Requirements for the Major in Global Studies

Up to 14 courses, including the five courses that constitute the core curriculum; three courses focusing on cultures and places; three courses related to themes in global studies; and one senior seminar or appropriate independent study (Global Studies 491 or 492). At least one seminar or senior project must be completed during the senior year as the capstone experience. Majors must complete a concentration within the major unless they have a double major or minor in anthropology, Chinese, East Asian studies, economics, environmental studies, French studies, German studies, government, history, Italian, Japanese, Latin American studies, Russian, or Spanish. Majors also must complete the equivalent of two courses beyond the introductory (usually through 131) level in a modern foreign language. Students are encouraged to develop language skills relevant to their regional specialization. At least one semester of foreign study is required, although under exceptional circumstances students with extensive overseas experience can petition the director and the advisory committee to be exempted. A student must receive a grade of C- or better for a course to count toward the major. No courses listed for the major may be taken satisfactory/unsatisfactory.

Note: Students must have at least a 2.7 grade point average by the end of the sophomore year to be eligible for foreign study. Students who do not meet this minimum requirement will not be able to retain their global studies major.

Note to junior transfer students: The College requires that all students spend at least four semesters in residence at Colby. Therefore, to satisfy the semester-abroad requirement for the major, junior transfer students must either stay for a fifth semester or enroll in a summer study-abroad program for at least nine credits (unless the study-abroad requirement has been met in some other way).

Courses Composing the Core Curriculum

Anthropology 112, Economics 133 and 134, Government 131, and History 276.

Courses Approved to Fulfill the Cultures and Places Component

Note that (a) at least two courses must be drawn from the same regional grouping and one course from a different region, and (b) courses must be drawn from at least two disciplines.

Africa:

Anthropology	237 Ethnographies of Africa
	341 Culture, Mobility, Identity: Encounters in the African Diaspora
	398 Religion and Social Change in Contemporary America
French	238 Introduction to the Francophone World: Africa
	361 Francophone Cultures and Literatures of the Indian Ocean
	372 France and Africa
History	364 Environmental and Health History in Africa

Asia:

Anthropology	239 Southeast Asian Cultures and Societies
	339 Asian Pacific Modernities
Art	273 The Arts of China
East Asian Studies	152 Introduction to East Asia from the 18th Century to Modern Times
	231 The Chinese Novel: Vignettes of Life in Imperial China
	240 Japanese Animation: Sensitivity to Differences
	251 Gender Politics in Chinese Drama and Film
	252 Hell on Earth? Chinese Writers on Modern Chinese Society
	257 From Communism to Consumerism
	261 Japanese Language and Culture
	298A Politics of Satire and Humor in Modern China
	332 Masterpieces: Modern Japanese Novels
	353 Globalization and Human Rights in China
Economics	298 The Economic Rise and Future of China
Government	256 Conflict in East Asia
	355 Winners and Losers in Chinese Politics
	356 Winners and Losers in Japanese Politics
History	250 History of Modern China
	298B Introduction to Korean History and Culture
Religious Studies	117 Passage to India: India and the Western Imagination
	211 Religions of India
	212 Religions of China, Japan, and Tibet
	312 South Asian Women at the Crossroads: Tradition and Modernity
	317 Sikhism: Scripture, Sacred Music, and Art
	319 Bollywood and Beyond: South Asian Religions Through Film

Europe and Russia:

French	232 Cultural History of France
	233 Contemporary France
	236 Introduction to the Francophone World: The Americas
	238 Introduction to the Francophone World: Africa
	252 Provocative Texts: Engaging the World
	332 Voices of Dissent in Early Modern France
	343 Decoding French and Francophone News
	351 Minority Issues and Social Change in Francophone North America
	354 Parisian Encounters: Great Loves, Grand Passions
	358 Passionate Discontent: The 19th-Century Epidemic
	372 France and Africa
	376 Shadows of the Past: Remembering Vichy France and the Holocaust
	378 French Revolution: Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, or Death
	398A French Cinema: The Classics 493 Seminar (when appropriate)
German	231 Introduction to German Studies
	234 German Culture Through Film
	237 The German Fairy Tale in Popular Culture
	368 Sex, Madness, and Transgression
	397 Loose Canons
Global Studies	451 Ethnicity, Nationalism, and the State in Europe
Government	243 Politics of Subnational Culture and Identity in Europe
	259 European Politics
	266 German Politics
	354The European Union
	359 Political Ideologies and Revolutionary Movements in Europe
History	112 A Survey of Modern Europe
	224 Germany and Europe, 1871-1945
	227 The Russian Empire: Russia Looks to the West, 1613-1905
	228 The Russian Empire: Soviet History and 20th-Century Revolutions
	321 The First World War
	322 Europe and the Second World War
	327 Daily Life Under Stalin
	421 Debating the Nazi Past
	445 Nuclear Madness
Italian	262 Outsiders, Losers, Rejects: Topics in Italian Cultural Studies
Religious Studies	258 Religion and Literature in Modern Ireland
Russian	231 Topics in 19th-Century Russian Literature
	232 Topics in 20th-Century Russian Literature
	237 Gamblers, Madmen, and Murderers
	346 20th-Century Russian Poetry
	425 20th-Century Short Works
	426 The 19th-Century Russian Novel
	427 Re-Imaging Russia: Cinema and Russian Society 1986-2009
	428 The 20th-Century Russian Novel
Spanish	266 Language of Spanish Cinema
	351 Ideology and Ethics in Spanish Golden Age Literature
	352 Don Quijote
	371 The Colonial Experience: European and Amerindian Responses
	397A Good Wife: Politics of Marriage in Early Modern Spanish
	397B The Diasporic Imagination: Cubans Beyond Cuba
	398 Censorship and Comedy in Spain

Latin America:

Anthropology	231 Caribbean Cultures
	297B Latin American Ethnographies
Economics	214 Economic Policy and Performance in Contemporary Latin America
French	236 Introduction to the Francophone World: The Americas
Government	253 Latin American Politics
	297 Mexican Politics
	335 United States-Latin American Relations
Latin American Studies	173 History of Latin America
	174 Introduction to Latin American Studies
	274 Race, Religion, and Frontiers in Iberian-American Colonization
	275 Strongmen and Populism in Modern Spain and Latin America
	277 History of the Maya from 200 B.C.
	298 History of the Southern Cone
	473 Seminar: Historical Roots of Violence in Modern Latin America
Spanish	265 The Short Novel in Spanish America
	266 Language of Spanish Cinema
	273 Contemporary Spanish-American Short Story
	354 Detectives and Spies: Forms of Popular Culture in Spanish-American Fiction
	371 The Colonial Experience: European and Amerindian Responses

The Middle East:

Anthropology	246 Engaging Muslim Worlds
	264 China in Transition: An Anthropological Account
Government	251 Israelis and Palestinians: Conflict and Accommodation
	252 Politics of the Middle East
	358 Comparative Arab Politics
History	184 History of the Modern Middle East
	285 Foundation of Islam
	381 Women and Gender in Islam
	389 History of Iran
Religious Studies	182 Jews and Judaism in the Modern World

Courses Approved to Fulfill the Theme Component
Courses must be drawn from at least two different disciplines.

Anthropology	236 Illegal Drugs, Law, and the State
	244 Anthropology of Religion
	256 Land, Food, Culture, and Power
	258 Anthropology, History, Memory
	297B Language in Culture and Society
	298A Anthropological Perspective on Science and Religion
	373 The Anthropology of Gender and Sexuality
	397B Global Humanitarianism
Economics	214 Economic Policy and Performance in Contemporary Latin America
	231 Environmental and Natural Resource Economics
	271 International Economic Integration
	273 Economics of Globalization
	335 Topics in Economic Development
	373 Open-Economy Macroeconomics
	378 International Trade
	471 Multinational Corporations
Environmental Studies	234 International Environmental Policy
	340 Conflict, Negotiation, and Environmental Justice
	346 Global Food Policy
	366 The Environment and Human Health
Global Studies	211 Human Rights and Social Struggles in Global Perspective
	352 Internationalism: From Socialism to the World Social Forum
	437 Media, Culture, and the Political Imagination
	451 Ethnicity, Nationalism, and the State of Europe
Government	231 U.S. Foreign Policy: The Cold War
	238 Politics of War Crime Tribunals
	251 Israelis and Palestinians: Conflict and Accommodation
	263 Democracy Assistance
	331 Business and American Foreign Policy
	332 International Organization
	335 United States-Latin American Relations
	344 Post-Communist Transformations
	354 The European Union
	357 Political Economy of Regionalism
	359 Political Ideologies and Revolutionary Movements in Europe
	432 U.S. Foreign Policy
	435 Memory and Politics
	451 Political Violence
	454 Politics of Development: State, Society, and Markets
History	321 The First World War
	322 Europe and the Second World War
	347 America in Vietnam
	364 Environmental and Health History of Africa
	381 Women and Gender in Islam
	394 Ecological History
	446 Global Health History
	447 The Cold War
STS	358 Climbing the Oil Peak
Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies	298 Global Perspectives on Politicized Religion and Gender
	397B Gender and Human Rights

 
Courses Approved to Fulfill the Seminar Requirement
*Note: The student must submit a copy of the title page of the seminar paper signed by the instructor to demonstrate appropriateness for concentrations.

Anthropology	462 Global Mobilities: Movements, Modernities, Citizenships
	474 Anthropology as Public Engagement
Economics	471 Multinational Corporations
	477 Currency, Banking, and Debt Crises
Environmental Studies	493 Environmental Policy Practicum (if topic is appropriate*)
Global Studies	437 Media, Culture, and the Political Imagination
	451 Ethnicity, Nationalism, and the State in Europe
Government	432 U.S. Foreign Policy
	435 Memory and Politics
	451 Political Violence
	454 Politics of Development: State, Society, and Markets
History	414 History of Fear in Europe
	421 Debating the Nazi Past
	445 Nuclear Madness
	446 Global Health History
	447 The Cold War
	461 History and Development of Islamic law
	472 Daily Life under Krushchev
Latin American Studies	473 Historical Roots of Violence in Modern Latin America
	497 Gender, Sexuality, and the Body in Latin American History
Languages	Senior-level seminar (if topic is appropriate*)

Note: Students can petition the director of the program to count a seminar-style 200- or 300-level course toward the seminar requirement. In such cases, students also will be expected to enroll in Global Studies 491 or 492 (for two credits) to complete an original research paper. Approval of this option is at the discretion of the instructor and the advisory committee. Students may also pursue a four-credit independent research project (Global Studies 491 or 492) to fulfill the senior requirement. 

Note: Some courses are listed under two or three categories; with the exception of counting courses toward the concentration or a second major (if students have a relevant double major or minor [see above]), no single course can be used to satisfy more than one requirement. A minor must have four freestanding courses not required for the major. Students may petition to include other courses if the course has a substantial international component and is approved by the director and advisory committee.

Honors in Global Studies

An honors program is available in which the student can pursue a year-long independent research project that also fulfills the seminar requirement; successful completion of this project may entitle the student to graduate “With Honors in Global Studies.” To be eligible, a student must have a grade point average of 3.5 or better in the major at the time of graduation and should submit a statement of intent to the program director by May 1 of the junior year. Students will register for a semester-long workshop on writing honors proposals in the fall; the final deadline for submission of a completed honors thesis proposal is the first Friday in October. See the Global Studies Handbook (online) for further information about procedures, including midyear evaluation and deadline for completion of the thesis.

Requirements for Concentrations

Majors are required to complete a concentration unless they have a double major or minor in anthropology, Chinese, East Asian studies, economics, environmental studies, French studies, German studies, government, history, Italian, Japanese, Latin American studies, Russian, or Spanish. Students may propose an independent concentration. Concentrations should be declared by the spring of the sophomore year. Students may elect more than one concentration.

Concentrations Focusing on Cultures and Places

A concentration focusing on cultures and places requires completion of the following:

• Four courses dealing with a specific region or cultural grouping such as Francophone Africa. Courses appropriate to each region are listed above under the cultures and places component. At least two of those courses should be taken at Colby.  At least one of the four courses must be drawn from the social sciences and at least one other from the humanities. 
  
• A coordination of cultural specialization with study abroad. For European concentrators, study abroad would normally take place in a non-English-speaking country.
  
• A coordination of the language requirement with foreign study where Colby offers an appropriate program.
• A seminar project or independent study in the senior year that addresses issues in the chosen area.

Thematic Concentrations

Four tracks have been established for thematic concentrations:

• International Relations/Foreign Policy
• International Economic Policy
• Development Studies
• Human Rights/Social Justice

Each track requires at least four courses designated as relevant to the respective field plus a seminar or an independent senior project relevant to the chosen specialization. Note that some of the courses appropriate for these concentrations are not designated as global studies courses. While they are relevant to their respective specialization, they do not count toward the requirements for the major or the grade point average in the major. These courses are designated by an asterisk (*).

International Relations/Foreign Policy

Students must take a relevant senior seminar (or senior paper) in addition to four of the courses listed below, two of which should be from the Government Department and one from the Economics Department. Introduction to American Government is strongly encouraged as an additional course.

Economics	273 Economics of Globalization
	335 Topics in Economic Development
	378 International Trade
Government	231 U.S. Foreign Policy: The Cold War
	238 Politics of War Crime Tribunals
	256 Conflict in East Asia
	263 Democracy Assistance
	332 International Organization
	335 United States-Latin American Relations
	354 The European Union
	357 Political Economy of Regionalism
	359 Political Ideologies and Revolutionary Movements in Europe
	432 U.S. Foreign Policy
	435 Memory and Politics
History	322 Europe and the Second World War
	347 America in Vietnam
	447 The Cold War
Latin American Studies	275 Strongmen and Populism in Modern Spain and Latin America

International Economic Policy

Students must take a relevant senior seminar (or senior paper) and take four of the courses listed below; one must be outside of economics and two must be in economics:

Anthropology	256 Land, Food, Culture, and Power
Economics	214 Economic Policy and Performance in Contemporary Latin America
	271 International Economic Integration
	273 Economics of Globalization
	335 Topics in Economic Development
	373 Open-Economy Macroeconomics
	378 International Trade
	471 Multinational Corporations
Government	332 International Organization
	354 The European Union
	357 Political Economy of Regionalism
History	364 Environmental and Health History in Africa

Development Studies

Students must take a relevant senior seminar (or senior paper) and take four of the courses listed below, one of which is drawn from Anthropology, one from Economics 214, 292 or 294, and one outside of anthropology and economics:

Anthropology	256 Land, Food, Culture, and Power
	264 China in Transition: An Anthropological Account
Economics	214 Economic Policy and Performance in Contemporary Latin America
	298 The Economic Rise and Future of China
	335 Topics in Economic Development
	378 International Trade
	471 Multinational Corporations
French	372 France and Africa
Global Studies	297 Global Health and Human Rights
	352 Internationalism: From Socialism to the World Social
Government	252 Politics of the Middle East
	253 Latin American Politics
	263 Democracy Assistance
	451 Political Violence
	454 Politics of Development: State, Society, and Markets
History	364 Environmental and Health History in Africa
	394 Ecological History
Sociology	274 Social Inequality and Power

Human Rights/Social Justice

Students must take a relevant senior seminar (or senior paper) and take four of the courses listed below, two of which are drawn from a core of Anthropology 236, Government 333, Global Studies 211, Sociology 274.

Anthropology	236 Illegal Drugs, Law, and the State
	256 Land, Food, Culture, and Power
	341 Culture, Mobility, Identity: Encounters in the African Diaspora
	397B Global Humanitarianism
Environmental Studies	366 The Environment and Human Health
Global Studies	211 Human Rights and Social Struggles in Global Perspective
	235 International Environmental Human Rights
	297 Global Health and Human Rights
	352 Internationalism: From Socialism to the World Social Forum
	437 Media, Culture, and the Political Imagination
Government	272* Modern Political Theory
	355 Winners and Losers in Chinese Politics
	356 Winners and Losers in Japanese Politics
	451 Political Violence
Sociology	252 Race, Ethnicity, and Society
	274* Social Inequality and Power
Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies	298 Global Perspectives on Politicized Religion and Gender
	311* Feminist Theory
	397B Gender and Human Rights