MA - Master of Arts Degree Syllabus & Subjects 2024

The MA syllabus focuses on academics and consists of theory and practical lessons, research projects, internships, and assignments. The syllabus and subjects for MA courses vary depending on the specialisation. For instance, the MA in Economics covers various kinds of subjects, including microeconomics, basic mathematical economics, Indian economic development and policy, and more. Subjects covered in the MA in Political Science include political sociology, political theory, critical analysis, ethics, and philosophy. 

Other MA subjects that are offered are: 

• Sociology: This includes the study of rural development, industrial sociology, general sociology, classical sociological theory, and perspectives on Indian society and culture. 
• History: Global, Indian, ancient, contemporary, and political as well as government history of India 
• Language Studies: English, Hindi, and other regional and foreign languages are studied in language studies.

The Master of Arts, or MA, is a two-year postgraduate programme that offers specialisation in a variety of subjects and humanities, languages, etc., depending on the candidate's preferences, including economics, geography, history, economics, math, sociology, and so forth. To apply for an MA programme, candidates must have completed 10+2 from a recognised institute with a minimum aggregate of 50% or higher. However, the MA admission is based on both entrance exams and academic merit. The MA course includes both core and elective subjects, which the candidate can choose based on their interests. Most MA syllabuses include classroom instruction, lectures, group discussions, field trips, and a required dissertation submission. Even so, MA Course Syllabus and MA Subjects differ by specialisation and vary by course. The MA course provides theoretical knowledge in various academic fields such as Psychology, Social Studies, Management, and Politics. Mainly, the MA syllabus covers a wide range of subjects including Novels, Economics, Politics, Sociology, Psychology, Fine Arts, History, Literature, and etc.

Also Read: Part Time Language Courses at DU

Read on to know more about MA course syllabus and subjects in detail!

For your ease, the details of the MA syllabus have been outlined below. 

The MA syllabus is an academically focused syllabus that includes assignments, internships, research projects, and theory and practical lessons. For each specialisation, there is a different MA course syllabus and curriculum. In the MA first year syllabus core subjects are taught. Students can select from a variety of elective course types in the MA second year syllabus. English, Bengali, History, Economics, Sociology, Political Science, Hindi, Philosophy, and others are some of the specialties offered in the MA course. 

The tables below will go over each Master of Arts course's specific topics and curriculum semester wise.

MA English Syllabus

MA Political Science Syllabus

The table below list semester wise MA Political Science Syllabus taught in the majority of India's best MA colleges.

MA Economics Syllabus 

Here is the detailed MA Economics Syllabus, as well as various optional subjects, listed below.

MA History Syllabus 

The table below listed the MA History Syllabus taught in various Indian colleges. 

Note: The final semester Syllabus focuses on state-specific history.

MA subjects taught in a course vary as per the specialization/stream selected by the student. Apart from this, slight variation in the MA syllabus can also be witnessed from one college to the other. Candidates can view the MA subjects that they would need to study as part of an MA course syllabus below:

MA Syllabus English

MA course syllabus English along with subjects has been added below. 

MA Syllabus French

Students can check MA Subjects French from the table below.

MA Syllabus German

Candidates planning to pursue a master degree in German language can check MA Syllabus German from the table below.

MA Syllabus Chinese/Mandarin

The Chinese or Mandarin MA syllabus along with the name of subjects has been added below. 

MA Syllabus Economics

Economics subject is opted by a large number of students. Students can go through the MA syllabus of economics below. 

MA Syllabus Econometrics

All the major subjects of econometrics have been added below.

MA Syllabus Political Science

MA syllabus for political science can be checked below. 

MA Syllabus Public Administration

MA Syllabus of Public Administration is also considered very helpful in the preparation of UPSC exams. Students can go through the syllabus below.

MA Syllabus International Relations

Students can check the MA syllabus for IR below. 

MA Syllabus Politics 

The major subjects for MA politics have been added below.

MA Syllabus History

The subjects included in MA History syllabus are added below.

MA Syllabus Philosophy

The subjects included in MA Philosophy syllabus are added below.

MA Syllabus of English and Comparative Literature

The subjects included in MA English and Comparative Literature syllabus are added below.

MA Syllabus of Anthropology

The subjects included in MA Anthropology syllabus are added below.

MA Syllabus of Social Work

The subjects included in MA Social Work syllabus are added below.

MA Syllabus of Social Work in Community Organization and Development Practice

The subjects included in MA Social Work in Community Organization and Development Practice syllabus are added below.

MA Syllabus of Linguistics

The subjects included in MA Linguistics syllabus are added below.

MA Syllabus of Archaeology

The subjects included in MA Archaeology syllabus are added below.

All MA subjects are taught in various specialisation courses, which help students in understanding the knowledge and pursuing a better PhD degree for future job opportunities.

The MA syllabus for subjects such as Literature, History, Fine Arts, Psychology, Sociology, Economy, Politics, Ethics, Novels, and so on taught in the MA course curriculum are required for postgraduates to expand their knowledge in theoretical and research aspects, which will benefit them to get a better scope in jobs in India and abroad on the basis of their skills. Furthermore, some MA subjects, such as Language, History, Education, Writing, Theory, and Philosophy, are related to the Arts and Humanities MA syllabus.

MA Core Subjects

• Communications
• Media
• Geography
• Linguistics
• Management
• Languages
• Politics
• Literature
• Education

MA Optional Subjects

Each college/university has some optional or elective courses from which you can choose the ones which to study in your MA course. These MA subjects are given some credits and are usually allocated in the MA second year syllabus of the course. 

MA programmes are available in a variety of domains. Given below are some of the popular specializations in MA course:

• MA Language (English, French, German, Hindi, Spanish, Chinese/ Mandarin, Greek, Japanese and Latin)
• MA Economics
• MA Political Science
• MA History
• MA Psychology
• MA Communication Studies
• MA Philosophy
• MA Archaeology
• MA Sociology
• MA Religious Studies
• MA Geography
• MA Literature
• MA Library & Information Science
• MA Linguistics
• MA Teaching Education
• MA International Relations

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The top NIRF-ranked MA colleges in India are listed below. 

Candidates can also look at Top Colleges in Delhi University (DU) Based on NIRF Ranking 2024 here!

There are over 5700 MA colleges in India. The remaining colleges are private and deemed colleges, making up 38% of the total number of colleges. India's top universities for master's degrees include Jawaharlal Nehru University and Lady Shri Ram College. The average course fee is in the range of INR 10,000 - INR 80,000. 

Below is a list of some of the top colleges for MA degrees:

Note: The fees mentioned above are subject to change.

The admissions syllabus for a specific MA course may differ from college to college. However, some of the most common subjects that must be studied are listed below. 
 

MA Mathematics Syllabus 

• Sequence and series, Elementary set theory, Finite, countable and uncountable sets, Real number system as a complete ordered field, Archimedean property
• Continuity, Uniform continuity, Intermediate value theorem, Differentiability, Mean value theorem, Maclaurin’s theorem and series, Taylor’s series.
• Sequences and series of functions, Riemann sums and Riemann integral, Improper integrals
• Monotonic functions, Types of discontinuity, Functions of several variables,Directional derivative, Partial derivative.
• Metric spaces, Completeness, Total boundedness, Separability, Compactness, Connectedness, Eigenvalues and eigenvectors of matrices, Cayley-Hamilton theorem
• Divisibility in Z, congruences, Chinese remainder theorem, Euler’s ?- function
• Groups, Subgroups, Normal subgroups, Quotient groups, Homomorphisms, Cyclic groups, Cayley’s theorem, Class equations, Sylow theorems
• Vector spaces, Subspaces, Linear dependence, Basis, Dimension, Algebra of linear transformations, Matrix representation of linear transformations, Change of basis, Inner product spaces, Orthonormal basis.
• Existence and Uniqueness of solutions of initial value problems for first order ordinary differential equations, singular solutions of first order ordinary differential equations,
• Lagrange and Charpit methods for solving first order PDEs, Cauchy problem for first order PDEs
• Numerical solutions of algebraic equation, Method of iteration and Newton-Raphson method, Rate of convergence
   

MA Comparative Indian Literature Syllabus

• Important authors of different Indian Languages including Sanskrit and the Indian writers in English
• Important texts and Literary Journals in Indian languages including Sanskrit.
• Important historical, literary and socio-cultural events of India
• Popular Indian and Western Literary theories 
   

MA Bengali Syllabus

Syllabus of UG Bengali prescribed in the University/College
 

MA Tamil Syllabus

Syllabus of UG Tamil prescribed in the University/College
 

MA Political Science Syllabus

• Political Theories and Philosophies
• Political Thinkers, Theorists, Philosophers and Scientists
• Indian Political History
• India's Foreign Policy
• International Relations Concepts and Theories
• Public Administration
• Comparative Politics 
   

MA Philosophy Syllabus

• Greek Philosophy: (Thales, Pythagoras, Heraclitus, Parmenides, Sophists, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle)
• Modern Western Philosophy: (Descartes, Spinoza, Leibnitz, Locke, Hume, Berkeley, Kant and Hegel)
• Classical Indian Philosophy: (Carvaka, Nyaya, Vaisesika, Sankhya, Yoga, Mimamsa, Vedanta, Jainism and Buddhism)
• Modern Indian Thought: (Gandhi, Vivekananda, Jyotiba Phule, Ambedkar, Aurobindo, and Radhakrishnan)
• Ethics: (Hedonism, Utilitarianism, Deontological ethics, Purusarthas, Dharma)
• Logic and Reasoning: (Square of opposition and types of inference etc.)

The MA syllabus and MA course subjects are structured into two categories, namely core and elective subjects. The course for the curriculum has been divided into many specializations, which have subjects consisting of an introduction to arts and humanities (language, political science, writing, economics, philosophy, media, drama).

Some of the MA course details are:

• 4 Semesters
• Core and Elective subjects
• Research and Thesis
• Projects/Assignments

The Master of Arts syllabus includes a variety of teaching methods and techniques that allow students in understanding the various topics covered in their classes. The following are some of the different teaching methodologies and techniques used in the Master of Arts degree course syllabus:

• Live Demo Sessions
• The emphasis of Practical and Theoretical Learning
• Guest Lectures, Seminars, and Workshop
• Group Assignment and Discussion
• Learning through Industrial Visit
• Research & Development

Master of Arts project topics are an excellent resource for researchers (Ph.D./MS) who want to finish innovative research and move forward with a doctorate programme, as well as students with backgrounds in the arts and humanities. Students can choose their Master of Arts project topics according to the subjects and syllabus of their specialisation, which will encourage them to learn more in order to finish the project. The following are some of the top Master of Arts project ideas:

• Human-Computer Interaction
• Third-wave Feminism
• New Religious Movements
• Economic Context of a Novel
• Human Cloning
• Time Travel

There are many course books and study material that your college will provide to score well in the semester end exam. The MA course subject books help undergraduates expand their knowledge and vision about multiple topics covered in their classes. They will be different for each specialization.

Following are few of the books that you must go through to perform well in the examinations: