Human Resourse Degrees

Medieval and Renaissance Studies is a special program for students majoring in the Liberal Arts, who may focus their elective and related course choices on Medieval and Renaissance history, literature, thought, and institutions. In satisfying the GER, major and other requirements for the degree, participants choose a minimum of seven courses from those listed below, with at least two from each group, plus HIS 1011 or its equivalent. In the History Group, students must take either History 2131 or History 2141. Students who successfully complete the program requirements are eligible for a Certificate in Medieval and Renaissance Studies.

The Latin American Studies program offers students two options for acquiring a multi-disciplinary understanding of the region and its peoples: the Minor and the Certificate. Students should consult the Program Director to assess which option is appropriate.
Students complete the Minor in Latin American Studies with six courses. Due to the multidisciplinary nature of the program, courses from at least three participating departments must be represented among the six courses completed. Students can meet the program’s foreign language proficiency requirement by completing two relevant courses from the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, or by examination.
Students complete the Certificate in Latin American Studies with nine courses. In this track, the study of language and literature is emphasized. Students must complete four appropriate courses from the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures. Five additional courses from participating departments must also be completed.
Recent course offerings have included the following:
Just Health Care in Developing Nations (with travel to the Dominican Republic)
The History of Social Protest Movements in Latin America
International Management
Global Strategic Planning
The Literature of the Southern Cone (with travel to Argentina and Uruguay)
Narratives of Exploration and Conquest in the America

Students in the Latin American Studies Program engage the complex realities of our hemisphere’s peoples through the study of their histories, cultures, and economies. The program is multi-disciplinary by design, drawing upon the expertise of faculty from both the College of Arts and Sciences and the Haub School of Business. Program alumni enjoy success in international organizations, government, higher education and the private sector.

The certificate program in European Studies gives students majoring in a wide variety of areas, such as economics, finance, history, fine and performing arts, foreign languages, marketing, philosophy, and theology, the opportunity to focus their courses in their major, the General Education Requirement, and electives in an area studies program. Emphasis is placed on the acquisition of a working level of proficiency in one of the continental languages so that students will be able to communicate effectively with Europeans and to read and analyze documents in their original language.
The program of studies for the certificate includes a minor in a modern European language and at least four upper-division courses dealing with European culture in a variety of fields.

The concentration in European studies in an interdepartmental program that provides a grounding in the study of European history, a useful proficiency in one of the major continental European languages, and knowledge of a continental European culture through study of its literature and civilization.
The hallmark of this major is a program of four upper-division courses in both history and a modern European language, culminating in directed readings and research in European Studies that serves as a capstone course. Study of texts in their original language is an essential element of all the courses for European Studies majors.

The European Studies Program at Saint Joseph’s University offers an interdisciplinary experience that opens many avenues of inquiry in a variety of departments, both in the College of Arts and Sciences and the Haub School of Business. Participating in the program are the departments of economics, english, finance, fine and performing arts, foreign languages, history, marketing, philosophy, political science, theology, and the international relations program, thus providing a strong foundation in diverse fields in both colleges of the university. Acknowledged experts in the area of European studies teach in all of these departments, have traveled widely in Europe, have published extensively, and are dedicated to undergraduate teaching.

The core of the Asian Studies program is the major which requires intermediate language competency in an Asian language, two “Foundational Heritage” courses, seven electives courses and a Senior Seminar in Asian Studies. The Foundation Heritage courses are HIS 1561, Introduction to South Asia, and HIS 1571, Introduction to East Asia. Language compentency can be met through courses at Saint Joseph’s (in Chinese and Japanese), as well as through intensive language programs elsewhere (for those interested in languages not taught at Saint Joseph’s, such as Hindi). Electives are selected in order to insure both a geographic concentration and interdisciplinary depth. The Senior Seminar is designed to enable students to synthesize what they have learned during their time at SJU, and will typically take the form of a research seminar or thesis. The expectation is that these papers would be nominated to be presented at the Greater Philadelphia Asian Studies consortium conference each spring.
The Asian Studies program considers experience in Asia to be an essential means of understanding. All Asian Studies majors are expected to spend at least one term (fall, spring, or summer) in a study-abroad program in Asia. This requirement can frequently be met through programs with existing ties to SJU, including The Beijing Center (operated by a consortium of Jesuit universities) and Sophia University in Tokyo, as well as through Saint Joseph’s own China Summer Program, based in Nanjing.

The 21st century has been predicted to be the “Asian Century,” with the role of Asia on the world stage becoming increasingly prominent. Those who wish to assume roles of leadership in this new world must first understand it. The Asian Studies Program at Saint Joseph’s University is an interdisciplinary program designed to provide students with this vital understanding by engaging them in the study of Asia, broadly defined as the region from the Persian Gulf to the Philippines, including the present states of China, Japan, Korea, Mongolia, Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Burma, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, and the Central Asian Republics of the former Soviet Union. Offering both a major and a minor, the program emphasizes understanding Asian cultures on their own terms through an emphasis on the study of core cultural values.
Asian Studies students prepare themselves for graduate study or professional work by studying the language, history, culture, and politics of the region. Currently, participating departments include Economics, English, Fine and Performing Arts, Foreign Languages, History, Political Science, and Theology. Students are encouraged to study abroad in the region as part of their university program.
Students are required to register and consult with the Director of the Asian Studies program, Dr. David Carpenter.

Students who wish to minor in Africana Studies may select six courses from a variety of subject areas. The courses listed below satisfy the Africana Studies minor.
Fine and Performing Arts
ART 1851: Emerging Cinemas
Economics
ECN 2221: African Economies
English
ENG 1211: Cultural Diversity (with a focus on African-American Literature)
ENG 2141: Writing Through Race, Class, and Gender
ENG 2641: Introduction to Postcolonialism
ENG 2911: Literature of South Africa
History
HIS 2061: The Modern Caribbean
HIS 2081: Identity and Power in the Americas, 1350-1650
HIS 2521: Colonialism & Culture
HIS 2531: The Civil War Era
HIS 255: Ethnic America
HIS 2561: Urban America
HIS 2601: American Ideas
Honors 2613: Civil rights: Law And Society
HIS 2651: The Civil Rights Movement in America
HIS 2721: Slavery and the Old South
Sociology
SOC 2051: Ethnic and Minority Relations
SOC 2351: Classes and Power in the United States
SOC 2481: Civil Rights Pilgrimage
SOC 2551: Race, Crime, and Criminal Justice
SOC/HON 1633: Philadelphia in Black and White
SOC/POL/HON 2613: Civil Rights: Law and Society
WRI 2531: Race and Social Justice
Theology
THE 1611 Liberation and Political Theologies
THE 1971 African and Caribbean Religions
THE 2811 Themes in African Theology

Africana Studies is the investigation of ideas, culture, experiences, literature, religion, philosophy, history, and ways of life of people of African descent. Africa itself is rich in culture, language, art, philosophy, etc. The richness of African life has taken on diverse forms in different parts of the world through the African diaspora. In this program we examine many contributions made by people of African descent. Many of our courses focus on the plight of African Americans in the US. However, one of the functions of the program is to also help students learn more about Africa and the experiences of people of African descent outside of the US. Students who wish to pursue a minor in Africana Studies must take at least six courses from the list of approved courses.