Undergraduate Study
Why Study Race, Diaspora and Indigeneity?
Coursework in our department enables students to rigorously and responsibly study race, diaspora and indigeneity – categories that reveal how the motive to differentiate humanity has fundamentally shaped the modern world. Those of you who choose to study and research in our department can expect to learn and apply these concepts, confidently and imaginatively, to a range of contemporary problems. You will develop general competencies in writing, argument, and inquiry as well as more nuanced abilities to seek and use knowledge equitably and empathically. These qualities will uniquely equip you to excel in multiple fields of work, including media, creative writing, investigative journalism, teaching and research at all levels, policy-making and foundations, private sector work focused on social responsibility, and activist organizing.
What distinguishes our curricular program?
Ours is a broad curriculum generated within a thoroughly interdisciplinary department. Students work with acclaimed experts in literature, creative writing, anthropology, sociology, social work, linguistics, visual arts, history, urban studies and cinema and media studies, among other fields. Students who take our classes or enroll in our major or minor encounter a range of analytics, orientations and expressive idioms comparable to few other departments on this campus. Several core approaches tie together the range of interests across our community. These sustain rigorous inquiry while also cautioning that we who seek to advance knowledge are responsible to recognize the benefits and costs that result from our ideas’ impact upon the world. Among our core approaches are intersectionality, and its recognition of both identities and power structures originating through complex co-creation; dedication to utilizing multiple methodologies within both the humanities and social sciences; and a willingness to test the relevance and value of ideas beyond the classroom and campus.
When will the RDI Major and Minor be available?
For the academic year 2022-2023, RDI will administer classes and curriculum advertised through the Critical Race And Ethnic Studies (CRES) program. All classes currently listed in CRES will fulfill elective requirements for the future Major and Minor. Additionally, three Critical Concepts courses (“Indigeneity” “Racial Formations,” and “Diasporas”, all taught by departmental core faculty and affiliates) will be offered in 2022-2023, one per quarter. Those interested in declaring a Major or Minor in RDI may wish to enroll in these courses in the current year, as they will satisfy three (3) out of thirteen (13) required courses for the future Major, and three (3) out of five (5) courses for the future minor.