Where to Study

A number of universities have folklore studies departments, programs, or centers that offer coursework leading to PhD or MA degrees, or BA-level majors or minors. Since many faculty and students at these programs do fieldwork in the regions where their university is located, these programs can also be good sources for information about local folk traditions.

Indiana University Department of Folklore & Ethnomusicology

IU's Department of Folklore and Ethnomusicology is a world-renowned center for the integrative study of human expressive culture—at home and abroad, in the past and the present, from verbal art and song to music and dance, from custom and ritual to visual arts and material culture.

Western Kentucky University

Western Kentucky University is home to one of the most renowned folklore MA programs in the United States. We are celebrating 50 years of folklore graduate studies over the 2022-2023 academic year! We are also the home of the Kentucky Folklife Program, which was established in 1989 and joined our department in 2012.

Penn State Harrisburg

American studies at Penn State Harrisburg is a lively academic program with engaged and accessible faculty and staff. The program integrates perspectives on U.S. history, culture, and society, while emphasizing the application of American studies to areas of public and global interest.

Goucher College

The MA in Cultural Sustainability is a low-residency graduate program that prepares students to work with the communities they care about to strengthen and sustain valued traditions while advocating for cultural equity across sectors.