In general, grad schools offering programs in critical studies see

the MA only as a point on the path to a PhD. Anyone who states they

are ONLY pursuing an MA will be a second class citizen, not get a

graduate assistantship, etc. So if all you want is an MA, tell them

you're pursuing a PhD and just drop out once you pass the MA. One

might ask why you are pursuing an MA? If you think you'll seek any

sort of academic or research career, you'll need a doctorate... E.g

MAs are worth almost nothing in the marketplace, not that PhDs are

worth that much more given the glut of students gaining advanced

degrees.



So, it's a competitive world, and if you're serious about grad

school, you should try to get into one of the top programs. You can

tell what these are by looking at the Job Tracks section in Lingua

Franca magazine, and seeing what schools get a lot of graduates hired

to academic posts.



Perhaps even more important than the overall rep of the program is

finding a professor who does work that interests you, and might serve

as a mentor, or intellectual guiding light. Presumably you've read

some film scholarship if you're interested in grad school in the

area, and you have found some books or essays you really like that

were written by professors. Look to the schools where they teach.



Finally, talk to your undergraduate professors. They shoudl know

something about graduate schools, and you also want to be able to

make use of their connections in terms of getting recommendations

that may help you get admitted.







>I'm applying for my MA in Film Studies this fall, and I was wondering if there

>is any sort of definitive list of film studies departments (primarily in the

>US & Canada) lurking somewhere on the web. As of yet, I seem unable to locate

>any. There's lots on production, but what about the critical side?



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Online resources for film/TV studies may be found at ScreenSite

http://www.tcf.ua.edu/ScreenSite