The American Studies program in the IU School of Liberal Arts offers a research doctorate designed for many kinds of students, including working professionals and lifelong learners, who want to examine topics in American life through an interdisciplinary lens. This program empowers you to apply academic insight to real-world problems—helping you propel your career growth, expand your leadership capabilities, and build your capacity to drive change. For those starting their journey, an undergraduate minor is available.
American Studies Program
Choose your future in Liberal Arts
Explore admissions, connect with advisors, and see what makes Liberal Arts Indy the perfect place to begin your next chapter. Learn how to apply now.
Why choose American Studies?
American Studies draws from the humanities and social sciences to analyze the complexities of American culture, institutions, and experiences. By inviting public voices into academic scholarship, the field has built a rich tradition of bridging critique and action in service of the public good.
Ph.D. in American Studies
The American Studies Ph.D. program is designed for careers primarily beyond academia. Whether you aspire to lead cultural institutions, shape public policy, work in private industry, or advance the pubilc good, this degree equips you with the knowledge and skills to analyze and address contemporary challenges in ways that only a research-driven liberal arts doctoral program can.
In the American Studies program, you’ll take courses from faculty across multiple disciplines to examine and critique a U.S.-based “American experience,” broadly defined. This interdisciplinary approach allows you to explore your research interests deeply and ensures your work reflects real-world complexity.
In this program, you'll also have the flexibility to balance professional commitments while advancing your academic and career goals, with options to attend full-time or part-time. While a background in the liberal arts can be helpful, we welcome students from a variety of academic and professional paths, and no specific advanced degree is required.
In addition to your studies, you will complete an internship with an Indianapolis-area organization, collaborating with civic agencies, nonprofits, and businesses to tackle pressing social challenges. Often, your applied dissertation emerges from real-world questions encountered during this experience, ensuring your research drives meaningful change.
Finally, our emphasis on public engagement ensures that your scholarship doesn’t stay confined to the university—it becomes a tool for societal transformation.
Whether a full-time or part-time doctoral student, American Studies program will give you the opportunity to train for a career outside of higher education. You'll complete an internship that places you in a nonprofit, for-profit, or government agency in the Indianapolis area to engage in the substantive work of the organization.
For full-time students, the program will collaborate with the organization to help cover costs associated with your graduate training, including health insurance and monthly stipends. Your internship will also serve as part of the research for your dissertation, so it must be guided by your research committee to ensure academic rigor and relevance.
In the American Studies program, you're encouraged to investigate problems connected with your internship; therefore, your final product will be an applied dissertation. This dissertation will contribute to the scholarly literature in your concentration area and must be an original contribution to knowledge with high academic merit.
Your research should demonstrate critical thinking, creativity, and the ability to synthesize ideas. You'll write your dissertation under the guidance of a research director and a research committee. It cannot simply be a collection of unrelated published papers—there must be a clear, logical connection between all components, integrated in a coherent and rational way.
Your research committee will determine how much previously published material may be included in your dissertation and what kind of content is appropriate. Ultimately, it's your responsibility to produce a dissertation that reflects both scholarly excellence and practical relevance.
Past dissertation examples include examining issues related to clinical ethics, complex organizations, management and leadership, organizational narratives, organizational sustainability, and urban development.
American Studies minor
The minor in American Studies for undergraduate students enables you to examine the American experience more broadly than if you were studying a single discipline. Through your coursework, you will be challenged to think seriously about issues of American life as you interact with communities in and around Indianapolis. You will learn how to put the chaos of American life in context. As a result, you can find constructive ways to discuss and work through the problems of your communities and workplaces.
Career opportunities
Your career possibilities with an American Studies education are as wide-ranging as the topics you’ll explore. Graduates of the program are independent consultants, leadership coaches, authors, program officers, executive directors, and CEOs in both nonprofit and for-profit sectors. Others have chosen to shape the future of higher education as university faculty or administrators.
Whatever path you choose, this program equips you to lead with insight, drive meaningful change, and thrive in a role that reflects your passion and purpose.
More information
For more information, please contact the American Studies program director, Dr. Raymond Haberski.
Explore the degree and minor
Undergraduate minors
IU School of Liberal Arts students are not required to complete a minor, but it can be a way to pursue a secondary interest. Any IU Indy student is invited to earn a minor in the IU School of Liberal Arts.
Minor in American Studies
Graduate studies
IU School of Liberal Arts offers graduate programs to help you continue your education, develop specialized experience, and advance in—or even change—your career.
Graduate Studies in American StudiesGet involved
College is more than going to class and taking exams. It’s about discovering who you are, building connections, and having fun along the way. In other words, get involved!
Student Organizations
Level up your college experience:
- Meet awesome people who share your interests
- Grow your leadership skills
- Stand out on campus and in the community
- Make real friends and great college memories
- Leave your mark
Internships & Jobs
Living and learning in Indianapolis means you’re surrounded by real-world opportunities. You’ll gain more experience, connections, and confidence when it’s time to land that first job.
Student support and resources
Everything you need to thrive academically, intellectually, and personally during your time at the IU School of Liberal Arts.