Requirements
A concentration in African Studies consists of six Africa-related courses chosen with the assistance of an African Studies advisor.
Three to five courses must have an exclusive African focus (see Tier One list below). A maximum of two courses may be taken in the following manner: one to two in an off-campus program; and/or one to two approved courses that focuses only partly on Africa or have African Diaspora content with major African inflection (see Tier Two list below). The sixth course must be an advanced research seminar in any department in which the student completes a substantial Africa-focused paper; this requirement may also be completed with an Africa-focused independent study with an African Studies faculty member resulting in a major paper. Students may include (as Tier Two) one Africa-related internship by registering for the internship under the supervision of any steering committee member and by filing a copy of the learning contract with the African Studies program director.
Students are required to take Africa related courses at Macalester from at least two different departments, and are encouraged to take from at least three to gain interdisciplinary breadth. It is suggested that students also take introductory courses in a number of departments affiliated with the concentration (especially anthropology, geography, history, international studies, political science, literature departments and sociology) to gain broader conceptual appreciation of regional issues and an understanding of disciplinary approaches used to interpret African material. It also is highly recommended that students participate on an Africafocused study abroad program in Africa to experience and study first-hand the issues and ideas explored at Macalester. Students contemplating study abroad in Africa are strongly encouraged to take at least one Tier One course before departure. Africanist coursework taken elsewhere in the world (such as London, Paris or Lisbon) will also, when appropriate, count toward the concentration.
Courses
I. Tier One Courses (exclusively focused on Africa)
* A minimum of three of these courses must be taken for the concentration
ANTH 258 - Peoples and Cultures of Africa
Anthropology topics course—Gender and Power in Africa
Anthropology topics course— Darfur: Conflict and Human Rights in Africa
Anthropology topics course— Gender and Development in Africa
ENGL 369 - African Literature
FREN 407 - Francophone Studies , FREN 408 - French Cultural Studies , FREN 409 - Cinema , and other 400-level French courses, when wholly focused on African (including North African) content.
GEOG 243 - Geography of Africa: Local Resources and Livelihoods in a Global Context
HIST 115 - Africa Since 1800
History topics course— African Life Histories
History topics course— Farm and Forest: African Environmental History
MUSI 131 - African Music
MUSI 73 - African Music Ensemble and African music-instruction courses (drum, flute, voice). These participation and instruction courses are typically one credit per semester, and may be included on African Studies concentration plans when four credits are accumulated.
Political Science topics course— African Politics
THDA 21 - African Dance A one-credit technique class which may be counted on African Studies concentration plans when four credits (either dance only or dance plus music, above) are accumulated.
II. Tier Two Courses (significant African Content)
* A maximum of two of these courses may count towards the concentration.
ANTH 239 - Medical Anthropology , when taught by Patten
ANTH 246 - Refugees/Humanitarian Response
ANTH 362 - Culture and Globalization
ENGL 384 - Langston Hughes: Global Writer same as INTL 384
ENGL 242 - Anglophone Literature (when Africa-focused)
ENGL 264 - Literature of the Americas (when Caribbean-focused)
FREN 407 - Francophone Studies , FREN 408 - French Cultural Studies , FREN 409 - Cinema , and other 400-level French courses, when at least half focused on African (including North African) content, or when focused wholly on francophone Afro-diasporic content.
French topics course— Child Soldiers Through Texts and Films
GEOG 488 same as INTL 477 , ENVI 477
History topics course—Women in the African Diaspora
HIST 256 - Transatlantic Slave Trade
HIST 235 - Comparative Freedom Movements: The US and South Africa
INTL 367 - Postcolonial Theory
POLI 242 - Development Politics
SOCI 280 - Indigenous Peoples’ Movements in Global Context (if student case study is of an African movement)
SOCI 370 - Political Sociology (if course paper is Africa-focused)
III. Study Abroad
A maximum of two courses may be counted from an Africa-focused study abroad program in Africa. Africanist coursework taken elsewhere in the world (such as London, Paris or Lisbon) may also, when appropriate and with approval of the concentration director, count toward the concentration.
IV. Senior Seminar or Independent Study
The student must complete an advanced research seminar in any department in which the student undertakes a substantial Africa-focused paper. The advanced research seminar may be achieved by taking a disciplinary senior seminar that includes a major paper focused on Africa; or an independent study with an African Studies faculty member resulting in a major paper focused on Africa.
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