About Russian and Slavic
Studying Russian and Slavic in the Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics at Florida State University provides students strong proficiency in Russian, with courses ranging from elementary to advanced Russian, and a thorough grounding in Ukrainian, with elementary and intermediate Ukrainian courses.
The language track also offers wide-ranging surveys of the customs, folklores, and literatures of the Slavic world, from Russia and Ukraine to the Balkans. Courses are taught in English translation as well as in Russian.
The Russian and Slavic track emphasizes professional and academic training. Former students are employed with the FBI, U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Air Force. They have been accepted into prestigious Ph.D. programs in Slavic languages and literatures and in linguistics, as well as M.A. programs in Russian and East European studies, international affairs, linguistics and media studies. They have received internships with the U.S. Department of State and the FBI, scholarships from the U.S. Bureau of Intelligence and Research, Fulbright Awards, Boren Scholarships, Critical Language Scholarships and Pickering Fellowships. Others are employed in consulting and management positions in the private sector in Europe and the U.S.
Undergraduate Requirements
The department offers a 30-credit major in Russian as well as 12-credit minors in Russian and in Ukrainian.
Graduate Requirements
Our M.A. degree in Slavic includes Russian language and historical linguistics as well as Russian and other Slavic customs, folklores and literatures. Students choose from two master’s degree program types: a 30-credit thesis-type and a 32-credit course-type.
Why study Slavic languages?
Around 400 million people speak Slavic languages worldwide, some 260 million of whom speak Russian and 45 million—Ukrainian. U.S. federal agencies have identified Russian as a priority language of national need. At the same time, Ukraine has applied to join Western structures such as the EU and NATO. Today, the study of Slavic languages is more important than ever.