RUSSIAN & EAST EUROPEAN STUDIES CONSORTIUM

 Arizona State University • Tempe, AZ 85287-2601 • PH: 480/965-4188 • FAX: 480/965-0310


Baccalaureate Certificate Program in
  Russian & East European Studies at Arizona State University  

The Russian and East European Studies Consortium has a certificate program for students wishing to complete their ASU baccalaureate degree with an emphasis in Russian and East European Studies. The purpose of this baccalaureate certificate program is to encourage students majoring in a chosen discipline to focus their undergraduate studies by developing special competency in Russian/East European languages and area studies. While students majoring in any discipline may qualify for the Russian and East European Studies Certificate, the following academic departments offer coursework leading to the certificate: Agribusiness, Anthropology, Architecture, Economics, Geography, History, Political Science, Religious Studies, Russian, Sociology, and Womens Studies.

Old Town Hall
Poznan, Poland
Requirements.   The requirements for the Russian and East European Studies Certificate are as follows: 1) three years (22 semester credit hours) of Russian or another Eurasian or East European language; and 2) thirty (30) semester hours (at least 24 upper-division hours) in Russian/East European area-related coursework. At least three disciplines must be represented in the area-related coursework, and at least twelve (12) hours must be drawn from area-related coursework outside the Department of Languages and Literatures (i.e., non-RUS and non-FLA courses). The Russian and East European Studies Consortium certifies that all requirements have been met for the Russian and East European Studies Certificate at the time of the student’s application for graduation. Certificate recognition is noted in the student’s graduating transcript, which reads, Major in [Discipline], Emphasis in Russian and East European Studies.

Classes meeting the requirements of the certificate program (see below) are listed each semester in the Interdisciplinary Studies section of the ASU Schedule of Classes. Advisement for the certificate program is available in the offices of the Russian and East European Studies Consortium (Social Sciences Room 204). Interested students should consult a REESC advisor as early as possible in their undergraduate program. Certificate students are particularly encouraged to consider study abroad and related fellowship opportunities to advance their language skills.

Since its inception in 1984, the Russian and East European Studies Certificate has been awarded to more than fifty students from five disciplinary majors. Certificate awardees now hold positions of leadership in government, as well as in academia and the private sector. Graduates of the certificate program, while benefitting from close interaction with Consortium faculty, also enhance their prospects for study abroad fellowships and graduate admissions, and also qualifying for unique entry-level government employment opportunities.

What Courses Should I Take?   Generally you must take classes in two broad catagories: foreign language coursework and "other" coursework. Consult with the REESC advisor early to be sure the courses you are selecting meet the requirements for obtaining REESC BA/BS certification. Such contact is also a chance to learn about events, funding opportunities, and to meet with faculty members, professionals, and other students in Russian, East European, and Balkan studies.

  1. Twenty-two hours of foreign language coursework. Eurasian and East European Languages offered:

    2. * For Russian, this entails the completion of RUS 101, 102, 201, 202, 211 and 212 (or six hours of upper-division Russian language coursework beyond RUS 202). Students may take one of the other languages listed above, but students are required to complete 22 semester hours of East European/Eurasian language study.

    NB. Armenian, Macedonian, Serbian/Bosnian/Croatian, and Tatar are taught during the REESC summer Critical Languages Institute (CLI). Study abroad opportunities are available for advanced training in each of the above languages.

  2. Thirty hours of "other" coursework (a minimum of 24 hours of this coursework must be upper-division) in Russian and East European area studies. Students may choose from the courses listed in the tables below. Arranged honors thesis and related upper-division colloquia may also be credited toward the certificate. Please note that the internal subdivisions have been established to guarantee the interdisciplinary nature of the certificate. Students must complete courses in three different academic departments in order to qualify for the certificate.

TABLE 1.
A minimum of twelve credit hours (four courses) must be taken from the following non-RUS/non-FLA electives. Students wishing to complete more than twelve of the thirty required hours using these courses may do so.

AGB 411 International Agricultural Development

AGB 452 International Agricultural Policy

AGB 454 International Trade

APH 446/447 20th Century Architecture I/II

ARS 410 Early Christian and Byzantine Art

ECN 306 Survey of International Economics

ECN 331 Comparative Economic Systems

ECN 365 Economics of Russia and Eastern Europe

GCU 426 Geography of Russia and Surroundings

HST 105 Introduction to Slavic Civilization

HST 300 Russian Revolution

HST 370 Eastern Europe in Transition

HST 431 Eastern Europe and the Balkans before 1914

HST 432 Eastern Europe and the Balkans since 1914

HST 435 The Russian Empire

HST 436 The Soviet Experiment

IBS 300 Principles of International Business

IBS 306 Survey of International Economics

MHL 363 Survey of Russian Music

MHL 439 Music of the 19th Century

MHL 447 Music since 1900

MHL 456 History of Opera

POS 355 Russia and Successor States

POS 494 Democratization

REL 270 Introduction to Christianity

REL 305 Ritual, Symbol and Myth

REL 310/HUM 394 Western Religious Traditions

REL 365 Islamic Civilization

REL 366 Islam in the Modern World

REL 372 Formation of the Christian Tradition

REL 377 Religion in Russia

REL 379 Religion, Nationalism, Ethnic Conflict

SOC 332 Urban Sociology

WST 394 Women as Healers

WST 494 Women, Science and Technology

HST/POS/REL/RUS 498 (honors thesis)
Other omnibus special topics taught by REESC affiliates will be honored.

TABLE 2.
In order to reach the requisite 30 hours in area-related coursework, students may also choose from among the following electives.

FLA/RUS 323 Survey of Literature of the Soviet Era in Translation

FLA 394 Modern East European Drama

FLA 420 Survey of Literature in Translation –Russian

FLA 494 Literature and Politics in Pre- and Post Communist Europe

FLA 494 Film and Literature in Pre-and Post Communist Europe

FLA 494 Vikings

RUS 321/322 Survey of Russian Literature

RUS 420 Russian Poetry

RUS 421 Pushkin

RUS 423 Dostoevsky

RUS 424 Tolstoy

RUS 425 Chekhov

RUS 426 Literature of the Nationalities of the Former Soviet Union

RUS 430 Russian Short Story

RUS 440 History of the Russian Language

RUS 441 Survey of Russian Culture

RUS 494 Russian Literature and Culture in Film

 

 

 
Any course listed in Table 1 above.
Other omnibus special topics taught by REESC affiliates will be honored.

TABLE 3.
None of the following Russian language courses are required, but students taking these advanced Russian language courses may count up to six hours (two courses) toward the area-studies component of the certificate.

RUS 303/304 Scientific Russian I/II

RUS 311/312 Russian Composition and Conversation I/II

RUS 411/412 Advanced Russian Composition and Conversation I/II

RUS 417 Applied Russian Phonetics

For further information, contact:

Carol Withers (carol.withers@asu.edu)
Russian and East European Studies Consortium
Social Sciences Building, Room 206
(See top for mailing address, phone and fax numbers)

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