Master's degree African Studies (MA)

Exhibitions are regularly organised in the corridor of the institute.

Exhibitions are regularly organised in the corridor of the institute. © Carl-Philipp Bodenstein

The two year Master’s degree programme builds on the knowledge and skills gained in the Bachelor’s degree programme of African studies, and serves to deepen the knowledge in the special field (linguistics, history and societies or literary studies). The Master’s degree programme provides the development of skills that may be applied in various occupational fields:

  • Academia: research and teaching at university or other academic institutions 
  • Culture: e.g. archives, libraries, museums, tourism, media 
  • Development cooperation: planification, support and evaluation of humanitarian projects (project management, monitoring) of non-governmental or governmental organisations in Austria or abroad (e.g. NGOs, ministry of foreign affairs, EU, UN)
  • International committees: research, administrative work or politics
  • Diplomatic service: only in combination with the required additional qualifications

 

General recommendations
 A good command of German is a prerequisite to follow most of the courses at the department of African Studies. However, the majoritiy of the academic literature is not provided in this language. This is why a good command of English is also required. In addition, the command of French or of another European language may be an asset. Students are encouraged to complete parts of their studies abroad in order to acquire additional qualifications. At the beginning of every semester, an information event is hosted to facilitate the start for first-year students by providing the possibility to meet lecturers and fellow students, as well as to receive support in how to structure their studies. 

Admission to the Master's degree programme

There are two entry requirements for the Master's degree programme:

  1. A Bachelor's degree (Bakkalaureat or Diplom respectively) in an academic field of relevance for African Studies.
    The admission procedure is determined by the major subject of your Bachelor's degree (African Studies or another relevant field) and by the institution that awarded it (University of Vienna or other university).
    If your degree mainly, but not fully corresponds to the Bachelor’s degree of African Studies of the University of Vienna, you may have to complete up to 30 additional ECTS during your Master’s degree studies. We highly recommend to complete the required courses at the beginning of your studies in order to reduce the risk of failure in Master's degree courses due to the lack of prerequisite knowledge.
    The admission period for the winter semester lasts from mid-June to the beginning of September.
    The admission period for the summer semester: end of December to beginning of February
    Information on Master programmes (University of Vienna website)

  2. A proficient command of German is required as most courses are taught in this language.
    Information on Proof of German language proficiency (University of Vienna website).

Admission with a degree from the University of Vienna

  • Admission with a Bachelor's degree in African Studies: the admission to the Master's degree is possible on u:space as early as the day of graduation. Information on admission to Master's programmes with a degree from the University of Vienna (University of Vienna website)(Only in german)
  • Admission without stipulations with a degree in another subject than African Studies (e.g. degree in History, Linguistics, Comparative Literature, Development Studies, Social and Cultural Anthropology or Political Science):
  • Admission with stipulations (e.g. degree in  Oriental Studies or Sociology):  the student needs to complete 6 ECTS:
    • African Linguistics: regional and thematic core area, 2 lectures, Code: SAS 2
    • African Literary Studies: regional and thematic core area, 2 lectures, Code: SAL
    • African History and Societies: regional history , 2 lectures, Code: SAG

Admission with a degree from an Austrian university

Admission without stipulations with a degree in the following subjects: History, Linguistics, Comparative Literature, Social and Cultural Anthropology, Political Science.

Admission with a degree from an institution within the EU

Admission without stipulations: Bachelor's degree in a subject with the specification "Africa/African"

Bachelor's degrees in a subject without the specification "Africa/African" need to be checked individually by the department's directorate of studies. Please refer to our section Recognition of Courses/Anerkennungen (Department website) for further details.

Students who do not speak German as a mother tongue are required to prove their knowledge of German, as most courses are taught in this language. The minimum language requirement is C1.
Information on Proof of German language proficiency (University of Vienna website).

Admission with a degree from institutions of non-EU/EEA countries

Each application has to be checked individually by the department's directorate of studies. Please see our section Recognition of Courses/Anerkennungen (Department website) for further details.

Students who do not speak German as a mother tongue are required to prove their knowledge of German, as most courses are taught in this language. The minimum language requirement is C1.
Information on Proof of German language proficiency (University of Vienna website).

 Academic papers

All students of the University of Vienna are encouraged to read the University's policy on plagiarism, copyright & use of pictures and data protection.

Information on copyright & use of pictures (Studienpräses Website, in German)
Information on data protection in social science research (Studienpräses Website, in German)

Information on plagiarism (Youtube Video by the office of the Studienpräses, in German)

Graduation MA

Check your electronic record of exams to make sure that all services are assigned to the correct modules and that there are no surplus services in modules. You can use the form Prüfungspass/Record of examinations - Master African Studies (in German) (Word) for comparison. In case of any uncertainties or changes, please contact the StudiesServiceUnit ("StudienServiceStelle") by e-mail: service.spl14@unvie.ac.at.

The Master's thesis' grade can only be entered after the StudiesServiceUnit has confirmed your transcript of records (aka Sammelzeugnis). For this purpose, send your current and checked transcript of records by e-mail with the subject "Application for MA degree [name] [matriculation number]" to service.spl14@unvie.ac.at.

ATTENTION: The application may only be submitted via your u:account [aMatrikelnummer@unet.univie.ac.at]. Submissions from private mail addresses will not be processed.

After the StudiesServiceUnit has confirmed and entered the Master's thesis' grade, you can register for the final exam/defensio directly via the Contact form of the StudiesServiceCenter Philological and Cultural Studies. For administrative reasons, two weeks at least are needed between the registration and the examination.