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136 ARTS AND SCIENCES
3. Senior Program: after consultation with faculty advisor,
choose 15 hours in courses numbered 300 and above:
a. Twelve interdepartmental hours in courses centering
around a particular topic or problem in American
culture. Of the 12 hours required in this section and
the 30 hours required in 2 above (a total of 42), 18
must be in American Studies. 12
b. American Studies Seminar and Thesis (485) 3
Total Hours 48
A minor (18–26 hours in another department) is strongly
recommended but not required.
Minor Study Requirements
An American Studies minor may be elected by undergraduate
students majoring in the departments of Anthropology,
Art History and Criticism, Economics, English, History,
Philosophy, Political Science or Sociology. People having
other majors will need the special approval of both their major
advisor and the American Studies office.
The minor in American Studies is designed to introduce
students to the interdisciplinary study of the culture of the
United States. The requirement is 24 hours, including 15
hours in American Studies: 285, 3 hours at any level and
9 hours at the 300 level. Students will take the remaining 9
hours in an integrated program chosen from other departments
(Anthropology, Art History and criticism, Economics,
English, Geography, History, Political Science, Philosophy,
Psychology or Sociology) or American Studies courses. All of
these 9 hours must be from courses at the 200 level or above.
With proper selection of courses a student may elect a minor
in American Studies with an emphasis in African-American,
Chicano, Native American or Women Studies. A student may
choose to focus his or her minor program on other important
themes in American culture, such as the popular arts or
ecology in America, or may emphasize the interdisciplinary
study of a region or the nation as a whole. All students should
consult with their major advisor and the American Studies
undergraduate advisor as early as possible to obtain approval
of their minor programs.
Major or Minor:
Southwest Concentration
The wealth of courses in various departments and colleges
at the University of New Mexico dealing with the American
Southwest and the Mexican Borderlands supports this concentration.
Recognizing the unique contributions of Southwest
regional cultural development to the larger United States, the
American Studies concentration in Southwest Cultural Studies
provides undergraduates and graduates with an interdisciplinary
program that is both structured and flexible.
Major Concentration in
Southwest Culture Studies includes:
1. Requires American Studies 285, American Life and
Thought (3). 186, Introduction to Southwest Studies
(3). Courses designed to provide an introduction to
interdisciplinary methods and a context for Southwest
Studies.
2. Twenty-seven hours of Interdisciplinary Studies of
Southwest Culture: In consultation with the American
Studies undergraduate advisor, the student will structure
a coherent program of nine related courses
selected from five general areas: History and Literature,
Social and Cultural Systems, Political and Economic
Studies, Arts and Humanities and Natural History.
The major portion of this course work should center
on a particular historical focus (Spanish Colonial, U.S.
Territorial, Contemporary Southwest, etc.), ethnic or
cultural experience (Chicano Experience, Southwest
Native Americans) or specific geographical or environmental
studies (The Ecology of Arid Climates, etc.). In
all cases, students are encouraged to develop a broad
comparative analysis (for example, a U.S. national
cultural context or a Latin American context) or an
extended chronological emphasis, not simply a concentration
on a single narrow topic.
3. Senior Program: After consultation with the American
Studies undergraduate advisor, choose (from courses
numbered 300 and above):
a. Twelve interdepartmental hours in courses centered
around a specific topic or problem in Southwest
Cultural Studies. The theme of this final course
work generally emerges from the previous broad
sampling (section 2 above).
b. American Studies Senior Seminar In U.S. Culture
(485): A course in which the interdisciplinary implications
of each student’s major topic are explored.
Minor Concentration in
Southwest Culture Studies
This minor is designed to introduce students to the interdisciplinary
study of the culture of the Southwest. Within the concentration,
students may study the broad issue of Southwest
Culture or focus on a specific area such as Native American
Studies, Chicano Studies or cultural ecology. Hours requirements
are identical with the minor specified above with the
exception that the student must take American Studies 186,
Introduction to Southwest Studies, as part of the 15 hours of
required American Studies courses.
Departmental Honors
Students seeking departmental honors should apply to the
American Studies undergraduate advisor in their junior year.
In addition to maintaining a 3.20 overall grade point average,
Honors candidates must also successfully complete 3 credit
hours of Senior Honors Thesis (499) and the American Studies
Senior Seminar in U.S. Culture (485) in their senior year.
Graduate Programs
Graduate Advisor
Varies, contact department office.
Application Deadlines
Annual: February 1.
NOTE: Early application is recommended. No new
applications will be accepted after February 1.
Degrees Offered
M.A. in American Studies
Ph.D. in American Studies
The Department of American Studies is committed to the
interdisciplinary study of American culture and society as a
whole. Besides general courses in American life and thought,
six areas of special concentration are offered: culture studies
(including folklore and material culture); Southwest studies;
environment, science and technology; popular culture; gender
studies; race, class and ethnicity. Students consult with
department faculty to develop individual, inter-departmental
programs of study in the humanities and social sciences
that focus on these or other significant aspects of American
society and thought.
UNM CATALOG 2006–2007 Symbols, page 611.