UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM IN GLOBAL CULTURES

152 Humanities Instructional Building; (949) 824-9290
E-mail: globalcultures@uci.edu
Armin Schwegler, Director

Core Faculty

Sharon B. Block, Ph.D. Princeton University, Associate Professor of History

James Fujii, Ph.D. University of Chicago, Associate Professor of Japanese and Comparative Literature

David Theo Goldberg, Ph.D. City University of New York Graduate School and Center, Director of the UC Humanities Research Institute and Professor of Comparative Literature and of Criminology, Law and Society

Douglas M. Haynes, Ph.D. University of California, Berkeley, Director of the ADVANCE Program for Faculty Equity and Diversity and Associate Professor of History

Laura H. Y. Kang, Ph.D. University of California, Santa Cruz, Associate Professor of Women's Studies, Comparative Literature, and English

Ketu H. Katrak, Ph.D. Bryn Mawr College, Professor of Humanities and Comparative Literature

Keith L. Nelson, Ph.D. University of California, Berkeley, Professor Emeritus of History

Jane O. Newman, Ph.D. Princeton University, Director of European Studies and Professor of Comparative Literature

Rachel O'Toole, Ph.D. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Assistant Professor of History

Mark S. Poster, Ph.D. New York University, Department Chair and Professor of Film and Media Studies, and Professor of History and Comparative Literature

Brook Thomas, Ph.D. University of California, Santa Barbara, UCI Chancellor's Professor of English

Armin Schwegler, Ph.D. University of California, Berkeley, Director of Global Cultures and Professor of Spanish

Jacobo Sefamí, Ph.D. University of Texas at Austin, Professor of Spanish

Bert Winther-Tamaki, Ph.D. Institute of Fine Arts, New York University, Associate Professor of Art History

Undergraduate Program

Global Cultures is an innovative undergraduate major (and minor) in the School of Humanities with an exciting mission: to explore the problems and processes of globalization from a humanistic perspective. The major provides students with twenty-first-century analytical skills and knowledge that is critical to understanding the complexities of the diverse world in which we live. In the process, Global Cultures equips students with the knowledge and tools that lead to successful careers in a wide range of professions and fields.

Today, more than ever, the rewards and responsibilities of global citizenship require us to have a greater appreciation of the world, its histories, and our intersection with it. Global Cultures deepens this appreciation as it concentrates on (1) change across time and space (history), (2) the formation and contestation of identity (literature and language), and (3) theoretical and discursive practices that shape philosophical speculation and belief (philosophy).

Global Cultures faculty offer high-quality lectures and, in advanced courses, interactive small group seminars. The major favors a multidisciplinary approach that draws on multiple departments and programs, housed in both the Humanities (including Film and Media Studies, Art History, English, History, Philosophy, Religious Studies, Spanish and Portuguese, and many more) and the Social Sciences (Anthropology, Chicano/Latino Studies, Political Science, Sociology, among others). Up-to-date examples of the highly diverse courses taught in the major are given at http://www.humanities.uci.edu/global_cultures/courses/quarterly.php.

The major consists of a total of 14 courses. Students are encouraged to augment their language other than English competence beyond the School minimum. Participation in the UC Education Abroad Program is strongly recommended for all Global Cultures majors.

EMPHASES

Students majoring or minoring in Global Cultures must choose a primary emphasis (six courses) and a secondary emphasis (two courses) from the list below. They may also design their own emphasis in consultation with a program advisor and with the approval of the Global Cultures Committee. All emphases are chosen in consultation with a faculty advisor and/or the approval of the Global Cultures Committee.

Atlantic Rim: Explores the movement of people and cultures in relationship to the historical and contemporary experience of societies that are adjacent to the Atlantic Ocean, including, among others, west Africa, the Americas, the Caribbean, and western and northern Europe, as well as the British archipelago.

Hispanic, U.S. Latino/Latina, and Luso-Brazilian Cultures: Examines the historical, political, and cultural formations of regions where Spanish and Portuguese are spoken, including Spain, Portugal, Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries in the Western Hemisphere, and the Latino/Latina population in the United States.

Locating Africas (Nation, Culture, and Diaspora): Examines Africa as a diverse geographical and political expression, including its historical, political, and cultural formation locally, regionally, and globally.

Locating Asias (Nation, Culture, and Diaspora): Examines Asia as a diverse geographical and political expression, including its historical and cultural formation locally, regionally, and globally.

Locating Europes and European Colonies: Examines Europe as a diverse geographical and political expression, including its historical and cultural formation locally, regionally, and globally.

Pacific Rim: Explores the movement of people and cultures in relationship to the historical and contemporary experience of societies that are adjacent to the Pacific Ocean, including, among others, India, China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, the United States, Central and South America, and Malaysia.

Inter-Area Studies: Includes comparative studies of the geographical regions outlined in the above six emphases, for instance, the analysis of Africans in Asia, or the cultural, historical, and political connections between the Atlantic and the Pacific Rim.

Students may also design their own emphasis by combining two or more regional emphases in a non-traditional fashion. For instance, a student may wish to study what is known as "Creole" (oral) literatures, found in multiple locations in Africa, Asia, and the Americas.

CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

The major prepares students particularly well for careers in all fields in which analysis, judgment, argument, and a wide (global) rather than narrow perspective are important. The Global Cultures major equips students with a knowledge that is critical to understanding the complexities of the diverse world in which we live.

The following careers are especially well suited for Global Cultures majors: business (national as well as international), law, management, education (primary and secondary teaching), politics, public policy, academia, print media, television, foreign service, tourism, travel industry, and graduate studies in a wide variety of fields (business, law, education, public policy, and others).

The UCI Career Center provides services to students and alumni including career counseling, information about job opportunities, a career library, and workshops on resume preparation, job search, and interview techniques. See the Career Center section for additional information.

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE BACHELOR'S DEGREE

University Requirements: See pages 58-63.