MA in Russian Culture and the Arts (MARCA Petropolitana)

• St Petersburg in Russian Literature
  
• The Political Culture of the Russian Revolution
  
• Unofficial Late Soviet Culture
  

• Professional academic training plus diverse personal experience in Russian cultural life
  
• All instruction in English plus intensive Russian language classes (optional)

MARCA Petropolitana is a Master’s degree program offered to international students by the European University at Saint Petersburg. A leading graduate school in Russia, EUSP is world renowned for its groundbreaking research and excellence in teaching. The unique study opportunities provided by EUSP are complemented by the vibrant cultural and intellectual life of Russia’s ‘cultural capital’.

The applicants are required to hold a BA degree, or its equivalent, in one or more disciplines from a wide range of the humanities, area/cultural studies or social sciences: from linguistics to history, from art history to journalism and from philosophy to sociology. There is no Russian language prerequisite as the main curriculum is taught in English.

MARCA provides:

• Unique special courses in Russian/Soviet visual arts and architecture for graduate students in the humanities
• General courses in Russian and Soviet culture, literature, history and society with special emphasis on St. Petersburg and its cultural impact
• On-site classes in world-renowned museums — the Hermitage, the Russian Museum, the imperial residences, such as Peterhof, Tsarskoe Selo, Pavlovsk etc.
  
• Easy access to other cultural resources — libraries, archives, other museums, concert halls and theaters
  
• Lecturers with wide international experience from EUSP and other leading academic institutions — the Hermitage, the Institute of Russian Literature (Pushkinskii Dom), the Herzen University, etc.
  
• Joint classes with IMARES, the internationally recognized Master’s program in Russian and Eurasian studies.

WORKLOAD AND CREDITS

• Two semesters of 14-weeks each, 20 contact hours per week on average, plus dissertation writing period
  
• The choice of 3 to 5 subject courses per semester
  
• Each subject course carries 8 ECTS credits (4 US credits) and is taught for 4 academic hours per week plus homework. Delivered through lectures and seminar sessions, each course involves submitting one or two essays.
  
• Each student submits a Master’s dissertation (about 15,000 words)
  
• Russian language is taught for 8 hours per week in groups corresponding to proficiency level

COURSES

• Russian Avant-garde: Myths, Hypotheses, Facts
  
• Visual Images of the Russian Identity
  
• The Home of Russian Tsars: Palace, People, Collections
  
• Empire, State, Building: Architecture as a Mirror of Russian Politics
  
• From Icon to Avant-garde. A General Survey of Russian Art through the Centuries
  
• St. Petersburg in Russian Literature, 18th through 20th Century
  
• The Political Culture of the Russian Revolution
  
• Unofficial Late Soviet Culture
  
• Russian Media and Popular Culture
  
• West-East: Russian-European Relations in the Visual Arts: 18th to 20th Century
  
• St. Petersburg 100 years ago: A Portrait of the Imperial City before 1917

More courses in Russian politics, history and society are also available to MARCA students from the IMARES curriculum.

Optional course ‘Russian as a Second Language’ (RSL): up to 8 hours per week. Additional official evaluation is available if necessary.

LOGISTICS

EUSP provides visa and registration support. It also helps to lodge international students in Russian families or to rent separate apartments. Students use the library, computer facilities and other university services.