Honors Program in Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity
FOR MAJORS IN COMPARATIVE STUDIES IN RACE AND ETHNICITY
The Interdepartmental Program in Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity offers a program leading to honors for majors in:
- Asian American Studies
- Chicana/o Studies
- Comparative Studies
- Native American Studies
The honors program offers an opportunity to do independent research for a senior thesis. It is open to majors who have maintained a grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.5 in the major and 3.3 overall. The honors thesis is intended to enable students to synthesize skills to produce a document or project demonstrating a measure of competence in their specialty.
Majors interested in honors are encouraged to enroll in CSRE 199, Pre-Honors Seminar, in Autumn Quarter of the junior year. This course is preparation for the honors thesis and allows the student to work with a mentor to select a topic, construct a research question, and develop a research plan.
The application for honors must be submitted by June 1 of the junior year, but students are encouraged to apply earlier. The application includes a proposal describing the project that is approved by the faculty adviser and director of the undergraduate program. Students are required to identify both a faculty adviser and a second reader for the thesis project.
Honors students take CSRE 200X, Senior Seminar, which fulfills the program's WIM requirement, and also enroll in CSRE 200Y and 200Z, CSRE Senior Honors Research, in Winter and Spring quarters to continue to access peer and faculty support as they write their theses. Students must complete their theses with a grade of 'B+' to receive honors in CSRE.
An honors colloquium held near the end of Spring Quarter affords students an opportunity to present their research formally. Prizes for best undergraduate honors thesis are awarded annually by the CSRE curriculum committee.
Applications are available in the CSRE Undergraduate Program office and on the program web site.
FOR MAJORS IN OTHER DEPARTMENTS
The Interdisciplinary Honors Program for Non-Majors in Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity is intended to complement study in any major. Students who participate in the honors program receive their degree from their program of study with departmental honors in Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity.
Honors certification will be open to students majoring in any field with a GPA in their chosen major of 3.5 and an overall GPA of 3.3. As a prerequisite, students apply for entry by Spring Quarter of the junior year (deadline June 1), but students are encouraged to begin earlier. During the application process, students outline a plan for course work and design an honors project in consultation with their proposed thesis adviser and the CSRE senior seminar coordinator.
The application describes how the student may fulfill the course requirements for interdisciplinary honors in CSRE and includes a proposal describing the project that is approved by the faculty adviser and director of the undergraduate program. Students are required to identify both a faculty advisor and a second reader for the thesis project. Applications are available in the CSRE undergraduate program office and on the program web site.
Students pursuing a minor in Asian American Studies, Chicana/o Studies, Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity, or Native American Studies who wish to pursue honors in their area of study, apply through the process for non-majors. Students may use their course work for the minor toward the requirements of the interdisciplinary honors program.
Requirements:
Students applying for the interdisciplinary honors program in CSRE are required to take the following courses:
- CSRE 196C/ENGLISH 172D/PSYCH 155. Introduction to Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity
- a second course identified as core or foundational to CSRE, such as:
- AFRICAAM 105. Introduction to African and African American Studies (5 units)
- ANTHRO 32. Theories of Race and Ethnicity (5 units)
- ASNAMST 59/HISTORY 59. Introduction to Asian American History (5 units)
- ASNAMST 146S/CSRE 146S/AMSTUD 146/COMPLIT 146. Asian American Culture and Community (5 units)
- CHICANST 180E/CSRE 180E. Introduction to Chicana/o Studies (5 units)
- CSRE 125V/POLISCI 125V. Minority Representation and the Voting Rights Act. (5 units)
- CSRE 149/COMPLIT 148. Introduction to Asian American Cultures (3-5 units)
- CSRE 245/EDUC 245. Understanding Racial and Ethnic Identity Development (3-5 units)
- CSRE 255D/HISTORY 255D. Racial Identity in the American Imagination (4-5 units)
- ENGLISH 43C/ENGLISH 143C. Introduction to Asian American Literature (3-5 units)
- HISTORY 64. Introduction to Race and Ethnicity in 20th Century America (5 units)
- NATIVEAM 16/ANTHRO 16. Native Americans in the 21st Century: Encounters, Identity, and Sovereignty in Contemporary America (5 units)
- NATIVEAM 138/SOC 138. American Indians in Comparative Historical Perspective (5 units)
- NATIVEAM 139/SOC 139. American Indians in Contemporary Society (5 units)
- PSYCH 75. Introduction to Cultural Psychology (5 units)
- SOC 147A. Comparative Ethnic Conflict (5 units)
- SOC 166. Mexicans, Mexican Americans, and Chicanos in American Society (5 units)
In addition, it is recommended that students complete CSRE 199: Pre-Honor Seminar, to best prepare for the application process and to frame their research topics.
These courses must be completed with a grade of 'B+' or better for the honors program.
In addition, students are required to take:
- a core, foundational, thematic, or cognate course related to the topic of the proposal or honors research (selected in consultation with the thesis advisor)
- CSRE 200X. Senior Seminar
- CSRE 200Y. and 200Z. CSRE Senior Honors Research (in Winter and Spring quarters)
These courses must be completed with a minimum grade of 'B+'. Throughout the year, students work with faculty adviser and the senior seminar coordinator to complete their theses. Students must complete their theses with a grade of 'B+' to receive honors in CSRE.
An honors colloquium held near the end of Spring Quarter affords students an opportunity to present their research formally. Prizes for best undergraduate honors thesis are awarded annually by the CSRE curriculum committee.