Dual Degree Programs
A dual degree consists of two master's degrees awarded for work done in distinct disciplines by two schools of Tufts University, or Boston College. UEP has dual degree programs with: Fletcher School, School of Nutrition Science and Policy, and Boston College Law School.
Students electing a dual degree option must be accepted by both departments/school and are expected to meet the requirements set by each program. Prospective students wishing to pursue a dual degree must submit a separate application for each school and select the dual degree option on each application.
Students wishing to add a joint or dual degree after having started the MA/MS UEP program should contact their advisors for guidance.
Dual Degrees
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The Fletcher School offers a broad program of professional education in international affairs. Its curriculum covers international law and organization, diplomatic history and international political relations, international economic relations, and international political institutions and systems. UEP and the Fletcher School offer a dual-degree program focusing on international environmental policy. This program provides an opportunity for a select number of highly qualified students to earn both a Master of Arts in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning and a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy (MALD) at the Fletcher School in three years. Each degree normally requires two years. The dual-degree program responds to growing student and professional demand for graduate education in international environmental policy. It is designed to prepare students for careers in economic and development institutions, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations concerned with international problems affecting the physical environment such as acid rain, global warming, offshore oil drilling, soil erosion, deforestation, biodiversity, waterways pollution, and chemical contamination.
Interested students must submit separate applications to each school indicating a preference for the dual degree. Each school reviews candidates based on its own requirements and criteria. The candidate's admission to UEP is not affected by the decision of the Fletcher School. Tuition and fees will be assessed and paid to each school based on the semester of enrollment. Students will be eligible for financial assistance based on current policies at each school. For detailed information on the requirements for the Fletcher MALD, please contact the Fletcher School. -
Are you a Master of Science student at the Friedman School who is interested in ways that food policy fits into broader areas of public policy, especially community development? Are you a student in the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning who wants to apply your policy skills to important issues in agriculture, food systems, and the environment? This program is perfect for you if your interest lay at the intersection of food production and supply, and themes such as sustainable agriculture, food system planning, and food policy. Students pursuing this program will deepen their knowledge of policy analysis and planning while studying the relationship of food systems to community development and public health. The M.S. and M.A. program requires three years of full-time study (or the equivalent if taken part-time). On completion, you will earn a Master of Arts degree from UEP and a Master of Science degree from the Friedman School.
You must complete all course requirements of both degrees, plus a field internship and a thesis (as required by UEP). A minimum of 23 credits is required. This is 7 credits fewer than what would be required if the two degrees were pursued separately (16 for FSNSP and 14 for UEP). This is possible because certain courses can fulfill a requirement of each program. For example, UEP 207 (Environmental Law) serves as a UEP elective and also meets the Environmental Policy requirement for the Friedman School's program. The thesis is supervised by a UEP faculty member and counts as two (2) credits. As a dual-degree candidate, you will be assigned an academic advisor from each program.
Interested students must submit separate applications to each program indicating a preference for the dual degree. Each school reviews candidates based on its own requirements and criteria. The candidate's admission to UEP is not affected by the decision of the School of Nutrition. Tuition and fees will be assessed and paid to each school based on the semester of enrollment. Students will be eligible for financial assistance based on current policies at each school. For detailed information on the requirements for the Nutrition programs, contact: The Gerald J. & Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. -
For students interested in exploring the connections between law and urban and environmental policy and planning, the MA/JD is offered through a collaboration between the Tufts University Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning (UEP) and the Boston College Law School. Students receive two degrees: a Master of Arts and a Juris Doctor (MA/JD). The dual degree program recognizes that the fields of law and planning are inexorably linked. Planning (including policy analysis) is a process of guiding future development patterns; the law frames the mechanisms and limits of government control over this process. Planning and law immerse students in broad debates and critical thinking about the environment, human settlements, social and environmental justice, corporate responsibility, and land use, each guided by constitutional, equitable and pragmatic principles. To learn more, view the UEP/Boston College Law School Dual Degree requirements.
Upon acceptance to the dual degree program, students will be required to meet with the program coordinator and the respective academic advisors from both schools to plan an overall course of study that matches the student’s background, interests, and requirements of the program. Advisors at both schools will collaborate, under the auspices of an advisory committee, to ensure that students receive accurate and timely information about how they are to proceed through the dual degree program. Students will be eligible for financial assistance based on current policies at each university.
Students fulfill the requirements of each program, but may transfer credits toward each degree such that they may concentrate their studies in four years (as opposed to five, which would be typical if a student was pursing each degree separately).
Interested students must submit separate applications to each school indicating a preference for the dual degree. Each school reviews candidates based on its own requirements and criteria. The candidate's admission to UEP is not affected by the decision of the Boston College Law School. Tuition and fees will be assessed and paid to each school based on the semester of enrollment. For detailed information on the requirements for the JD, please contact Boston College Law School.
Learn more about the UEP/Boston College Law School Dual Degree