加州大學(xué)-伯克利

American Studies is an individualized interdisciplinary major that offers undergraduates a unique opportunity to take advantage of the depth and breadth of Americanist scholarship and research on the campus in order to explore and understand the United States and its place in the globalizing world. American studies courses integrate a variety of subjects, methods, and materials from many academic disciplines, including the traditional blend of history and literature, as well as the social sciences, material culture, built environment, law, technology, urbanism, ecology, economy, and arts.

Learning Goals for the Major

Research Skills:

Students learn how to locate and evaluate primary source materials and secondary texts. These include published contemporary and historical documents, artifacts of material culture, landscape and architectural structures, visual and auditory media, oral history, and folklore.

Critical Thinking Skills:

Students learn how to analyze and evaluate cultural texts including literature, performance, film, art, etc., and demonstrate a basic understanding of cultural theory and aesthetics (i.e., to understand and think critically about American society from a humanities perspective).

Students learn to critically analyze and evaluate social science arguments, demonstrating an understanding of the premises of qualitative and quantitative evidence (i.e., understand and think critically about American society from a social science perspective).

Written and Oral Communication Skills

Students learn how to communicate effectively in written form, demonstrating the ability to formulate a well-organized argument supported by evidence.

Students learn how to communicate effectively orally, while demonstrating the ability to listen and respond to what others are saying.

Specialized Knowledge

Time: Students gain in-depth, substantive knowledge about American life and culture in a particular year.

Place: Students gain in-depth, substantive knowledge about American life and culture in a particular city, region, or other place.

Students gain in-depth substantive knowledge about particular themes, issues, problems, and questions in American life and experience.

Integrative Knowledge and Skills

Students demonstrate their mastery of all of the above skills by writing a Senior Thesis that is a focused interdisciplinary research project in their specialized area of concentration.

Honors Program

Students who wish to be eligible to graduate with honors must enroll in the honors thesis seminar, AMERSTD H195. For admission to the course, students must have senior standing, an overall GPA of 3.51, and a GPA of 3.65 in the major.