Minor in African Studies
This interdisciplinary minor connects studies of all African regions (North, West, Central, East, South)—their languages, their cultures, and their peoples, both concurrently in their national and international relationships as well as longitudinally over the course of history.
The African Studies minor is offered jointly by the Schools of Economics; Literature, Media, and Communication; Modern Languages; Public Policy and the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs.
Through the interdisciplinary study of economics, politics (domestic and international), public policy, literature, media, languages and area studies of these regions and populations, students engage in comparative study of societies, values, and local/global issues.
This minor is designed for undergraduates who will enter a wide range of careers that can lead directly or indirectly to interactions with the people, the social organizations and businesses, and governments of Africa, both abroad and in the U.S.
Students wishing to pursue this minor should declare the minor by filling out the minor change form with the Student Advisor in Modern Languages.
General minor guidelines:
- A maximum of six credit hours of Special Topics (with more than 50% on Africa & African diasporas) is allowed.
- All courses must be taken on a letter-grade basis and a grade of C or better must be received in each course.
- No more than six credit hours of coursework can be completed at another university, and the African Studies minor advisor or the ADUS or DUS in Modern Languages must approve this.
- It is the major advisor’s responsibility to verify that students are using only courses from the designated block(s) from the student’s major field of study that are allowed to satisfy a minor program, that they are not using any Core Area A-E courses (including humanities and social sciences), and that they are not using any courses for more than one minor or certificate. Any free elective course used to satisfy the course requirements of the student’s major degree program may also be used to satisfy the course requirements for a minor.
- Study Abroad and Internship Courses may be approved by the African Studies minor advisor or the ADUS or DUS in Modern Languages if they take place in Africa and/or include topics related to Africa and its diasporas. A community internship in Atlanta or elsewhere is also a fine option when related to African-American or African diaspora issues and topics.
- There are no prerequisites for ML courses (placement tests and other tools are used instead).
Requirements
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Course | ||
| ARBC/FREN/PORT/SWAH/WOLO 3420 | Introduction to Africa | 3 |
| Electives | 12 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 15 | |
| 1 | The four electives must include at least two language courses (6 credits) in the same target language at the 1000-level or above in Arabic, French, Portuguese, Swahili, or Wolof. Students may take more than two courses from this list and satisfy up to all four elective courses (12 credits) in this way. Students can count courses in up to two different languages. Only six credits of 1000-/2000-level courses may be counted for the minor (see the table (A-list courses) below). |
| 2 | The elective courses may include up to two courses (6 credits) in English on topics related to African, African-American and other African diasporas studies. These courses include but are not limited to the course list in B.1 in the table below. |
| 3 | A student may substitute one English course from the course list in B.1 in the table below with one course (3 credits) on topics related to topics and skills essential to understanding Africa and working in Africa. These courses include but are not limited to the courses list in B.2 in the table below. |
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| A-course list | ||
| Courses in Foreign Languages (minimum of 6 credits in the same language; maximum of 12 credits across one or two languages). Reminder: only six credits of 1000/2000-level coursework can count toward the African Studies minor. | ||
| Arabic 1 | ||
| ARBC 1001 | Elementary Arabic I | 4 |
| ARBC 1002 | Elementary Arabic II | 4 |
| ARBC 2001 | Intermediate Arabic I | 3 |
| ARBC 2002 | Intermediate Arabic II | 3 |
| ARBC 3001 | Advanced Arabic I | 3 |
| ARBC 3002 | Advanced Arabic II | 3 |
| ARBC 3005 | Contemporary Arab Culture | 3 |
| ARBC 3691 | Intensive Advanced Arabic | 3 |
| ARBC 3692 | Arabic for Business and Technology I | 3 |
| ARBC 3693 | Arabic for Business and Technology II | 3 |
| ARBC 4694 | Internship Assistantship | 1-21 |
| ARBC 4695 | Arabic Internship | 1-3 |
| ARBC 4698 | Research Assistantship | 1-12 |
| ARBC 4699 | Undergraduate Research | 1-12 |
| ARBC 4813 | Special Topics | 3 |
| ARBC 4823 | Special Topics | 3 |
| ARBC 4833 | Special Topics | 3 |
| ARBC 4901 | Special Problems | 1-21 |
| ARBC 4902 | Special Problems | 1-21 |
| French 2 | ||
| FREN 1001 | Elementary French I | 3 |
| FREN 1002 | Elementary French II | 3 |
| FREN 2001 | Patterns of French Culture I | 3 |
| FREN 2002 | Patterns of French Culture II | 3 |
| FREN 4064 | Sustainability & Development in the Francophone World | 3 |
| FREN 4101 | Literature of the Francophone World I | 3 |
| FREN 4102 | Literature of the Francophone World II | 3 |
| FREN 4103 | Francophone Africa | 3 |
| FREN 4105 | Francophone Cinema | 3 |
| FREN 4107 | The African Diasporas in France | 3 |
| Portuguese 3 | ||
| PORT 1001 | Elementary Portuguese I | 3 |
| PORT 1002 | Elementary Portuguese II | 3 |
| PORT 1501 | Heritage Portuguese I | 3 |
| PORT 2001 | Intermediate Portuguese I | 3 |
| PORT 2002 | Intermediate Portuguese II | 3 |
| PORT 2501 | Heritage Portuguese II | 3 |
| Swahili 4 | ||
| SWAH 1001 | Elementary Swahili I | 4 |
| SWAH 1002 | Elementary Swahili II | 4 |
| SWAH 1501 | Heritage Swahili I | 4 |
| SWAH 2001 | Intrmediate Swahili I | 3 |
| SWAH 2002 | Intermediate Swahili II | 3 |
| SWAH 2501 | Heritage Swahili II | 3 |
| Wolof 5 | ||
| WOLO 1001 | Elementary Wolof I | 3 |
| WOLO 1002 | Elementary Wolof II | 3 |
| WOLO 2001 | Intermediate Wolof I | 3 |
| WOLO 2002 | Intermediate Wolof II | 3 |
| 1 | Students may count any other 3000/4000-level Arabic course(s) not listed above with approval from the African Studies minor advisor or the ADUS or DUS in Modern Languages. |
| 2 | Students may count any other 3000/4000-level French course(s) not listed above when taught with 50% or more content on Africa with approval from the African Studies minor advisor or the ADUS or DUS in Modern Languages. |
| 3 | Students may count any other 3000/4000-level Portuguese course(s) when taught with 50% or more content on Africa with approval from the African Studies minor advisor or the ADUS or DUS in Modern Languages. |
| 4 | Students may count any 3000/4000-level Swahili courses. |
| 5 | Students may count any 3000/4000-level Wolof courses. |
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| B.1 Course List 1 | ||
| Courses in English related to African, African-American and other African diasporas studies and issues (Up to six credits from B.1) | ||
| ARBC 1501 | Understanding Arab Culture | 3 |
| ARBC 2301 | Arabic Arts, Science and Technology Through History | 3 |
| ARBC 3501 | Men-Women In Islam | 3 |
| INTA 3240 | Government and Politics of Africa | 3 |
| LMC 3208 | African American Literature and Culture | 3 |
| ML 2500 | Think Globally, Act Locally: An Introduction to Cross-Cultural Studies | 3 |
| PUBP 3214 | African American Politics | 3 |
| 1 | Students may count any other (non-ML) IAC course(s) not listed in B.1 below when taught with 50% or more content on African, African-American and other African diasporas studies and issues (Up to six credits from B.1) with approval from the African Studies minor advisor or the ADUS or DUS in Modern Languages. |
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| B.2 Course List 1 | ||
| Courses in English Related to Topics and Skills essential to understanding Africa and working in Africa (Up to three credits from B.2) | ||
| ECON 4350 | International Economics | 3 |
| ECON 4411 | Economic Development | 3 |
| ECON 4415 | Conflict and Security in Developing Countries | 3 |
| INTA 2050 | Intro to Global Development | 3 |
| INTA 3303 | Political Economy of Development | 3 |
| INTA 4241 | Democracy in the Global South | 3 |
| LMC 3210 | Ethnicity in American Culture | 3 |
| LMC 3214 | Science Fiction | 3 |
| LMC 3257 & 3257R | Global Cinema and LMC 3257 Recitation | 3 |
| LMC 3306 | Science, Technology, and Race | 3 |
| PUBP 3520 | Globalization and Public Policy | 3 |
| 1 | Students may count any other (non-ML) IAC course not listed in B.2 below and related to topics and skills essential to understanding Africa and working in Africa (Up to three credits from B.2) with approval from the African Studies minor advisor or the ADUS or DUS in Modern Languages. |