BA/MA Shared-Credit Program

Shared-Credit Undergraduate/Graduate Degrees Program

The Shared-Credit Undergraduate/Graduate Degrees Program offers B.A. in Chicana and Chicano Studies students an accelerated route to earning both the B.A. and the Master of Arts (M.A.) in Chicana and Chicano Studies degrees. The program allows students to earn up to 18 credit hours of graduate coursework during their senior year, thereby completing both degrees in five years of study.

For more information, please contact Rebecca Martinez Baca, Coordinator of Graduate Programs at rjmarti716@unm.edu or the CCS Undergraduate Advisor, Dr. Laura Elena Belmonte at lbelmonte@unm.edu.

Admission Requirements

Interested students apply to the program during their Junior year, and will enter the program at the Fall semester of their Senior year. A nomination letter filled out and signed by a CCS faculty: this should be submitted to Dr. Laura Elena Belmonte (lbelmonte@unm.edu) no later than November 1st.

Once the student has submitted their nomination form, the deadline for the Shared-Credit Degrees Program application and associated materials is January 15.

Application to general graduate study at UNM is found online. Departmental requirements for the application to the Shared-Credit Degrees Program include:

  • Substantive letter of intent (3-5 pages, double-spaced type) which summarizes prior academic training and explains current academic and professional objectives. The letter of intent should focus on scholarly and research interests as related to the field of Chicana and Chicano Studies
  • Three letters of recommendation
  • A sample of recent written work (preferably academic), not to exceed 30 pages
  • Unofficial transcript(s) from each institution of post-secondary study

Admission to the graduate portion of the Shared-Credit Degrees Program is provisional until the undergraduate degree is awarded.

Program Requirements

During their Senior year and along with undergraduate study to complete the B.A., students must take CCS 560 and 580 in the Fall semester and CCS 552 and one additional graduate-level seminar in the Spring semester (12 credit hours). Students may elect to complete up to 6 additional courses (6 credit hours) at the graduate-level during their Senior year. Students must receive a grade of "B" or better to receive graduate credit in these courses. The B.A. in Chicana and Chicano Studies will be awarded after all remaining undergraduate degree requirements are fulfilled. Students begin the M.A. program the semester immediately following conferral of the undergraduate degree.

As graduate students, participants must continue completion of requirements for the M.A. program, which will include the graduate coursework previously taken during their Senior-year undergraduate study. CCS 551, 590, (597 or 599), and up to three additional graduate-level seminars must be taken during this year. The student will complete the M.A. in Chicana and Chicano Studies under Plan I (thesis), Plan II (non-thesis), and Plan III (coursework only) options, according to regulations set forth in the Graduate Program section of this Catalog. 

Additional Information

Students who either choose not to complete or are removed from the graduate portion of the program are awarded the undergraduate degree when all undergraduate requirements are met. See the Chicana and Chicano Studies: Graduate Program section of this Catalog for graduate degree and course information.