The B.A. in Modern Languages, Literatures, and Cultures offers a major in Russian and minors in Russian and Ukrainian. Students gain a 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 major and minor also offer wide-ranging surveys of the cultures, folklores, and literatures of the Slavic world, from Russia and Ukraine to the Balkans. Culture, folklore, and literature courses are taught in English translation as well as in Russian.
Russian Major
The Russian major offers a well-structured program of Russian language study, bringing students to advanced proficiency—and room for electives in which students learn about the culture, folklore, and literature of the Russians as well as those of other Slavic peoples.
It requires 30 semester hours numbered above 2220, including RUS 2330, RUS 3400, RUS 3420 and at least 12 semester hours of Russian and Slavic coursework at the 4000-level or above. Majors must complete 12-15 hours for a minor (more if required by minor department). All courses taken to fulfill the 30 hours of major coursework must be taken for a letter grade. A grade of C minus or better must be earned in each course applied toward any major or minor degree earned in the department.
[EFFECTIVE FALL 2025]
Russian Major (30 hours total)
Core Requirements (6 hours)
- LIN 2004 World Languages
- FOW 2100 Literature and the World
Russian Major Requirements (24 hours)
Required Courses (9 hours):
- RUS2330 Russian Grammar and Popular Culture
- RUS3400 Conversation and Composition
- RUS3420 Russian Grammar and Composition
Elective Coursework (15 hours):
Students will complete 15 credit hours at the upper-division in electives.
- A minimum of 3 credit hours of SLL coursework at the 4000-level
- A minimum of 3 credit hours of RUS coursework at the 4000-level, excluding RUS4905 and RUS4930
- A minimum of 3 credit hours of Russian Literature coursework (RUW) at the 4000-level
- No more than 6 credit hours 3000-level RUT or SLL courses taught in English will count towards the Russian major
Russian Minor
The Russian minor allows students to create their own interdisciplinary program of Russian and Slavic studies, focusing on Russian language, culture courses in English, or anything in between.
12 semester hours in Russian and/or Slavic (RUS, RUT, RUW, and SLL) numbered above 1999 are required for the Russian minor. Credit earned in meeting the foreign language requirement for graduation may not be used in satisfying the minor.
Ukrainian Minor (Coming Soon)
The Ukrainian minor offers an interdisciplinary introduction to Ukrainian culture and language, with several courses exploring Ukraine’s rich folkloric tradition.