Degree Programs

There are two degree-programs in Russian Studies at ECU:

  • BA in Multidisciplinary Studies: Russian Studies (120 s.h.)
  • Minor in Russian Studies (18 s.h.)

ECU Catalog: Please see the most recent catalog. Interested students should consult the Director of Russian Studies.

Russian Studies Minor (18 s.h.)

  • Two core seminars (RUSI): one of the introductory courses RUSI 2001 Humanities or 2002 Social Science or 2003 Fine Arts, and RUSI 4000 Senior Seminar in Russian Studies.
  • Electives (12 s.h.): at least one 3000 level RUSS course in Humanities from 19th/20th Cent. Russian literature in translation; Russian/Soviet film; Russian culture; special topics in media, folklore, film, or literature; intermediate/advanced Russian conversation, composition and grammar. Other electives may include courses in Social Science (HIST/ECON/POLS): Russian Medieval/Imperial/Soviet history; Russian economics; Russian/East European politics, and/or Russian GLST humanities courses, RUSS 2003 and RUSS 2004 language courses.

The Russian Studies minor is an interdisciplinary program offered through the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences. The minor is designed to provide students with a comprehensive knowledge of Russia from both historical and contemporary perspectives. Students pursuing the interdisciplinary Russian studies minor are strongly encouraged to take advantage of study abroad opportunities.

The interdisciplinary program includes an introductory course and senior level seminar in Russian Studies. In addition, the Russian Studies program offers lectures and seminars on Russian language, literature, culture, film, history, political science, and economics. Other appropriate courses in humanities, social science, and fine arts with Russian Studies content may be counted towards the minor in consultation with the program director. It is recommended that BA majors from other disciplines take Russian language to satisfy their foreign language requirements. No more than 6 s.h. of course work in the student’s major field of study will be accepted for credit toward the minor. The student’s minor program must be approved by the Russian Studies program director.

The Russian Studies program draws its primary faculty from the HCAS Departments of Foreign Languages and Literatures, History, Political Science, Economics, and Sociology. Due to such interdisciplinary nature of the RUSI program, Russian Studies core and elective courses are offered under prefixes RUSS, RUSI, GLST, HIST, POLS and ECON. With an average of 10-12 Russian Studies course offerings each year, the minor can easily be fit into any major program of study and completed within two years (either three or four semesters).

BA Concentration in Russian Studies (30 s.h.)

Through the BA in Multidisciplinary Studies, it is possible to pursue a BA Concentration in Russian Studies. The requirements for the major are the same as those for the minor with the addition of a 6 s.h. senior thesis (MULT 3500, MULT 4999), individually mentored by one of the RUSI program faculty. Russian language sequence (RUSS 1001-2004) is used to satisfy the Foreign Language requirement for the BA degree in Russian Studies.

Students interested in the BA in Multidisciplinary Studies: Russian Studies major or in the interdisciplinary Russian Studies minor should contact Russian Studies Program Director and Faculty Advisor Dr. Elena Murenina at mureninae@ecu.edu . The director will be glad to advise students with a higher than 3.3 GPA on options to combine a concentration in Russian Studies with a second major in another discipline.