Students who are intrigued by our department but have settled on a different pathway might opt for the minor. We are keen to encourage those students who seek to heighten their academic experience with the freedom of intellectual thought that our course of study offers.
Requirements
Students who wish to minor in American Studies must complete 18 credits consisting of three 300-400 level American Studies courses (3 credits each), including 050:310 OR 050:389, and three more American Studies courses at any level (3 credits each).
Please be aware that these courses must be in the American studies Department only. All courses used for the minor must have a grade of C or better.
Students may take the NJ Folk Festival only twice for credit towards the minor.
Minor in CCRES (Comparative and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies)
The minor in Comparative and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies is designed to introduce students to the complexity of race and society by bringing together courses from multiple departments engaged in the analysis, history, and political economy of race and migration. The minor requires six courses: an introductory course in comparative race and ethnic studies offered in American Studies or an approved 100- or 200- level course in African American, US Latina/o, Native American or Asian American history or literary tradition; four more courses on race and ethnicity, dealing with two or more different historical racial groups or in comparative context; three of the six courses should be 300-level or above.
Students may count at most two courses toward both their major outside of American Studies and the CCRES minor. All courses used for the minor must have a grade of C or better.
Students may request courses to count towards the minor with American Studies. To qualify as a comparative race and ethnicity elective, a course must fulfill at least two of the following learning goals: 1) Critically engage histories and geographies of race and difference; 2) critically engage a particular population’s experience with power; 3) explore critical race issues and theories with one or more traditional categories; and 4) examine non-US racial formations. A list of approved electives will be updated yearly.
