The degree requires a minimum of 60 hours of specialized training and graduate seminars. Most M.F.A. candidates acquire 72 to 90 hours over a three-year residency, including summer internships, British Studies, or Southern Arena Theatre. The Performance Emphasis Students in the Performance program are expected to fulfill the demands of the curriculum. Beyond that, graduate students serve as models of decorum for the undergraduate students. The specific requirements for artistic achievement are based on the standards of the National Association of Schools of Theatre and on observable professional standards.
Students enter with a wide range of skills and challenges.
The M.F.A. Performance program at USM is designed to assist students diagnostically, to strengthen their foundations, and to build tools and skills that lead to artistry at the terminal degree level. The size of our program allows for both individualized attention and a real-world challenge, competition, and variety. To offer the diversity and depth of course offerings that have earned Southern Miss its national accreditation, some courses are scheduled once every year or every other year. Students are evaluated each semester of the first year by the performance faculty. When a student reaches the skills standards for full admission to M.F.A. candidacy, three faculty members are selected by the student to serve as the student's M.F.A. Committee, guiding the student through course selection, evaluation, creative projects and their written components, and career planning.