We offer the following majors beginning in 2024-2025
The East European, Eurasian, and Russian Studies Major for those who want to achieve an interdisciplinary grounding in the region.
Learning Outcomes for the East European, Eurasian, and Russian Studies Major
- Language Competence Students will be able to communicate orally and in writing and show an awareness of social and cultural norms and linguistic register. They will have a strong grasp of grammatical constructions as well as proper stress and intonational patterns, and they will demonstrate the ability to navigate Russian-language environments or the environments of other regional languages (such as Ukrainian) independently. They will be able to read, watch, and understand a wide variety of texts in different genres and media, and independently use primary sources for research in other disciplines.
- Culture. Students will demonstrate familiarity with the history and cultures of the Russian Federation and regions that were historically part of the Russian and Soviet Empire. They will show an awareness of different nations, ethnicities, cultures, and languages that exist within the region. Students will be conversant with cultural concepts and be able to analyze the relevant features (aesthetic, political, historical) of the text or artifact. They will demonstrate an understanding of East European, Eurasian, and Russian cultures from a comparative perspective, as well as their influence worldwide.
- Interdisciplinary Study Students will demonstrate a familiarity with different interdisciplinary approaches to the study of Russia, Eastern Europe, and Eurasia. They will be able to apply relevant data and information from various knowledge domains as well as specific disciplinary methodologies in order to achieve holistic, multifaceted knowledge of the region.
The Russian Language and Literature major for those who want focus on Russian language, literature, and culture
Learning Outcomes for the Russian Language and Literature Major
- Language Competence Students will be able to communicate orally and in writing and show an awareness of social and cultural norms and linguistic register. They will have a strong grasp of grammatical constructions as well as proper stress and intonational patterns, and they will demonstrate the ability to navigate Russian-language environments independently. They will be able to read, watch, understand, and translate a wide variety of texts in different genres and media.
- Culture. Students will demonstrate familiarity with the history and cultures of the Russian Federation and regions that were historically part of the Russian and Soviet Empires. They will show an awareness of different nations, ethnicities, cultures, and languages that exist within the Russian Federation. Students will be conversant with cultural concepts and be able to analyze the relevant features (aesthetic, political) of the text or artifact. They will demonstrate an understanding of Russian culture from a comparative perspective, as well as its influence worldwide.
- Literature. Students will demonstrate a knowledge of the Russian literary tradition and be able to analyze and interpret literary texts within a literary-critical and historical framework. They will acquire facility with literary research methodologies and citation practices and will be able to perform close readings as well as make broader, more contextualized arguments.
We offer the following minors:
In our language program, you can start from scratch, with no prior knowledge of Russian. Or you can place into a higher level by taking our placement exam. Students who wish to take the test should contact our Language Program Director, Alfia Rakova, as the test is being administered in person due to the hand-writing requirement.