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North American Studies

Master

In this programme you will study U.S. history, literature and culture, as part of an integrated approach to American Studies and with a special (though not exclusive) focus on themes such as immigration, race, ethnicity, and civil rights. This approach enables you to discover connections between historical events and cultural and literary developments, but the range of elective courses also makes it possible to specialise in either U.S. history or literature.

Courses

(a) a required, interdisciplinary core course about Major Issues in American History and Culture
(b) three elective courses, which give a deepened understanding on some of the themes that are discussed in the Major Issues core course (total elective courses: 30 EC).

Students can choose to do one elective course outside the North American Studies Department.

Vak EC Semester 1 Semester 2
Thesis Seminar
MA Thesis 20

First semester
Major Issues in American History and Culture (required) 10

Electives
The American Civil Rights Movement 10
Slavery and Memory in Transatlantic Perspective 10

Second semester

Electives
Migration Matters: (Im)migration, Memory, and Identity in American Literature and Film 10
Peace Movements in U.S. History 10
The Rise and Fall of American Empire 10

Required course

Students who start in February take the following course instead of Major Issues in American History and Culture
Readings in American History 10

Electives outside North American Studies

Students can choose to do one elective course outside the North American Studies Department, for example one of the following.
Alfred Hitchcock 10
Supernatural Fiction: Belief, Horror and Wonder in Anglo-American Popular Culture 10