The United States Studies program will provide students with an intellectually coherent program that balances breadth and concentration. At the heart of this program are the disciplines of history, English and political science. The prominence of these three areas of study is reflected in the makeup of both the introductory and capstone courses. These mandatory courses will take an emphatically interdisciplinary approach. In addition, both the introductory and capstone courses will highlight the role of minority, oppressed and “subaltern” groups as well as the U.S. in the World/the World in the U.S.

The program will be multidisciplinary as well as interdisciplinary. The breadth and multidisciplinary nature of U.S. Studies comes from the requirement that students take courses from three areas:  1) literature; 2) history, political science, sociology or social science; and 3) humanities, music, dance, film and art.