African American & African Studies (AA&AS) allows you to study global perspectives of African American and African history, literature, and culture. Our courses incorporate the perspectives and methodologies of different liberal arts disciplines to shed light on the tremendous diversities and overlapping histories within the wider black world. AA&AS also offers two African languages in its undergraduate curriculum: Swahili (spoken throughout eastern, central, and southern Africa) and Somali. Our graduates have gone on to successful careers in education, business, medicine, law, the arts, journalism, local and transnational advocacy work, and foreign affairs.
The College of Liberal Arts Advantage: More Than a Major
When you study African American & African Studies at the University of Minnesota, you gain the added advantage of a College of Liberal Arts education. At CLA, the liberal arts mean you get more than just a degree in one major or another; it means you will be exposed to different areas of study, to different ways of thinking and learning. In fact, the liberal arts teach you how to learn—how to ask the right questions, how to problem solve, and how to innovate. The liberal arts highlight the complexities of our world, because here at CLA you will study not just, say, politics or art but also where politics and art intersect, where science and ethics intersect, where economics and the environment intersect.