The one-year MA in Global Studies (MAGS) Program at Bard College prepares students to address the 21st century’s most pressing global problems.
Tour of the United Nations headquarters in Manhattan.
About the Program
Students can choose to spend the full year in New York City, or to begin the program in Vienna, Austria with Central European University. All students spend the second semester in New York City, completing rigorous elective coursework and a capstone project, as well as, most importantly, an internship with an organization working on global affairs. By emphasizing critical thinking, writing, and experiential learning, the program will educate the next generation of global citizens to be actively engaged in the transnational public sphere.
Professional Internships
The centerpiece of the MA in Global Studies experience is the internship, where students get an on-the-ground perspective on how a variety of civil society and private global actors address transnational problems. Whether it’s with an existing internship partner or at an organization new to our network, students are connected to high-profile and substantive internships in New York City.
Program Overview
Students complete 30 credits during the one-year MA program, including coursework on the form and function of the global political order, the histories and evolution of specific global problems and how groups and individuals have attempted to address them. Seminars range from skill-based courses that prepare students to enter the workforce, to rigorous elective coursework on a range of global events and issues.
Starting Fall 2026: New Internship Timeline (Track Dependent)
Starting this Fall, students pursuing the fully US-based (NYC Track) program will now complete their internships during the Fall semester (instead of during the Spring as has taken place historically). NYC Track students will work with program staff during the summer before begining the program to identify, apply to, and secure internships before their arrival for the Fall semester. Students in this track will thus be able to kickstart their career networking a semester earlier, and be able to better focus their efforts during the Spring semester on their Capstone Projects and other coursework.
Students in the Dual MA (CEU Track) program will continue through the traditional sequence of requirements after completing the first semester in Vienna, with the internship and coursework coinciding in NYC during the Spring semester, in addition to the completion of the Capstone Project.
Students in the Dual MA (CEU Track) program will continue through the traditional sequence of requirements after completing the first semester in Vienna, with the internship and coursework coinciding in NYC during the Spring semester, in addition to the completion of the Capstone Project.