Africana Studies offers a broad course of interdisciplinary study relating to Africa, people of African descent, and the many different contexts of the African Diaspora around the world. Drawing on diverse methodologies and academic disciplines, Africana Studies teaches students to think analytically and critically about global Black experiences across space and time. Africana Studies also trains students to make intellectual connections among global, national, and local contexts. Building on the university's strengths in the social sciences, behavioral sciences, and humanities, Africana Studies provides an intellectual center for teaching, research, and community engagement that prepares students to function effectively in a multicultural society and diverse international environments.
Students graduating with a degree in Africana Studies are well prepared with the cultural resources and tools needed to pursue most professional careers. Recent graduates have enrolled in graduate school, launched for-profit and not-for-profit businesses, and conducted relief work in various African countries. Others have pursued professional careers in medicine, social work, and law.
Students should note that more than half of the courses which count toward the Africana Studies Major are based in other Departments, Programs and Schools across the University. Students may take a wide range of electives in departments such as Art History, Communication, French, Music, Political Science or Psychology for example in order to complete the Africana Studies Major.
Ten courses (minimum of 30 credits) are required for the major. The major consists of the following:
| Course ID | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Introductory Course | ||
| AFRS 2000 | Introduction to Africana Studies 1 | 3 |
| Elective Courses 2,3 | ||
| Geographic Distribution: | ||
| Select at least two courses in African Studies | 6 | |
| Select at least two courses in African Diaspora Studies | 6 | |
| Africana Studies Program Electives: | ||
| Select at least one elective course which is based in the Africana Studies Program with the AFRS course designation. Usually this course will be taken at the 3000 level. However, an upper level AFRS 4000 level class may also fill this requirement. | 3 | |
| Upper Level Courses: | ||
| Select at least four Upper Level courses at the 4000 level or higher. These courses may be 4000-level courses based in the Africana Studies Program OR 4000 and 6000 level courses based in other Departments and Programs, so long as those upper level courses have been approved for credit in the Africana Studies Major. 4 | 12 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 30 | |
- 1
This course is offered every semester.
Note: Students are strongly encouraged to take this course during the Freshmen or Sophomore year however it may be taken by any student including Juniors and Seniors.
- 2
Limits: A maximum of six credits in Dance courses may count toward the major.
- 3
Language Courses: Language classes at any level in Arabic, Haitian Creole, Swahili, Twi, Xhosa, Yoruba and Zulu may all be counted for elective credit in the Africana Studies Major.
- 4
A maximum of three electives (nine credits) at the 1000 or 2000 levels may be counted toward major.
Students must ensure that at least four of the electives (twelve credits) are at the 4000-level or higher and no more than three electives (nine credits) are at the 1000- or 2000-levels. Students must fulfill the distribution component of at least two courses (six credits) in African studies and two courses (six credits) in African Diaspora studies. Students should try to choose elective courses from both the humanities as well as the social or behavioral sciences. A maximum of six dance credits may count toward the major.
Africa Electives
| Course ID | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AFRS 3200 | Issues in African Studies | 3 |
| ANTH 3110 | Cultures of Sub-Saharan Africa | 3 |
| ANTH 3480 | African Modernities | 3 |
| ANTH 4150 | African Prehistory | 3 |
| ANTH 6720 | Spoken Yoruba | 3 |
| COMM 4180 | African Cinema | 3 |
| DANC 1910 | African Dance I | 2 |
| DANC 2910 | African Dance II | 2 |
| ENLS 4300 | African Literature | 3 |
| HISB 1140 | Freshman Seminar-Africa | 3 |
| HISB 1300 | African Hist To 1800 | 3 |
| HISB 1310 | Africa Since 1800 | 3 |
| HISB 2120 | History of Western Africa | 3 |
| HISB 2130 | History of Southern Africa | 3 |
| HISB 2140 | History of Eastern Africa | 3 |
| HISB 3240 | Human Rights/Genocide-Africa | 3 |
| HISB 3250 | Archiving Africa | 3 |
| HISB 3910 | Special Topics | 1-3 |
| HISB 4210 | Hist of Development in Africa | 3,4 |
| HISB 4910 | Special Topics | 1-3 |
| HISB 6070 | Gender in African History | 4 |
| HISB 6110 | Slavery/Emancipation in Africa | 4 |
| POLC 3200 | African Politics | 3 |
| PSDV 4200 | Women & Development in Africa | 3-4 |
| SWHL 1010 | Swahili I | 3 |
| SWHL 1020 | Swahili II | 3 |
| SWHL 2030 | Swahili III | 3 |
| YRBA 1010 | Elementary Yoruba I | 4 |
| YRBA 1020 | Elementary Yoruba II | 4 |
African Diaspora Electives
| Course ID | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AFRS 3300 | Issues in Africana Diaspora Studies | 3 |
| AFRS 4400 | Afro-Brazilians | 3 |
| ANTH 3520 | Diaspora Yoruba | 3 |
| ARHS 3871 | Introduction to African American Art and Visual Culture, c. 1700-1940 | 3 |
| ARHS 3872 | Art of the African Diaspora, c. 1925 to Present | 3 |
| ARHS 6874 | Race and the Art of Empire | 3,4 |
| ARHS 6875 | Race and National Mythologies in American Art and Visual Culture | 3,4 |
| ARHS 6877 | Contested Vision Civil War I | 3 |
| ARHS 6878 | Contested Vision Civil War II | 4 |
| DANC 1920 | Brazilian Dance | 2 |
| DANC 1950 | Jazz Dance I | 2 |
| DANC 2950 | Jazz Dance II | 2 |
| DANC 3240 | US/Caribe Social Dance | 3 |
| DANC 3950 | Jazz Dance III | 2 |
| DANC 3960 | Jazz: Newc Sum Danc Fest | 2 |
| DANC 4950 | Jazz Dance IV | 2 |
| ENLS 4430 | Caribbean Literature | 3 |
| ENLS 4440 | African-American Literature | 3 |
| FREN 3050 | Literature In Exile | 3 |
| HACR 1010 | Elementary Haitian Creole I | 4 |
| HACR 1020 | Elementary Hatian Creole II | 4 |
| HACR 2030 | Intermediate Haitian Creole | 4 |
| HISL 1720 | Intro Caribbean History | 3 |
| HISU 2690 | Intro Afro-American History | 3 |
| HISU 2700 | Modern African-American | 3 |
| HISL 3200 | History of Voodoo | 3 |
| HISL 3361 | Slave Rebellions | 3 |
| HISU 3360 | Slavery Pub Hist & Pub Memory | 3 |
| HISU 3440 | African Amer Religious History | 3 |
| HISU 4580 | Slavery & Freedom Antebellum S | 3 |
| HISL 4740 | Caribbean Cultural History | 3 |
| HISU 6540 | African-American Culture | 3 |
| HISL 6750 | Africans In The Americas | 3 |
| HISL 6780 | Caribbean Hist: Major Themes | 3 |
| MUSC 1530 | Jazz Theory | 3 |
| MUSC 1900 | Music in New Orleans | 3 |
| MUSC 3340 | History of Jazz | 3 |
| MUSC 3440 | Black Music, Black Lives | 3 |
| MUSC 6340 | Seminar In Jazz | 3 |
| MUSC 7060 | Musical Cultures - New Orleans | 3 |
| POLA 4250 | Politics of Poverty Policy | 3 |
| PSYC 3310 | Intro to African American Psyc | 3 |
| PSYC 4610 | Blck Youth Develop Psyc | 4 |
| SOCI 6340 | Race & Ethnicity in Latin Amer | 3 |
| SPAN 4160 | Afro-Latin American Lit | 3 |
| THEA 4750 | African American Theatre Histo | 3 |
Other Electives
The following courses do not meet the GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION requirements for African or African Diaspora credits. But all of these courses may be taken as general electives to fulfill the requirements of the major. (Most of these courses include coverage of both the African continent and the African diaspora around the world. This is the reason they do not fulfill Geographic Distribution Requirements.) Students may also petition to count any course related to African Studies or African Diaspora Studies, whether offered at Tulane or taken at another university, as a part of their major curriculum. Such petitions will be considered by the Program Director in consultation with Africana Studies Program faculty.
| Course ID | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AFRS 3400 | Black Cities | 3 |
| AFRS 4560 | Internship | 1-3 |
| AFRS 4570 | Internship | 1-3 |
| AFRS 4810 | Special Topics | 3 |
| AFRS 4830 | Special Topics | 3 |
| AFRS 4910 | Independent Study | 1-3 |
| AFRS 4920 | Independent Study | 1-3 |
| AFRS 4990 | Honors Thesis | 3 |
| AFRS 5000 | Honors Thesis | 4 |
| ARHS 6876 | Interracial Themes in Western Art and Visual Culture | 3 |
| COMM 3500 | British Cultural Studies | 3 |
| COMM 3550 | Third World Cinema | 3 |
| DANC 4900 | Building Comm Thru Arts | 3,4 |
| ENLS 4820 | Col/ Postcolonial Discourse | 3 |
| FREN 3040 | African and Caribbean Literature | 3 |
| FREN 3050 | Literature In Exile | 3 |
| FREN 4800 | Survey of Francophone Literature | 3 |
| FREN 4840 | Philosophy, Francophone Literature, and Politics: Imagination and Institutions | 3 |
| FREN 6860 | Francophone Art, Literature, and Politics | 3 |
| HACR 2810 | Special Projects | 3 |
| HACR 2820 | Special Projects | 3 |
| HISB 4250 | Topics in the History of the Atlantic Slave Trade | 3 |
| PORT 4510 | Luzo-Brazilian Cities | 3 |
| SOCI 6130 | Race, Crime and Control | 3 |