Northern Studies

College of Liberal Arts
(907) 474-7126
www.uaf.edu/northern/

B.A., M.A. Degree

Minimum Requirements for Degree: 130 credits

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The northern studies program offers an interdisciplinary study of northern problems and policy issues. The purpose of the northern studies program is to give interested students a broader study of the northern region--its environment, peoples and problems.

The geographic location of UAF is outstanding for the study of northern issues. Students examine the countries and regions throughout the circumpolar North and their distinctive problems, such as the survival of indigenous populations, environmental and wilderness issues, high rates of alcoholism and suicide, fragile environments, adaptation to extreme cold and cycles of light and darkness and adult development in small frontier societies.

The northern studies curriculum is centered around an interdisciplinary course (NORS 484W--Seminar in Northern Studies) which is taken in the senior year.

For information on studying at McGill University, Montreal, Canada; the University of Copenhagen, Denmark; or opportunities for study in the former U.S.S.R., see Exchange Programs and Study Abroad Programs.

Major--B.A. Degree

1. Complete the general university requirements.
2. Complete the B.A. degree requirements.
3. Complete the following northern studies core requirements:*
   ANL 315--Alaska Native Languages: Eskimo-Aleut--3 credits
   ANTH 242--Native Cultures of Alaska--3 credits
   BIOL 104--Natural History of Alaska--3 credits
   GEOG 427--Cold Lands--3 credits
   HIST 483W--20th Century Circumpolar History--3 credits
   NORS 484W--Seminar in Northern Studies--3 credits
   PS 263--Alaska Native Politics (3)
        or PS 462--Alaska Government and Politics (3)--3 credits
4. Complete 15 credits* from 2 of the following groups:**
   1. Anthropology
      ANTH 309--Circumpolar Archaeology--3 credits
      ANS/ANTH 320W--Language and Culture: Applications to Alaska--3 credits
      ANTH 383--Athabascan Peoples of Alaska and Adjacent Canada--3 credits
   2. Geography
      GEOG 302--Geography of Alaska--3 credits
      GEOG 303--Geography of United States and Canada--3 credits
      GEOG 306--Geography of Russia--3 credits
   3. History
      HIST 320--Modern Scandinavia--3 credits
      HIST 355--Canadian History: 1867 to Present--3 credits
      HIST 461W--History of Alaska--3 credits
      HIST 464--History of Russia--3 credits
      HIST 481--Polar Exploration and Its Literature--3 credits
   4. Political Science
      PS 321--International Politics--3 credits
      PS 322O--International Law and Organization--3 credits
      PS/ANS 325--Native Self-Government--3 credits
      PS/ANS 450--Comparative Aboriginal Rights and Policies--3 credits
      PS 468W--Government and Politics of Russia--3 credits
   5. Humanities
      ART 365--Native Art of Alaska--3 credits
      ENGL 349--Narrative Art of Alaska Native Peoples (in English Translation)--3 credits
      ENGL 350--Literature of Alaska and the Yukon Territory--3 credits
      MUS 441--Alaska Native Music and Social Change--3 credits
      Northern language***--10 credits
5. Minimum credits required--130 credits

* Student must earn a C grade or better in each course.
** Students are encouraged to use the major in conjunction with a discipline-based major. Double majors linking northern studies with, for example, Alaska Native studies, anthropology, geography, history or political science majors may double count a maximum of 9 credits from the above groupings toward the second major. Other majors may double count a maximum of 9 credits toward their university distribution requirements.
*** Two semesters of a northern language, such as Eskimo or Russian.

Minor

1. Complete the following:
   ANL 315--Alaska Native Languages: Eskimo-Aleut--3 credits
   ANTH 242--Native Cultures of Alaska--3 credits
   BIOL 104--Natural History of Alaska--3 credits
   GEOG 427--Cold Lands--3 credits
   HIST 483W--20th Century Circumpolar History--3 credits
   PS 263--Alaska Native Politics (3)
        or PS 462--Alaska Government and Politics--3 credits
2. Minimum credits required--18 credits