PhD in Performance Studies - Native American Studies in Davis United States | University of California Davis

The Performance Studies Ph.D. program spans four to five years. During the initial two years, students gain foundational knowledge by selecting from diverse course options to establish their research focus. The curriculum mandates completing four out of nine core courses, including PFS 200 and three selections from PFS 265 A-D. Additional PFS 265 courses beyond the core offerings also fulfill requirements. Students must complete four out of five core performance studies courses plus one colloquium. The program structure combines seminars, practice-based research, and independent or collaborative studies, focusing on one or more of four key areas: Comparative Medias, Embodiments, Cultures/Ecologies, and History/Text. Courses are taught by faculty across HArCS departments, with specialized emphases available in areas like Performance & Practice, African American & African Studies, Critical Theory, Feminist Theory & Research, Native American Studies, Religious Studies, Science & Technology Studies, and Writing, Rhetoric & Composition Studies. A minimum of 60 units must be completed before the qualifying exam, with no more than 12 undergraduate units allowed without advisor approval.

The Native American Studies Designated Emphasis takes a hemispheric perspective on Indigenous peoples across the Americas, examining communities with ancestral ties to these lands. This distinctive approach considers both historical presence and contemporary displacement, centering Indigenous knowledge systems through Native voices and texts to explore survival strategies and cultural resilience developed over centuries.