Indigenous Nations and Native American Studies

 Portland State University is the only college in the state of Oregon to offer a major in Indigenous Nations and Native American studies.

The program focuses on studies and practices of Tribal critical race theory, decolonizing methodologies, traditional and cultural ecological knowledge, and contemporary themes. Contemporary themes include:

• community health
• food sovereignty and the cultivation of first foods
• Indigenous land management
• community development
• resilience
• Indigenous futurisms
• self-determination

We offer students the opportunity to:

• Engage with a diverse range of epistemologies (oral, visual, and written), and discourses on tribal sovereignty and law, traditional ecological knowledge, models of Indigenous leadership, Tribal critical race theory, and decolonizing methodologies.
• Explore inside and outside the classroom through community-based learning including Indigenous ecological practices, collaborative research on natural resource management, and environmental sustainability.
• Examine and reflect upon resistance movements up to and including Red Power and Standing Rock, that assert and reaffirm Indigenous sovereignty and community resilience.
• Understand and address through critical theory, community engagement and discourse, the historical context and contemporary issues impacting social, economic, and environmental justice in Tribal and urban American Indian/Alaska Native/First Nations communities.
• Analyze and reflect upon their own identity, allowing students to forge an individual pathway of reflective decolonization alongside peers in an environment that encourages self-examination.
• Develop an understanding of Indigenous relationships today and in the past with the environment: land, water, animals, plants, weather/climate, seasons, cosmology/Indigenous astronomy, through food, medicine, craft, art, storytelling, governance, education, policy-making, and ceremony.

Our students go on to careers in nonprofits, education, social services, Tribal government, and academia.

"What happens in Indigenous Nations Studies truly changes the world, one-warrior student at a time." - Cornel Pewewardy, Founding Director of the Indigenous Nations Studies Program

Submit Your Application and $60 Application Fee

Go to Portland State University's online application system and select Create Account. If you have already started an application, or created one for a past term, select Log In.

Submit Academic Records

You are required to submit complete academic records. We accept high school transcripts, grades and other relevant academic records along with your graduation certificate, diploma or exam results or certificates. If you have taken any college or university classes, submit transcripts from all colleges or universities attended. You can submit unofficial transcripts from non-U.S. institutions for review of your application and to receive an admission decision. Official transcripts are required for enrollment, see our official records policy for details.

Electronic Submission: Transcripts may be submitted via Parchment or sent directly from a school official to [email protected].

In Person Submission: You can bring these directly to our office upon arrival to Portland State.

Mail Submission: Submit official transcripts in their original sealed envelopes from all schools attended and mail them to PSU at the address below.

Portland State University
Office of Undergraduate Admissions
PO Box 751
Portland OR 97207-0751

Submit Evidence of English Language Proficiency

Request official test results to be sent directly to Portland State University by ETS (TOEFL), PTE, or IELTS. Students who meet the academic requirements for admission to PSU, but have not yet met English proficiency requirements, will be admitted to PSU and placed into one of our ESL programs. Review PSU’s English Language Proficiency Requirements for more details.

• TOEFL Code: 4610, department code 00
• SAT Code: 4610

Check Your Application Status

If you have submitted an application to Portland State University, you can log in to PSU's application portal to review the status of your application. You will be notified via email for each document you submit and your admission decision.

If you are not receiving email communications from Portland State University, be sure to check your @pdx.edu email account. Once you set up your student account all communications will be sent to that email address. If you are not receiving information from us in any email inboxes, please contact us at [email protected].