Labor Studies

Overview

The Labor Studies program of the University of Massachusetts Amherst puts you right at the center of the issues and debates around labor, work, and social justice. Labor is changing. As the attacks on labor have intensified, unions have been taking bold new directions. They have also combined efforts with a wide variety of alt-labor organizations, building strong connections with new social movements in broad-based coalitions for justice. Become one of our graduates who is at the forefront of many of these exciting developments to build justice and dignity in the workplace and the community, here and abroad.

We provide skills that activists need — hands-on skills in organizing, strategic corporate research, and bargaining — as well as the theory and analytical frameworks to think critically about issues facing working people and their movements today. Our curriculum provides an important grounding in the economic, political, and legal thinking as we interrogate issues around race, immigration, gender, and the working class in a global economy.

How the New Accelerated Degree Works

Once accepted, students will take three (3) courses in their first Fall semester. During the winter break, they will attend two (2) graduate courses in our ten-day intensive January session, along with students in our limited residency (ULA) program. They will then complete the paper for these courses during the Spring semester. They will also enroll for two (2) classes in the Spring semester. Finally, students complete their course requirements by taking two (2) classes in a ten-day intensive July session. The papers for July courses are due at the end of the Fall semester, with students receiving their degree the following February. After students complete their July session coursework, they could obtain an internship, work on research, or begin working. Students may be able to extend their studies beyond the accelerated time-frame.