Transatlantic Studies Certificate Offerings for Graduate Students
The Transatlantic Studies Program offers students the opportunity to study the historic and contemporary relationship between the United States and Europe and receive a credential – either a Certificate in Transatlantic Studies or a Certificate in Advanced Transatlantic Studies – certifying their completion of a set of relevant area studies coursework and achievement of a certain level of proficiency in a relevant world language.
The Transatlantic Studies Program includes area studies that overlap with other programs within the University Center for International Studies, including European Union Studies, West European Studies, East European Studies, African Studies, Latin American Studies, and Global Studies. Interested students should therefore also consider and pursue relevant opportunities not just in the European Studies Center, but also in other UCIS area studies centers – The African Studies Program, the Center for Latin American Studies, and the Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies. Students interested primarily in transregional and transnational themes and in exploring global processes at work in the Atlantic world might consider a certificate from the Global Studies Center instead of or in addition to a Transatlantic Studies Certificate.
Description of the Program
The relationship between the European Union and the United States is one of the most important bilateral relationships in the world. Two-thirds of global trade and three-fourths of investment is carried on between the U.S. and the EU. The U.S. and individual European actors dominate global commerce and aid and play leading roles in military, political and cultural dynamics that influence people around the world. Transatlantic relations between the U.S. and Europe have been and are central to several key issues/topics, such as forced and free migrations, trade, climate change, world wars, democratization, and weapons proliferation. For students, and citizens, it is increasingly important to have an understanding of the key dynamics between the U.S. and its major allies in Europe, including the EU.
For students wishing to have careers with an international dimension, it is necessary to understand the institutional history and social, political, cultural, and economic factors underlying the policies of the U.S. and its European allies and the consequences of the implementation of those policies. Transatlantic Studies provides an appropriate context for the comparative study of the history, governance, and cultural exchange between Europe and the Americas writ large. A certificate in Transatlantic Studies allows students to construct a plan of interdisciplinary area studies coursework in a new and relevant way. In conjunction with other credentials and co-curricular experiences in a student’s academic plan, this new certificate program helps students prepare for international careers in administration, policy, diplomacy, law, and education.
Academic Requirements:
Students are able to obtain either a Certificate in Transatlantic Studies (typically most accessible to students enrolled in a terminal Master’s degree program) or a Certificate in Advanced Transatlantic Studies (appropriate for students in Ph.D. programs). Regardless of which tier students choose to pursue, there are four certificate requirements:
- Language Proficiency
- Area Studies Courses
- A Research Paper
- Graduation with a graduate or a professional degree
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Tier One: Masters-level Certificate |
Tier Two: Ph.D.-level/Advanced Certificate |
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Language Proficiency: Two (2) years/ four (4) semesters of college-level instruction or equivalent proficiency in one language relevant to the region (see below). |
Language Proficiency: Three (3) years/ six (6) semesters of college-level instruction or equivalent proficiency in one language relevant to the region (see below). |
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Area Studies Coursework: At least fifteen (15) credits of relevant coursework is required. Six (6) of these credits must be outside of the student’s major school or department. A list of some of the relevant courses is available below. |
Area Studies Coursework: At least eighteen (18) credits of relevant coursework is required. Six (9) of these credits must be outside of the student’s major school or department. A list of some of the relevant courses is available below. |
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Research Paper: An interdisciplinary research paper of 15-25 pages that reflects the use of foreign language sources. The paper could be prepared for a course that is not counted toward the coursework requirement, but students are encouraged to conceptualize it with the certificate requirements in mind and to consult with the Center's Associate Director/Graduate Advisor while writing it. The paper will be evaluated by an ESC-affiliated faculty member. |
Research Paper: An interdisciplinary research paper of at least 15-25 pages that reflects the use of foreign language sources. The paper could be prepared for a course that is not counted toward the coursework requirement or a chapter of the student’s dissertation, but students are encouraged to conceptualize it with the certificate requirements in mind and to consult with the Center's Associate Director/Graduate Advisor while writing it. The paper will be evaluated by an ESC-affiliated faculty member. |
Relevant Languages
Students can demonstrate proficiency either through “seat time” (as demonstrated on their transcripts) or through a placement exam administered by the relevant language department. The required level of proficiency differs depending upon language. In the case of a language not taught at Pitt, a proficiency exam may be administered as an OPI through ACTFL or another pre-approved provider. The ESC has some funds to help students pay for approved language proficiency exams. (The ESC strongly recommends students take any opportunity to document their language proficiency based upon commonly-understood scales.)
A language is relevant to the Transatlantic Studies program if it was historically spoken or written by people living and working in Europe or the Americas and engaging in topics related to transatlantic exchanges. For students whose native language is English, it must be a language other than English.
Transatlantic Studies Courses
To be counted relevant, an individual course must have at least 25% of its content related to some aspect of the transatlantic relationship. This can be reflected in the syllabus or it can be achieved through student-directed selection of topics for required additional readings and writing assignments. Final designation of a course as relevant must be sought from the Graduate Advisor for the certificate program. In some cases, students may be approved to take an upper-level undergraduate course that has been modified to make it graduate level.
Outside of the myriad offerings on Pitt’s campus, individual schools also have relevant graduate-level exchange opportunities that would complement this program, including the GSPIA-Sciences Po exchange and the Law School’s Sorbonne exchange. Students in Social Work would benefit from field placement opportunities being developed in Europe. In the School of Education, a study abroad program in Florence provides students in early childhood education with transatlantic experiences/comparisons in their fields and other fields are served by a program in Germany. Students in the Katz School of Business have a number of international experience options that would be specifically transatlantic.
The courses listed below, then, provide an idea of the kinds of courses that can count toward the area studies coursework requirement, but it should not be seen as comprehensive.
For a list of courses that have been pre-approved for the current semester, go to Approved Courses (coming soon).
- ADMPS 2106 International and Global Education
- ADMPS 2352 Anthropology of Education
- ADMPS 3006 Social Theories and Education in a Global Context
- ANTH 2516 Chiefdoms
- BACC 2466 Risk Management and Compliance Issues Facing International Businesses
- BUSFIN 1341 International Finance
- BUSHRM 1670 Global Workforce Management and Change
- BUSMKT 1461 International Marketing
- EDUC 2100 Education and Society
- EDUC 2112 Politics and History Higher Ed
- ENGLIT 2321 Translation and World Literature
- ENGLIT 2353 Post Colonial Theory and Culture Critique
- ENGFLM 2473 Cinema and Counter-History
- FR 2452 Film History/Theory 2
- FR 2642 Classical French Cinema
- FR 2648 Contemporary French Cinema
- FR 2765 Comparative Francophone Culture
- HAA 2025 History and Ethics of Collecting
- HAA 2475 Modernity, Modernism and Housing
- HAA 2480 Architecture Since 1945
- HIST 2043 Social Movements
- HIST 2045 Memory Politics
- HIST 2160 Political Economy and Early Modern European Imperial Rivalry
- HIST 2540 European Empires in the World
- HIST 2509 Women, Gender and Black Internationalism
- HIST 2510 Brazil
- HIST 2709 Age of Revolution in Global Context
- HIST 2710 Global Capitalism
- HIST 2729 Seas, Peoples, and Empires
- HIST 2734 Migration, Inequality and Exclusion
- HPS 2522 Special Topics – History of Science
- ITAL 2088 Topics in Italian Diaspora Studies
- ITAL 2092 Italian Translation Studies
- LAW 2225 International Business Transaction
- LAW 2351 European Union Law
- LAW 2910 How Law Began
- LAW 5252 International and European Labor Markets Law
- LAW 5350 EU from and International Law Perspective
- LAW 5635 European Private International Law
- LAW 5636 EU: Intellectual Property Regimes in Europe
- LAW 5637 EU Common Market Rules for US Businesses
- LING 2235 Language, Gender, and Society
- LING 2397 Special Topics in Hispanic Linguistics
- LING 2860 Intro to Historical Linguistics
- MUSIC 2038 Music, Culture, and Technology
- MUSIC 2151 Introduction to Jazz Studies
- MUSIC 2232 Seminar in Music since 1945
- PIA 2303 Security and Intelligence Studies
- PIA 2305 Foreign Policy and Diplomacy
- PIA 2319 International Trade
- PIA 2327 Terrorism and Counter Terrorism
- PIA 2353 Creative Approaches to Intelligence Analysis
- PIA 2355 WWII, The Cold War, and Their Impact on Developing Nations
- PIA 2358 Political Economy of the International Financial System
- PIA 2366 International Organizations
- PIA 2388 International Law and Policy
- PIA 2399 International Economic Organizations
- PS 2200 American Government and Politics
- PS 2310 Politics of the European Union
- PS 2311 Western European Government and Politics
- PS 2312 Comparative Parties and Elections
- PS 2321 Latin American Politics
- PS 2326 Authoritarian Politics
- PS 2385 Comparative Legislatures
- PS 2607 Democratic Theory and Democratization
- REL 2336 Jews and Judaism in the Modern World
- REL 2344 Gender and Jewish History
- SPAN 2410 Discovery and Conquest
- SPAN 2422 Colonial Topics
- SOC 2035 Race and Ethnicity
- THEA 2207 World Theatre: 1890-Present
- THEA 2202 Theories of Theatre and Drama
Graduation
Students must complete all requirements for the Master's or professional degree or successfully defend their dissertation for the Ph.D.
Certificate Advising
In order to obtain maximum benefit for the program, students should meet with the ESC Advisor to keep them informed on progress toward satisfying the Certificate's requirements. They advise on the completion of requirements and on opportunities that complement the Certificate, including funding opportunities.