WEINBERG COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES |
NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY
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Curriculum
A program seminar led by History Professor T.H. Breen
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Curriculum
The American Studies major consists of three components: year-long American Studies 301-1,2,3 seminar sequences in which all sophomore and junior majors in residence are required to enroll; an individualized concentration designed by each student; and the American Studies 390-1,2,3 senior honors seminar. In addition, the Program offers a small number of electives open to all undergraduates, though majors are given preference in registration.
A key feature of the seminar sequences, in addition to their limited size, is that the students stay together for the entire academic year, though the instructors normally change from quarter to quarter. The purpose of this is to develop intellectual community among the majors as they explore significant topics from different perspectives. When possible, the three different courses that comprise the sequence deal with a single large theme. For example, in the 2005-06 academic year the theme is "The United States and the World," and the instructors come from the disciplines of Political Science, Communication Studies, and American and Comparative Literature. No matter what the topic, the seminars emphasize the development of the skills of spoken and written analysis and expression.
Concentrations consist of at least ten 200- and 300-level courses chosen by the student from the offerings of at least three different departments or programs from throughout the University (these need not be limited to courses offered in Weinberg College) and organized around a topic or theme. All students must include History 210-1,2, the American history survey, in these ten classes (students who have scored a 4 or 5 on the American History AP examination may instead take two 300-level American history courses). Concentrations may focus on a specific period, subject area (e.g., law, education, language), a special topic (e.g., revolution, religion, gender, race), or field of inquiry (e.g., the relationship between social thought and social action, art and society). Students must meet regularly with their Program adviser in defining their concentrations and selecting courses, and the adviser must approve both the topic or theme of the concentration and the courses that can be counted toward fulfilling it. The precise nature of a student's concentration often evolves through his or her career in the Program.
In their senior year, majors participate in the senior project seminar while undertaking an honors thesis on a topic of their choice, which typically emerges from their area of concentration. Students work both with their individual project adviser and the American Studies 390 instructor, and they meet regularly with their fellow seniors and the 390 instructor to discuss their own project and matters of common concern. While there is some freedom in the choice of topic and the precise final form of the project, all students are expected to do independent research and produce an original piece of cultural analysis based on primary sources. The Program actively encourages all students who wish to do so to conduct part of their research off campus, and many seniors receive funding from the University, the College, or the Program that enables them to do so. Copies of virtually all the projects prepared over the years are available for reading in the Program office.
A number of majors have supplemented their course work on the Evanston campus with field studies or study abroad for a quarter or more. This is only possible for students who enter the major in their sophomore year, since every student is required to take at least one full year of the American Studies 301-1,2,3 sequence. Numerous students have also decided to complete a minor or a second major.
