed credit hours as an undergraduate
Number of credit hours a student can earn towards the graduate degree while completing their undergraduate studies:
- 15 credit hours
Courses undergraduate students in the Accelerated Master's Degree Program can take to earn credit towards the graduate degree:
- SSTU 5830: Fieldwork and Oral History
- SSTU 5840: Documentary Photography
- SSTU 5850 Anthropological Films
- SSTU 5860: The Southern Environment
- SSTU 5870: Documenting the South in Film
- SSTU 5550: Foodways and Southern Culture
- SSTU 5560: Cultural Heritage Tourism
- SSTU 5600: Oral History of Southern Social Movements
- SSTU 5999A: Special Topics
- SSTU 5999B: Special Topics
- SSTU 5999C: Special Topics
Remember: For students who participated in the accelerated program prior to fall of 2026, 500-level courses for graduate credit required the student to reserve the course for graduate credit. A student who did not do so will be unable to use the 500-level course for the graduate degree and it will be considered the same as a course between 5000 and 5499 in the new course-numbering system.
Students enrolled for the graduate credit in a 5500- to 5999-level course must complete the graduate work. Should they decide they do not wish to do so, they need to work with the instructor, their dean's office, and the Registrar to change their enrollment to the appropriate undergraduate course number. Otherwise, they will be graded based on the criteria for the graduate course number.
Meet the Graduate Program Coordinator
If you have any questions about the Accelerated Master's Degree in Southern Studies, don't hesitate to reach out!
Simone Delerme
Professor of Anthropology and McMullan Professor of Southern Studies