Russian and Slavic Studies
Web: as.nyu.edu/russianslavic
Email: gsas.russian.and.slavic@nyu.edu
Degrees and Fields of Study
M.A.
- Russian and Slavic Studies
- Russian and Slavic Studies/International Relations
Joint M.A.
- Russian and Slavic Studies/Journalism
The department offers an interdisciplinary Ph.D. opportunity, the Interdisciplinary Specialization in Russian (ISR). Applicants apply for admission to the Ph.D. program in either the Department of Comparative Literature or the Department of History, expressing interest in ISR in the personal statement. For application deadlines, refer to their requirements and deadlines pages.
Note: The field of study descriptions may not exactly match the actual program name on the degree that is conferred. Please refer to the GSAS Bulletin section Degree and Certificate Programs as Registered by the New York State Education Department for the actual program name and degree conferred.
Application Deadlines
M.A.
- February 15: Fall admission with consideration for the Stephen Cohen Fellowship
- April 15: Fall admission without fellowship consideration
- November 1: Spring
Joint M.A.
- January 4, fall only admission
Late applications are considered.
All application materials must be received by 5 p.m. eastern time on the deadline date. If an application deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal U.S. holiday, then the next business day will be the deadline date.
Application Requirements for Russian and Slavic Studies
All applicants to the Graduate School of Arts and Science (GSAS) are required to submit a complete application for admission. A complete application includes the online application, academic transcripts, test scores (if required), letters of recommendation, a résumé or curriculum vitae, a Statement of Academic Purpose, and an application fee. Applicants also have the option of providing a short Personal History essay. Please refer to the Instructions section of the online application. In addition, the department specifically requires the following:
GRE (Russian and Slavic Studies): GRE general test not required. Please do not send us GRE test scores. If you do, while the Graduate School will notify you that the scores were received, the scores will not be reviewed or considered by the department's Admissions Committee.
GRE (Russian and Slavic Studies/International Relations and Russian and Slavic Studies/Journalism): The GRE general test requirement is suspended for fall 2021 due to COVID-19. Please do not send us GRE test scores. If you do, the scores will not be reviewed or considered by the department's Admissions Committee. In subsequent terms, the general test is required.
TOEFL or IELTS (all programs): Either the TOEFL or the IELTS is required of all applicants who are not native English speakers or who do not have a bachelor's or master's degree from an institution where the language of instruction is English. See test score requirements.
Statement of Academic Purpose (all programs except Joint M.A. in Russian and Slavic Studies/Journalism): In a concisely written statement, please describe your past and present work as it relates to your intended field of study, your educational objectives, and your career goals. In addition, please include your intellectual and professional reasons for choosing your field of study and why your studies/research can best be done at the Graduate School of Arts and Science at NYU. The statement should not exceed two double-spaced pages.
Statement of Academic Purpose (Joint M.A. in Russian and Slavic Studies/Journalism): In addition to the Statement of Academic Purpose instructions above, Journalism requires applicants to write a personal essay. The essay is an extremely important part of the application, so treat it accordingly. The essay should be 1,000 to 1,500 words in length. In addition, all applicants must submit at least three samples of their work, whether published or not.
The goal of the essay is to give the Admissions Committee a concrete sense of who you are as someone who aspires to a career as a professional journalist, writing and reporting for print, online or broadcast media. It should address the following questions: What do you expect to get from the program? What aspects of your experience are most relevant to your interest in journalism? Tell us about your background--your academic degree, intellectual interests, work experience, life experience, and other sources of inspiration--and explain how this background informs what you want to do as a journalist.
Applicants should also describe their existing "body of work" as a journalist, critic or just someone who writes. We are mostly interested in published work, but if you have yet to break into print, then tell us what kind of writing you have done. What have been your major themes? What issues and phenomena most engage you? What publications do you read regularly and why? Which journalists do you admire, which do you dislike, and which have influenced you?
Please append to your essay a brief statement of your plans for financing your graduate work. This statement must be included, whether or not you are applying for financial aid.
Writing Sample (All Applicants): A writing sample is required. It should be an example of your strongest academic writing, preferably a paper written for an undergraduate course that demonstrates your ability to construct a coherent argument. The paper should be 5-20 double-spaced pages.
Writing Sample (Joint M.A. in Russian and Slavic Studies/Journalism Applicants): Two writing samples are required. In addition to the writing sample described above for all applicants, one additional writing sample is required for Journalism. It should represent your aptitude for journalism. A clip from your college newspaper, a personal essay, academic research paper, and short fiction are all acceptable.
The Graduate School of Arts and Science reserves the right to change this information at any time. This document supersedes all previous versions.
Last updated July 28, 2020.