Apr 02, 2025  
2023-2024 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
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2023-2024 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

African-American Studies BA

Make an even greater impact, whatever you plan to do in life. This program is for anyone who wants to increase their cultural awareness and gain invaluable insights about some of today’s most talked-about issues, including race, class and gender.

The African-American Studies program-perhaps the first interdisciplinary program at UB-offers a comprehensive view of the Black world. If you want to understand global history, migrations, religions, economics, politics, popular culture and other key factors that shape society, start right here.

Visit the African-American Studies academic program page for more information about the academic experience, who you will learn from, opportunities outside of class and what you can do with this degree.

Visit the Africana and American Studies department page  for contact information, a brief overview of the department and the curricular options.

Admission Criteria

Current UB students seeking admission to the African-American Studies BA will be added to the major upon request by completing the College of Arts and Sciences Major/Minor Change Request Form.

Course Requirements

African-American Studies Core (25 credits)

Four AAS Electives (12 credits)

  • No more than 3 credit hours of Independent Study.
  • No more than 3 credit hours from outside AAS without permission of the Director of Undergraduate Studies.
  • A maximum of 6 out of the 12 credits may be at the 100 and 200 level. 

Total Credits Required for Major: 37

Additional Degree Requirements Include:

  • Additional coursework to fulfill UB Curriculum requirements
  • Elective courses as needed to complete the 120 credit hour total

Total Credits Required for Graduation: 120

Total Credit Hours Required represents the minimum credits needed to complete this program, and may vary based on a number of circumstances. This chart should not be used for financial aid purposes.

Program Honors

Students in the honors program must complete AAS 497 . This advanced level is reflected in the course’s 4-credit-hour value for honors students (1 credit hour beyond that required for majors outside the honors program). The senior research project must be awarded at least a B+ (3.330) to be accepted as an honors project. Students must also meet the remaining criteria outlined in the Academic Honors policy. Students who successfully complete the honors program and meet the criteria will have the appropriate notation on their official transcript.

Curricular Plan

A Curricular Plan provides a roadmap for completing this academic program and the UB Curriculum on time. Your actual plan may vary depending on point of entry to the university, course placement and/or waivers based on standardized test scores, earned alternative credit and/or college transfer credit.

First Year Fall

Total Credits: 15 or 16

First Year Spring

Total Credits: 16 or 17

Second Year Fall

  • AAS 300/400 Level Elective Credits: 3
  • Scientific Literacy and Inquiry 1 Credits: 3
  • Scientific Literacy and Inquiry Lab Credits: 1
  • Pathway Credits: 3
  • Pathway Credits: 3
  • Elective Course Credits: 3

Total Credits: 16

Second Year Spring

  • Credits: 3
  •  Scientific Literacy and Inquiry 2 Credits: 3
  • AAS 300/400 Level Elective Credits: 3
  •  Elective Course Credits: 3
  •  Pathway Course Credits: 3

Total Credits: 15

Third Year Fall

Total Credits: 14

Third Year Spring

Total Credits: 15

Fourth Year Fall

Total Credits: 15

Fourth Year Spring

Total Credits: 13

Total Credits Required: 120

Note: Some classes may count toward both a major and UB Curriculum requirement.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of all requirements, the student will have knowledge of:

  • Broad thematic periodization and chronology of African history, and the place of Africa in world history
  • The parameters of the current socio-economic and cultural circumstances of the people of the African continent
  • The chronology of the socio-economic, political and cultural history of the African diaspora in the Americas, and the role of the African diaspora in the history of the Americas up to the present
  • The role of African Americans in the evolution of U.S. constitutional democracy through their struggles for inclusion
  • Major themes in the current socio-economic, political and cultural circumstances of the African diaspora in the Americas
  • Major descriptive and analytical themes in the historical role of the women of the African diaspora in the Americas, and in their current socio-economic, political and cultural circumstances
  • The major depictions - both fiction and non-fiction - of these issues

 

(HEGIS: 22.11 AFRO-AMERICAN STUDIES, CIP: 05.0201 African-American/Black Studies)

 

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