Major in Russian Studies (pre-fall 2016 requirements)

The following areas are central to the undergraduate degree in Russian:

• an awareness of the fundamental outlines of the history of Russian literature and culture from the Middle Ages to the present day;
• familiarity with the major Russian creative writers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries;
• familiarity with the historical context of Russian literature and culture;
• an awareness of basic critical methodologies as they relate to the study of Russian literature.

In addition, students with a degree in Russian are expected to acquire:

• the ability to comprehend contemporary Russian, written or spoken, to a degree permitting sophisticated analysis of cultural texts;
• the ability to analyze Russian literary texts and give a reasoned response to them in literate English;
• the ability to write and converse in Russian at their own intellectual level.

In addition to the general requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences, students must complete the major requirements listed below.

Major Requirements

Completion of 38 hours from tracks A or B, or 36 hours from track C, with grades of C- or better. (None may be taken as pass/fail.) At least 18 RUSS hours must be completed at the 3000 or 4000 level.

NOTE: RUSS 1010 and 1020 do NOT count toward the 38 hours required for the bachelor's degree in Russian Studies.Students may not receive credit for both 3060 and 4010 or 4020 and 4060.

Students are required to structure their curriculum for the major in close consultation with a departmental advisor. Students with advanced Russian language skills are strongly encouraged to meet with a departmental faculty advisor to discuss language placement. Students who have Russian language transfer credit and/ or students who are Russian language native or heritage speakers may enter the program at the upper-division level, up to RUSS 4010, with faculty permission.

In the case of advanced language placement, students will be required to meet with the Russian faculty advisor for Russian course substitutions and recommendations. Students who place out of Russian language courses required for the major must replace the credits with additional coursework in Russian Studies. Any substitutions to major coursework must be pre-approved by the Russian faculty advisor.

Graduating Russian Studies majors are asked to participate in an annual assessment exercise during their last (spring) semester at the university. We ask you to take the language and literature-culture exams to help evaluate the quality of the Russian Studies major. (You may also be interested in learning your level of language competence from the standardized online test.) You cannot study for the exams and they do not affect your course grades or graduation in any way.

Track A: Russian Language and Culture (38 credit hours)

* = core course

NOTE: Beginning or middle-level language course requirements may be met by transfer credit or by testing out of the course. Students who enter at and enroll in Russian language course at the 3000 or 4000 level may not receive credit for lower-division Russian language courses, unless lower-division language coursework was completed prior to registration for 3000 and 4000 level Russian language courses. Study Abroad is recommended after the second year of language study.

Track B: Russian Culture and Literature (38 credit hours)

* = core course (see the complete class list for all core courses)

NOTE: Beginning or middle-level language course requirements may be met by transfer credit or by testing out of the course. Students who enter at and enroll in Russian language course at the 3000 or 4000 level may not receive credit for lower-division Russian language courses, unless lower-division language coursework was completed prior to registration for 3000 and 4000 level Russian language courses. Study Abroad is recommended after the second year of language study.

Track C: Russian Major for Heritage Speakers (36 credit hours)

If you are a native speaker of Russian (speak or spoke Russian at home while growing up) and/or if you attended school in Russia in the former Soviet Union for one or more years when your family lived there, you may be eligible for our heritage speakers track. Heritage speakers of Russian who wish to major in Russian should speak with our Russian advisor to map out a specific plan for their major.

Russian Core Courses

A&S Policy on Enrollment in Undergraduate Language Courses