American Studies - Macalester College

American Studies from Macalester College is a Campus Bachelor American Studies degree that prepares you for a Liberal Arts career. The department of American Studies at Macalester College is an interdisciplinary unit that reflects the multiple trajectories of this vibrant field. Faculty members from across the campus contribute their expertise in the humanities, social sciences, and fine arts to our course offerings. American Studies programs focus on various aspects of life, culture and politics in the United States , and on America's place in the global community. Our emphasis is on race and ethnicity as central dimensions of U.S. social life. This perspective reflects an understanding that the prevailing concepts of citizenship, community, freedom and individuality in the United States contain within them deep fissures, erasures and conflicts that depend upon particular constructions of race, ethnicity, and difference. The curriculum is influenced by scholarship in African American Studies , Asian American Studies, Chicano/Latino studies , Native American and Indigenous Studies, women's and gender studies , queer and sexuality studies, critical race theory, and transnational and diaspora studies . The department encourages close and systematic research of central questions in the field, and offers structured opportunities to apply theoretical concepts in concrete settings of civic engagement. The department of American Studies is dedicated to incorporating various intellectual traditions and histories in an interdisciplinary curriculum that is tuned into the specific and concrete practices of everyday life. Students who take courses in the department of American Studies will be exposed to the current rigorous and complex theoretical conversations in the field. At the same time they will acquire an appreciation for the significance of race, ethnicity and difference in their own lives and in the world around them. Informed and active citizenship requires a careful understanding of how and why racial difference and structural inequality persist in the twenty-first century. Students who minor in American Studies will gain an awareness of the wide variety of racialized experiences and perspectives and of the ways in which these have been transformed over time. The civic-engagement component, required in the junior year, creates a place to engage with real-world complexities of racial and ethnic difference, inequality and social justice, whether local or global. The senior capstone course integrates theory and practice, and prepares students for advanced study in American Studies or related areas. Students also take a course that introduces them to interdisciplinary research methods through the lens of American Studies scholarship. We expect that our majors will be able to: 1) articulate some of the many ways in which racial and ethnic categories shape U.S. social life; 2) identify and work with different conceptual approaches to race, including historical, sociological, literary, cultural, and others; 3) demonstrate proficiency with a range of research tools; 4) perform as knowledgeable interlocutors in settings of civic engagement; and 5) demonstrate excellence in all aspects of academic life. Students who major in American Studies are well-prepared to pursue graduate training in the field, as well as related areas such as history, sociology, ethnic studies, and urban studies . American Studies is also ideal training for students planning to obtain professional degrees in law, medicine, business, education, social work and journalism, among others. Our students are particularly committed to community service and social justice, and go on to work for advocacy organizations and governmental agencies, as well as independent cultural and political groups. View more details on Macalester College . Ask your questions and apply online for this program or find other related American Studies courses.