Caucasia

Eurasian Studies

A Global Studies Major Concentration

From Europe to China, from Siberia into the Caucasus and the Himalayas.

This concentration focuses on the social, cultural, and economic interconnections among the peoples of Eurasia. We define Eurasia as the vast landmass stretching east to west from China to Europe and north to south from Siberia into the Caucasus, the Crimean Peninsula, Central Asia, and the Himalayas. Ancient trade routes that crisscrossed the interior spaces of Europe and Asia, known collectively as the Silk Road, served as a globalizing thoroughfare for the movement of peoples, cultural practices, religious values, and commodities. Recent infrastructural improvements in these areas - as well as international economic, environmental, and political concerns - have once again opened up transnational economic networks and cross-cultural exchange along these "new silk roads." 

For this concentration, you pull from a variety of disciplines to study not only specific geographical regions but also vital intersections and interrelationships among regions and peoples.

Courses

To satisfy the concentration requirements, browse the available courses.

Browse Eurasian Studies Courses

Requirements

General Requirements

One semester of language must be completed before declaring the major.

  • You must complete a minimum of 36 units in GS, including at least three courses focused on a world area.
  • You must complete at least 24 units at the 300 level or above, including courses across a minimum of three academic disciplines.
  • You must complete at least 6 units at the 400 level, no more than 3 of which may be directed research or independent study.
  • In addition to the 36 units, you must complete a four-semester sequence of courses in one modern language appropriate to your concentration.

These requirements may be fulfilled only with college-level coursework undertaken during your undergraduate enrollment. Courses must be taken for a grade, and you must receive a grade of C+ or higher in all courses.

For more detailed information about the general requirements, please see the Global Studies FAQs page.

Additional Requirements and Information

Study Abroad

  • We strongly encourage you to study abroad. For those who do not study abroad and receive credit toward the Global Studies General Requirements, an additional 3 unit course at the 300 or 400 level is required.
  • We strongly prefer you to select a study abroad location and your regional specialization consistent with your chosen language of study (e.g., if you wish to study in Latin America, you must satisfy your language requirement with either Portuguese or Spanish).
  • You may receive a maximum of 6 credits from a single semester, 12 credits from a year, or 3 credits from a summer term of study abroad.
  • Study abroad credit only counts at the 300 level.
  • You may apply no more than 12 total credits to the Global Studies major from study abroad, the School of Continuing & Professional Studies, summer school at other US universities, or any combination thereof.
  • To receive credit for a summer course completed at another institution, you should fill out the Approval for Non-Wash U Course Credit form with Arts & Sciences to take the course for 'general credit' and then petition to have the course count toward your Global Studies major.
  • You may not receive credit for January Term (j-term) study abroad programs; they are too short in duration.

Concentration Specific Requirements

This concentration requires 36 units of coursework:

  • 6 units of introductory coursework
  • 30 units of advanced Eurasian Studies coursework
    • For students matriculating at Washington University beginning in Fall 2023, Global Futures (L97 GS 3020) is a required course.

The relevant world areas for the Eurasian Studies concentration are Eastern Eurasia, Western Eurasia, and Central Eurasia. You must complete one course in each of these three areas or with a transregional focus.

You must fulfill the standard Global Studies language requirement with Arabic, Chinese, Hebrew, Hindi, Persian, Russian or another Eurasian language as decided in consultation with your advisor.

Your study abroad location must be in a country relevant to this concentration area. Otherwise, you will not meet the study abroad requirement and will need to complete an additional 300 or 400 level course on campus.

A single course may satisfy more than one of the distribution requirements (i.e. disciplinary or world area). Some of these requirements may be completed while abroad.

Contact

If you have questions about this major concentration, please contact Dr. Nicole Svobodny.

Contact Dr. Nicole Svobodny