Are you curious about everyday life and the meanings people attach to it?
Do you enjoy questioning culturally shaped assumptions—including your own?
Would you like to explore culture through qualitative research and critical reflection?
Then Cultural Studies may be the perfect choice for you.
Cultural Studies (in German known as Kulturanthropologie) aims to analyse and understand the diversity of human life worlds. Drawing on European ethnology, folklore, cultural and social anthropology, media studies, and sociology, our program places a strong emphasis on everyday cultural practices and their historical and contemporary transformations. Our students critically examine how everyday life is shaped by an interplay of gender, sexuality, racism, social class and inequality, social milieus, age, regional belonging, ethnicity and nationalism, as well as imperialism and colonialism.
What will I learn in the program of study?
As a student of Cultural Studies, you will learn to:
- critically reflect on your own perspectives, norms, and values
- engage with diverse and sometimes conflicting systems of meaning
- understand the world from multiple viewpoints and in a new light
- think and work in an open-ended, reflective, and solution-oriented manner
- design and conduct qualitative research on complex cultural issues
- communicate your findings clearly and persuasively to academic and wider audiences.
The Master’s program in Cultural Studies at the University of Mainz places a strong emphasis on the integration of theory and hands-on research practice. A central element of the program are two group-based research-study projects, a distinctive feature of the German university system.
In these projects, students work collaboratively through all stages of scholarly research—from developing a research question and designing the methodology to conducting fieldwork, analysing data, and publishing or presenting the results. This prepares students to conduct an independent Master’s thesis and equips them with transferable research and teamwork skills.
Our MA students carry out engaged, reflexive and multimodal research. In recent years, research-study projects have explored topics such as migrant living environments in Mainz, Red Cross humanitarianism between the Global South and the Global North, and everyday working life in television and media production at the German public service television broadcaster ZDF.
These projects have resulted in innovative outputs, including a city tour, a series of video podcasts, and a published research text in collaboration with the Alameda Institute, UK. Beyond academic training, the projects place a strong emphasis on social justice, ethical research practices, and the development of sustainable relationships with local communities in Mainz and Rheinland-Palatinate.
MA students can spend up to two semesters abroad through the Erasmus+ and similar exchange programs. Our partner universities are spread across Europe, from Spain to Finland, Turkey to Ireland. With more than 20 options to choose from, study abroad is an essential component to understanding what the “European” really means in this research constellation. The University of Mainz also maintains university-wide partnerships for student exchanges in all corners of the globe.
The Student Council represents all students of Cultural Studies and acts as a mediator between the student body and the lecturers. We are available in an advisory capacity for questions or other concerns. You can reach us by email (fs-kulturanthropologie@uni-mainz.de) or on our Instagram account (fsr_kulturanthropologie_jgu). For updates and information, you can also subscribe to our mailing list.
The Student Council is elected at the beginning of each semester at a general assembly and represents you in the Central Student Councils’ Committee (ZeFaR). We are also responsible for planning and organising the introduction week and host a party once a semester where all students can gather and exchange ideas.
If you are interested in getting involved with the Student Council, please contact us!
For all advising cases, please use only the advising email address studienfachberatung-kaee@uni-mainz.de! Our advising team is happy to help with questions regarding:
- Subject content and degree programs at JGU
- Program structure and planning
- Recognition of study and examination achievements upon transfer between programs of study or higher education institutions
- Examination procedure
