Africana Studies

What Is Africana Studies ?

Majors in Africana studies use a variety of approaches to explore and better understand the experiences of African, African American, Afro-Latin, Afro-Caribbean and Afro-European populations in a global context. This interdisciplinary major employs analytical tools from fields such as sociology, literature and history to explore important social issues facing people of African descent, from continental Africa and throughout the African diaspora.

In this major, students acquire effective skills in critical thinking, as well as written and oral communication, and they are equipped with the resources to work with diverse people in all types of situations. As a program of study, Africana studies also explores and shares knowledge about people of African descent. Such knowledge contributes to a mutual understanding among peoples and helps to cultivate tolerance.

Success Factors

People who are successful in Africana studies possess strong verbal and writing skills, making them excellent communicators. They work well with adults, children and the elderly. Many enjoy travel, finding firsthand experience necessary to learn more about the cultures of the diaspora. Africana studies majors have versatile personalities and are able to adapt to many different circumstances.

Career Possibilities

Graduates of this major pursue many different careers. A few examples include:

• Banker
• Community organizer
• Foreign service
• Law
• Museum worker
• Philanthropy
• Public official
• Social worker
• Teacher
• University student services
• Writer

Additional career options are listed on the Career Development Center's Web site. 

Major Details

To a great extent, majors in Africana studies at the UC McMicken College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) design their own programs, and each student is encouraged to develop an area of concentration within the major. Areas of concentration aim to provide students with a body of information and skills reflecting their personal interests, career plans and/or graduate school aspirations. After meeting with the undergraduate director, all students in Africana studies are assigned a faculty adviser in the department.

McMicken College's flexible degree requirements allow for and highly encourage students to pursue multiple areas of study. Free electives allow for enough credits for students to pursue a minor, certificate program or even complete a second major. Some of the most common pairings are listed below.

• Asian Studies
• Communication
• French
• History
• International Affairs
• Latin American Studies
• Sociology
• Spanish
• Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Minor Details

The Department of Africana Studies offers a minor in Africana studies for undergraduates enrolled in any college of the university. Students minoring in Africana studies must complete 30 credit hours selected from courses offered by the Department of Africana Studies and from approved courses offered by other academic areas. The minor is intended for students who want to develop a specialty in Africana studies that will complement their existing areas of study.

A certificate in African studies is also offered. Students may want to enroll in the certificate program to enhance their major. Students are required to take 30 credit hours from the department of Africana Studies and/or from other colleges on campus.

Curriculum

This curriculum information is intended as a general information guide for students considering enrollment in this major. These online tools are designed to assist you, but are not a substitute for planning with an academic or faculty advisor.

If you are currently enrolled at UC, you can audit your degree online. If you are considering transferring to this major from another school use the course applicability system (CAS) to see how credits you have earned will apply to this major at UC. For course descriptions by college, click here.

College requirements

This is a suggested plan to complete the program in four years. Students will take required courses at different times depending upon their choice of options and the combination of the major with a minor or other program.

*Needed to fulfill A&S college requirements.

Africana Studies Major Requirements
Students majoring in Africana studies complete 54 credit hours with the following distribution:

A.  Introduction Core Courses (6 credits)
15AFAM101 Introduction to African and African American Studies
15AFAM227 Introduction to Modern Africa

B. Literature Core Courses (9 credits)
15AFAM310, 311, 312  African American Literature
15AFAM360, 361, 362  Literature of the African Diaspora 

C.  History Core Courses (9 credits)
15AFAM301, 302, 303  African History
15AFAM322, 323, 324  African American History
15 AFAM370 W.E.B. DuBois and the African American Experience in America: 1868-1920
15AFAM371 20th Century Black Internationalism: Globalization and American Experience
15AFAM395 Race and Politics in America: 1936 to the Present**

 **Weekend course. Prereq: Six hours of AFAM credits or permission of instructor required.

D. Sociology Core Courses (9 credits)
15AFAM234, 235, 236  Sociology of the Black Community
15AFAM566  African Diaspora Cultures

E. Seminar Requirement (3 credits)
15AFAM508  Seminar in African World History
15AFAM509  Seminar in African American History
15AFAM530  Seminar in Black Creative Expression
15AFAM535  Seminar in Black Community Development

F. Capstone Requirement (3 credits)
15AFAM597 Seminar in African and African American Studies

Electives (15 credits)
Electives should be used to develop an area of expertise or specialization relative to an aspect of African American or African diaspora experience. These 15 credit hours must be at the 400 or 500 level.
15AFAM304   Black Men in US Society
15AFAM307   Blacks in Science and Technology
15AFAM345   African Religion
15AFAM363   African Literature
15AFAM404   Contemporary Black Film
15AFAM431   Black Urban Poverty
15AFAM442   Religion in African American Literature
15AFAM530   Topics in Black Cultural Studies 
15AFAM532   Black Popular Culture
15AFAM589   Black Women Writers: Wheatley to Hurston
15AFAM590   Black Women Writers: Hurston to the Present 

Special Opportunities

Students in the UC McMicken College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) enjoy many benefits afforded through study at a research-extensive institution ranked among the nation's top 25 public research universities. UC's urban, tri-state location offers exciting opportunities for global education, research and service learning, while its student-centered focus includes an 11:1 student-faculty ratio, a nationally recognized Center for Exploratory Studies and a highly successful First Year Experience program that teaches critical skills for first-year students and provides connections with important campus resources.

Special Programs

The Department of Africana studies combines knowledge of Africans and African Americans in the U.S. and Europe into one program. It offers two African languages, Swahili and Yoruba. It cross-lists courses with the Department of Women's Studies and History. It offers the class Blacks in Science and Technology, one of the few such courses in the country.

Admission Requirements

Admission criteria for this program vary based on the relative strength of test scores, class rank and GPA. Please see the freshman class profile for this major in the Quick Facts sidebar on this page for the range of academic credentials typically accepted into this program. Test scores in the lower range may be acceptable with higher class rank and/or GPA.

Freshmen applying to this program should also have completed the following State of Ohio articulation requirements with no more than two units missing:

• English (4 units)*
• College-preparatory Mathematics (3 units)*
• Science (2 units)
• Social Science (2 units)
• Foreign Language (2 units)*
• Fine Arts (1 unit)
• Additional college prep subjects (2 units)

*McMicken College of Arts & Sciences does not allow units missing from these areas.

Transfer Requirements

Applicants to A&S whose most recent enrollment was not in any of the UC colleges must apply through the Office of Admissions. Applicants in this category must submit transcripts for all secondary school and college-level work. A cumulative GPA of 2.0 for all college-level work is required for admission consideration. Admission to A&S is generally available for any off-campus applicants who have received an associate degree from an accredited college or university and whose cumulative GPA is 2.0 or higher.

Although midyear off-campus transfer students are not able to participate in early registration in the quarter prior to their enrollment, they are included in the summer registration period prior to their fall quarter enrollment.

Changing Major Requirements

Applicants to A&S whose most recent enrollment was as a degree-seeking student in one of UC's other colleges can apply directly to the A&S college office. Admission to A&S is generally available for any on-campus students who have:

• at least a 2.0 GPA in all college-level courses (both at UC and at other institutions),
• successfully completed two quarters of English Composition or its equivalent and
• gained credit for a college-level mathematics course.

Further details on individual programs are available online or in the A&S Office of Undergraduate Student Affairs and Advising (102 McMicken Hall).

Graduation Requirements

In addition to meeting the university's General Education requirements, the requirements listed in the McMicken College Core Requirements are common to all potential graduates of the college, whether they are pursuing the bachelor of arts, bachelor of science or bachelor of interdisciplinary studies degree.

Application Deadlines

UC operates on a quarter system, with 10-week grading periods beginning in late September, early January, late March and mid-June. While midyear admission is possible, fall quarter is generally the best time to enter the college, since many course sequences begin in that quarter. Applicants to the UC McMicken College of Arts and Sciences who are enrolled or who were previously enrolled as degree-seeking students in A&S or in other UC colleges should apply for admission directly to A&S (in McMicken 102). All other applicants who wish to earn an undergraduate degree from A&S should apply through the Office of Admissions (3rd floor, University Pavilion).