Master of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies

XE: Experimental Humanities & Social Engagement at NYU’s Graduate School of Arts & Science offers a dynamic Master of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies for students whose research interests are best explored at the intersection of academic disciplines, creative practice, and social action.

Guided by dedicated faculty advisors, XE students design their own curriculum. XE offers a range of interdisciplinary seminars, such as “Decolonizing the Digital,” “Genre Trouble: Monstrous Texts & Experiments in Writing,” “Climate Justice,” “The Copy: Media and the Culture of Replication,” and “Aesthetics of Decline.” These courses cover topics such as: social and environmental justice, media studies, literary theory, art and activism, gender and sexuality studies, creative writing, cultural anthropology, and international human rights. Additionally, half of an XE student’s courses can be taken across NYU departments, allowing students to expand and deepen their research. The XE program culminates in a final project where students can produce an academic research paper or a creative project, such as a collection of essays, a film, a photographic portfolio, a graphic novel, a musical composition, a website, or a curriculum.

XE’s small, vibrant, student-focused community draws on NYU’s vast educational resources and NYC’s creative energies. Faculty incorporate archives, galleries, and events across New York City into their classes and XE hosts a roster of public programs every semester featuring guest lecturers and artists. Students also host regular events, oversee a peer-reviewed student journal, and intern at institutions such as Oxford University Press, Motto Pictures, and the American Museum of Natural History.

Many students go on to enroll in top-tier doctoral programs in English, art history, anthropology, and history. Alumni also work in advertising, arts administration, library science, communications, consulting, law, and policy at institutions such as the Brooklyn Museum, Memorial Sloan Kettering, Saatchi & Saatchi, and the NYC Department of Education.

The fall 2024 priority application deadline is April 1, 2024. All new students entering the program will receive the Draper Scholarship, which covers 35 percent of the cost of tuition. For more information, attend a virtual open house on March 25, 2024 from 12–1pm ET, or visit here.