Portfolio Program

Introduction

Graduate Portfolio Programs are opportunities for students to obtain credentials in a cross-disciplinary academic area of inquiry while they are completing the requirements for a master's or doctoral degree in a particular discipline. The concept of a portfolio program was developed to enrich the research experience, increase the breadth of training, and expand the scholarly credentials of graduate students. Visit the following web page for more information on the graduate portfolio programs offered at The University of Texas at Austin.

The Graduate Portfolio Program in Mexican American and Latina/o Studies provides graduate students with a credential that recognizes their work as they research Mexican American and Latina/o cultural practices, historical development, and socio-economic conditions. The portfolio program supplements the degree program a student is pursuing by providing a flexible structure for graduate work in Mexican American and Latina/o studies. The portfolio program is not a degree program; however, it allows graduate students to obtain a credential in a cross-disciplinary area of inquiry while completing the requirements for a master’s or doctoral degree in their home department.

Requirements

Prospective students must be newly admitted or currently enrolled in a graduate degree program at UT Austin with a minimum 3.00 grade-point average in order to participate in the Graduate Portfolio Program in Mexican American and Latina/o Studies.

Master’s students must complete either MAS 395M or MAS 395C and an additional 6 hours of graduate course work approved by MALS (i.e., 9 hours total). Master’s students must take one course from outside their home department to fulfill portfolio requirements.

Doctoral students must complete either MAS 395M or MAS 395C and an additional 9 hours of graduate coursework approved by MALS (i.e., 12 hours total). Doctoral students must take two courses from outside their home department to fulfill portfolio requirements.

Courses

Course work for the portfolio program must have at least 30% content in Mexican American and Latina/o studies. Courses may not be taken pass/fail or credit/no credit. No more than three-hours of conference course credit (i.e., MAS 382) will count towards the portfolio. Students should contact the Senior Academic Program Coordinator each semester to get information on MALS graduate course offerings.

If graduate students are unsure if a course contains at least 30% content in Mexican American and Latina/o studies, they are required to submit the syllabi for their courses, which will then be evaluated by the MALS Graduate Advisor for the required minimum content. The MALS Graduate Advisor reviews these courses individually for both relevant and substantial MALS content and will also audit for redundancy in content or assignments across the three required courses. Courses that do not contain the minimum 30% MALS course content or show redundancies will not count toward the portfolio.

Portfolio requirements are independent of the requirements for the graduate degree. However, with the approval of a student's supervising professor and graduate studies committee (in the student's home department), portfolio courses may be included in the program of work.

Graduate students are encouraged, but not required, to plan their thesis/report/dissertation on topics in Mexican American and Latina/o studies, and to include at least one member of the MALS GSC on their committee.

Current Portfolio Students can log course progress using this form.

Presentations

Portfolio students are required to participate in a MALS-hosted public forum, where they present their research before they complete their portfolio and graduate degree requirements. These presentations can be based on the work conducted for a master’s report or thesis or a doctoral dissertation. Students are contacted at the start of each semester to determine the schedule for these public forums.

Certification

Upon graduation, after the completion of degree and portfolio requirements, the Graduate School awards certification in the Graduate Portfolio in Mexican American and Latina/o Studies. This certification is noted on the student’s official transcript. Graduate students can earn the certification in this specific portfolio program only once in their graduate careers.

Graduating portfolio students are also recognized by MALS at our annual graduation ceremony.

Admissions

Students seeking admission to the Graduate Portfolio Program in Mexican American and Latina/o Studies may be newly admitted to the Graduate School or currently enrolled in a graduate program at UT Austin with a minimum 3.00 grade-point average. Applicants must submit the following items:

MALS Graduate Portfolio Application
One-Page Statement (outlining interests and goals in the Graduate Portfolio Program in Mexican American and Latina/o Studies)
Graduate Advisor Letter (from the home department advisor and on official letterhead approving the application to the graduate portfolio program)

The advisor letter can be sent via email to Luis Guevara at lvg@austin.utexas.edu.

For students who entered the CMAS Portfolio Program in Spring 2015 or earlier, please click here for the previous certification criteria.

Deadlines

Please note that there are three fixed annual deadlines for portfolio program applications:

October 15th
February 15th
May 15th

To receive full consideration, graduate students must apply to the portfolio program by the May 15th deadline during the third year of enrollment. However, if a student misses an application deadline, they can petition for admission on a case-by-case basis, subject to approval by the MALS Graduate Advisor.

Questions?

Questions regarding the Graduate Portfolio Program in Mexican American and Latina/o Studies, including the application process, should be directed to Luis Guevara at lvg@austin.utexas.edu.