The Graduate Program in Cultural Studies at UC Davis emphasizes an interdisciplinary approach to research that includes intersectional analyses of class, gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality, nation, transnationalism, postcolonialism, and related areas of inquiry. The UC Davis program cuts across the humanities, social sciences, and agricultural and environmental studies and draws faculty from a wide range of disciplines and interests. Or, with the close guidance and supervision of a faculty committee, students may create unique emphasis areas. The M.A. program draws primarily on existing courses in participating departments where research and research metholologies are of primary concern. Its focus is on producing analyses of sport, health, leisure, and physical activity.
Graduates often go on to doctoral study in sport and leisure studies or a related cultural field.
Students take courses offered by the department and by other departments, such as American Studies, Communication Studies, Women's Studies, History, Psychology, and Sociology. Students involved do not spend more than one semester in any one country. Students can use the full resources of UT, including the Population Research Center, the Center for Criminology and Criminal Justice Research, the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, and several other libraries, centers, and resources.