(For information on a major in Russian language and literature, Russian language and civilization, or Polish language and literature, see Slavic Languages and Literature.)
The undergraduate certificate program in Russian, East European, and Central Asian studies seeks to provide undergraduate students with area knowledge of the societies and cultures of the peoples of Eastern Europe and Eurasia, drawing on the disciplines of anthropology, communication arts, economics, folklore, geography, history, language and literature, law, political science, and sociology. The certificate can be a valuable addition to a major in business, economics, education, geography, history, international studies, political science, Slavic languages and literature, and other departments.
Applicants must fulfill the UW–Madison requirements for an established major in their school or college and achieve a minimum GPA of 2.500 in all courses they wish to count toward the certificate. Courses may not be taken on a pass/fail basis. At least two years of a Slavic, East European, or Central Asian language are strongly recommended for the certificate, but are not formally required.
Students interested in declaring the undergraduate certificate should contact the advisor.
certificate requirements
Seven courses are required, at least one from each of the following three groups. 2
Interdisciplinary courses (group 1)
Complete at least one course:
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Russia: An Interdisciplinary Survey | |
| Eastern Europe: An Interdisciplinary Survey | |
| An Introduction to Central Asia: From the Silk Route to Afghanistan | |
History and the Social Sciences (group 2):
Complete at least one course from any of these areas:
Agricultural and Applied Economics
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| The Environment and the Global Economy | |
| Globalization, Poverty and Development | |
| The Growth and Development of Nations in the Global Economy | |
| Economic Problems of Developing Areas | |
Anthropology
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Ethnicity, Nations, and Nationalism 1 | |
Economics
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Survey of International Economics 1 | |
| International Trade | |
Geography
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Introduction to Geopolitics 1 | |
| World Regions in Global Context (Check with instructor to verify 25% or more regional content ) | |
| Russia and the NIS-Topical Analysis | |
History
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| An Introduction to Central Asia: From the Silk Route to Afghanistan | |
| Eastern Europe since 1900 | |
| Introduction to Byzantine History and Civilization | |
| The First World War and the Shaping of Twentieth-Century Europe | |
| The Second World War | |
| History of Europe Since 1945 | |
| Modern Political History of the Jews: Era of Mass Movements, 1870-1970 | |
| History of Russia | |
| History of Russia | |
| History of Soviet Russia | |
| Russian Social and Intellectual History | |
| The Soviet Union and the World, 1917-1991 | |
| History of Poland and the Baltic Area | |
| American Foreign Relations, 1901 to the Present | |
| Islamic History From the Origin of Islam to the Ottoman Empire | |
| European Social History, 1914-Present | |
| Holocaust: History, Memory and Education | |
| Byzantine Medicine and Pharmacy | |
Gender & Women's Studies
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Women's International Human Rights | |
Political Science
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Politics Around the World | |
| Politics Around the World (Honors) | |
| Islam and World Politics | |
| Russian Politics | |
| The European Union: Politics and Political Economy | |
| Politics of the World Economy | |
| The Comparative Study of Genocide | |
| The Challenge of Democratization | |
| Comparative Legal Institutions | |
| Socialism and Transitions to the Market | |
| Politics and Policies in the European Union | |
| Politics and Society: Contemporary Eastern Europe | |
Sociology
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Class, State and Ideology: an Introduction to Marxist Social Science | |
| Population and Society | |
Literature and the Arts (group 3)
Complete at least one course from any of these areas:
Asian Language & Culture
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Asia Enchanted: Ghosts, Gods, and Monsters | |
| Islam: Religion and Culture | |
Communication Arts
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Russian and Soviet Film | |
| Avant-Garde Film | |
Comparative Literature
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Introduction to Modern and Contemporary Literature | |
| Problems in Comparative Literatures and Cultures | |
English
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Vladimir Nabokov: Russian and American Writings | |
Folklore
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| In Translation: Kalevala and Finnish Folk-Lore | |
| Shamanism | |
| Sami Culture, Yesterday and Today | |
| Slavic and East European Folklore | |
| Folk Epics 1 | |
German, Nordic and Slavic
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Literatures of Central Asia | |
Jewish Studies
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Elementary Topics in Jewish Literature | |
| Yiddish Literature and Culture in Europe | |
Literature in Translation
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Survey of 19th and 20th Century Russian Literature in Translation I | |
| Survey of 19th and 20th Century Russian Literature in Translation II | |
| Survey of 19th and 20th Century Russian Literature in Translation I | |
| Survey of 19th and 20th Century Russian Literature in Translation II | |
| Women in Russian Literature in Translation | |
| Slavic Science Fiction through Literature and Film | |
| The Writings of Vaclav Havel: Crtitique of Modern Society | |
| Literatures of Central Asia in Translation | |
| Polish Literature in Translation: 14th to the Mid-19th Century | |
| Polish Literature in Translation: Late 19th and 20th Centuries | |
| Chekhov in Translation | |
| Gogol in Translation | |
| Dostoevsky in Translation | |
| Vladimir Nabokov: Russian and American Writings | |
| Tolstoy in Translation | |
| Representation of the Jew in Eastern European Cultures | |
| Russian Life and Culture Through Literature and Art (to 1917) | |
| Soviet Life and Culture Through Literature and Art (from 1917) | |
| Soviet Literature in Translation | |
| Literatures and Cultures of Eastern Europe | |
| Topics in Slavic Literatures in Translation | |
| Yiddish Literature and Culture in Europe | |
| The Vampire in Literature and Film | |
| In Translation: Kalevala and Finnish Folk-Lore | |
| In Translation: Slavic Drama in Context | |
| History of Serbian and Croatian Literature | |
| Modern Serbian and Croatian Literature in Translation | |
| Polish Literature (in Translation), Middle Ages to 1863 | |
| Polish Literature (in Translation) since 1863 | |
Scandinavian Studies
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Sami Culture, Yesterday and Today | |
| Kalevala and Finnish Folk-Lore | |
Slavic Languages and Literature
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| Literatures and Cultures of Eastern Europe | |
| Topics in Slavic Literatures | |
| Slavic Culture in Context: An Honors Course | |
| Zarys historii literatury polskiej | |
| Study Abroad in Poland | |
| Polish Culture and Area Studies on Study Abroad | |
| Russian Area Studies on Study Abroad | |
| Topics in Russian: Study Abroad | |
| Uvod u srpsku i hrvatsku literaturu | |
| Special Topics in Russian Language, Literature, and Culture | |
| Living at the End of Times: Contemporary Polish Literature and Culture | |
| Women in Russian Literature | |
| Chekhov | |
| Gogol | |
| Dostoevsky | |
| Tolstoy | |
| History of Russian Culture | |
| Contemporary Russian Culture | |
| Slavic and East European Folklore | |
| Soviet Literature | |
| Istorija srpske i hrvatske literature | |
| Moderna srpska i hrvatska literatura | |
| Advanced Readings in Russian Literature & Culture | |
| Historia literatury polskiej do roku 1863 | |
| Historia literatury polskiej po roku 1863 | |
| History of Russian Theatre | |
| Capstone Seminar in Russian Literature and Culture | |
| Directed Study 1 | |
Theatre & Drama
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| In Translation: Slavic Drama in Context | |
| History of Russian Theatre | |
residence and quality of work
- Minimum 2.500 GPA for all coursework approved for the certificate
- 11 credits, counting toward the certificate, taken in residence
Certificate COMPLETION REQUIREMENT
This undergraduate certificate must be completed concurrently with the student’s undergraduate degree. Students cannot delay degree completion to complete the certificate.
- (Regional Understanding) Demonstrate an understanding of the cultural, political, economic, social, and historical factors that have shaped the development of societies in Eurasia, Russia, and East and Central Europe.
- (Multi-disciplinarity) Analyze the historical, political, economic, social, and cultural realities in the region from at least two disciplinary perspectives, including both humanities and social sciences approaches.
Advising for the certificate is administered by the Institute for Regional and International Studies (IRIS). The IRIS assistant director for students and curriculum can assist you in developing your plan of study for the certificate, track progress toward your certificate, explore study abroad and international internship options, and begin the career-exploration process. We offer walk-in advising, advising workshops, and scheduled appointments. We strongly encourage students to begin career exploration early on and to make use of the many resources available on campus.
Resources:
L&S career resources
SuccessWorks at the College of Letters & Science helps students leverage the academic skills learned in their major, certificates, and liberal arts degree; explore and try out different career paths; participate in internships; prepare for the job search and/or graduate school applications; and network with professionals in the field (alumni and employers). In short, SuccessWorks helps students in the College of Letters & Science discover themselves, find opportunities, and develop the skills they need for success after graduation.
SuccessWorks can also assist students in career advising, résumé and cover letter writing, networking opportunities, and interview skills, as well as course offerings for undergraduates to begin their career exploration early in their undergraduate career.
Students should set up their profiles in Handshake to take care of everything they need to explore career events, manage their campus interviews, and apply to jobs and internships from 200,000+ employers around the country.
Faculty: Borowski, Brenner, Castañeda Dower, Chamberlain, Ciancia, Dale, Danaher, DuBois, Erbil, Evans-Romaine, Gerber (director), Glowacki, Hanukai, Hendley, Herrera, Hirsch, Kaiser, Karpukhin, Livanos, McDonald, Michels, Miernowska, Neville, Ospovat, Radeloff, Reynolds, Shevelenko, Tishler, Tumarkin, van de Water, Walter, Wink, Wodzyński, Yudkoff, Zilbergerts.
As a regional center within the Institute for Regional and International Studies, we support and enhance international and global awareness in our student communities and inspire informed thinking about the complexities of our world. We encourage our students to connect to international networks and our regional communities through our program’s lecture series, film screenings, and varied outreach events and activities. We encourage our students to study abroad, do international internships, learn foreign languages, and expect them to gain an interdisciplinary grounding in global and regional affairs. We provide resources and expertise on our world area to students, and prospective students, and more broadly to K–12 teachers and students, postsecondary educators and graduate students, businesses, the media, the military, the community at large, and anyone else who is interested.
Information about resources, scholarships, and other funding through the Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia is available from our website on the Resources tab. We also encourage our students to explore funding options available through the Institute for Regional and International Studies (IRIS) Awards Office.
