Educating the Next Generation of Labor Leaders

Master's of Science in Labor Studies

Many labor studies graduate programs are a mix of employer- and worker-viewpoint courses and experiences. That's not the case here at the UMass Labor Center.

We are the premier labor-side Master's Degree in Labor Studies in the United States.

This is not the program you come to if you want to specialize in HR and work for the boss. This is the program where you study and train-up to become one of the next generation of labor leaders at the forefront of organizing, building labor power, and bargaining big wins for workers. Our programs have a distinct focus on inclusively building worker power with an eye always toward the greater good.

Theory, Politics, and Practice

The UMass Labor Center offers Master's Degrees in Labor Studies with a focus at the intersection of Theory, Politics and Practice. Our program combines rigorous study of labor history and current issues.  Our students dig in to real data and learn research techniques to inform any campaign. Our professors seat current labor struggles in an intersectional historical context inseparable from race, gender, and class politics.

For over fifty years, we have built one of the premiere graduate programs in labor studies in the United States. With a near 100% placement record, our graduates are in high demand to join our over 1,000 alumni in key position in the labor movement and social justice organizations.

Organized Labor is surging in a way we haven't seen in a generation. New units are certifying every week and we want you to have the degree that offers the skills to fuel this movement. These new units have also combined efforts with a wide variety of alt-labor organizations, building strong connections with new social movements in broad-based coalitions for justice. Become one of our graduates who are at the forefront of many of these new and exciting developments to build justice and dignity in the workplace and the community, here and abroad.

Three Graduate Degree Options

• 1.5 Year Accelerated Residential Program 
  • Fall 2024 Admissions Deadline - March 1, 2024
• 2.5 Year Union Leadership and Activism Partial Residency Program
  • July 2024 Admissions Deadline - April 1, 2024
  • January 2025 Admissions Deadline - October 7, 2024
• 2.5 to 3 Year Union Leadership and Activism Partial Residency for Education Workers
  • July 2024 Admissions Deadline - April 1, 2024
  • January 2025 Admissions Deadline - October 7, 2024