Last year, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences introduced a new program—the Master of Arts in Comparative Humanities, which “explores major themes of human experience using comparative and cross-cultural approaches,” according to the description on the MACH website.

However, starting this year, students can now pursue a special combined bachelor’s and master’s track specifically for MACH. Current undergraduate students in the program spend their senior year in the MACH program and then earn a master’s degree with the completion of eight courses and a capstone project—earning two degrees within four years. Prof. David Powelstock (GRALL) serves as the director of graduate studies for MACH. According to the MACH website, students work with an adviser and the program director to build “a coherent curriculum that bridges cultures and disciplines.”

The one-year program allows students to take an interdisciplinary and trans-regional approach to studying a range of fields that select Brandeis professors already teach, such as philosophy, history or fine arts. According the program website, MACH “facilitates the development of a multi-faceted approach to language, literature, and culture.”

Courses for MACH are drawn from departments relevant to the mission of the program, such as African and Afro-American Studies, Medieval and Renaissance Studies, South Asian Studies and Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies. The 29 affiliated faculty members offer a wide range of expertise that demonstrate the interdisciplinary aspectsof MACH. Examples include Dowden’s knowledge of 20th century German literature, Prof. Andrew Koh’s (CLAS) study of cross-cultural contact and Prof. Susan Lanser’s (ENG) work that includes sexuality studies and feminist writers.

According to the program website, MACH uses resources such as the Rose Art Museum, Boston’s numerous museums, close mentoring relationships with faculty, as well as course offerings from the rest of the School of Humanities.

The program culminates in a year-end symposium where students present their capstone projects to peers and faculty, bringing a collaborative final experience to the program.

The capstone project can be a standard research paper, but students are also allowed to take on more untraditional projects, such as a curricular plan or multimedia presentation, according to the MACH website.

Masters of Humanities are popular programs at many universities; however, the comparative aspect of Brandeis’ program represents the growing interest in comparative and interdisciplinary studies.