Global Studies and Languages

Study the world. Live it. Help shape it.

The Global Studies and Languages (GSL) program is interdisciplinary and built for students who want to understand how our world works and be ready to make a difference in it. Grounded in language study and cultural fluency, GSL teaches you to think critically and act with confidence across borders. You can pursue it as a B.A. major or as an 18-hour minor.

Why Study Global Cultural Studies?

The world is connected. Learn to read it.

Every day, you move through a world shaped by cultures you may never have studied: the films you stream, the news you scroll, the food you eat, the people you work beside. Global Cultural Studies gives you the tools to understand how it all fits together, and why it matters.

What You’ll Explore

At the heart of GSL is a big question: how do language, culture, and power intersect? You’ll examine it through literature, film, digital media, religion, social theory, and popular culture. You can continue language study through the intermediate level, or focus entirely on Global Cultural Studies with no foreign language requirement. The path is yours to design.

Is This You?

The film buff who can’t stop talking about a movie from another country. Study global cinema and learn why stories travel, and what gets lost or gained along the way.
The future changemaker who wants to work in nonprofits, public policy, or international development. Build the cultural understanding that makes good solutions possible.
The language lover who wants to go deeper than vocabulary. Add intermediate language study alongside the literature, history, and ideas behind it.
The pre-professional heading into health care, business, law, or education. Learn to work with people from every background, a skill that sets you apart in any field.
The curious one with a hundred interests and no single label. Welcome. Global Cultural Studies connects literature, media, religion, politics, and art, so you don’t have to choose just one.
The traveler, or the one who wants to be. Study abroad, intern with cultural institutions, and turn what you learn in class into lived experience.

Find Your People

Global Cultural Studies is a community of students who ask big questions and love good conversation. Expect small, discussion-driven classes, professors who know your name, and classmates from many backgrounds, majors, and languages. Whether you’re double majoring, adding a minor, or just exploring, you’ll find others who share your curiosity.

Learn Beyond the Classroom

GSL students don’t just study global culture; they experience it. Choose from immersive study abroad programs and internships with leading cultural institutions through the Global Cultural Studies Internship. Employers look for more than coursework, and these experiences help you build a résumé that shows it:

Study abroad develops your language skills and independence.
Internships provide professional experience and connections.
Capstone work in Frames of Modernity showcases your ability to research, analyze, and present complex ideas.

Built for Careers

Employers want people who can work across cultures. GSL graduates are ready.

Every industry now operates across borders, languages, and communities. Hospitals serve diverse patients. Companies sell to global markets. Newsrooms, nonprofits, and governments navigate cultural complexity every day. The people who thrive in these settings can do more than speak a language. They understand the context behind it. That is what a GSL degree teaches.

Where GSL Graduates Work

Business and Marketing. Global brands need people who understand international audiences and can adapt a message without losing its meaning.
Healthcare. Clinicians and administrators who understand cultural context and speak patients’ languages improve care and build trust.
Education. Schools and universities need teachers and leaders who can reach students from every background.
International Development and Nonprofits. Effective programs begin with understanding the communities they serve.
Government and Public Policy. From diplomacy to local services, public work depends on cultural insight and clear communication.
Law. Cross-border cases and diverse clients call for sharp analysis and cultural awareness.
Media, Museums, and the Arts. Tell stories that reach global audiences and bring cultural heritage to life.
Translation and Research. Turn language expertise and analytical skill into specialized careers.

Major or Minor: Choose Your Level

The B.A. in GSL is for students who want global fluency at the center of their education, whether through language study or a focus on Global Cultural Studies. It prepares you for careers and graduate study across many fields.

The GSL Minor is for students who want to pair a global edge with another major. At 18 credit hours, it adds language and cultural expertise to a business, health, science, or education degree, and it makes your résumé stand out.

Global Studies and Languages, B.A.

Your Degree Plan at a Glance

Total: 30 credit hours

Core Courses (6 credit hours)

GSL 2351: Global Cultural Studies: An Introduction
GSL 2352: Global Cinema

Language or Culture Elective (3 credit hours)
Any 2000-level or higher course with the prefix GSL, ARAB, CHIN, CLAS, FREN, GERM, INDI, ITAL, JWST, or LATI.
Capstone (3 credit hours)
Choose one of the 4000-level Frames of Modernity courses:

GSL 4351: Frames of Modernity I
GSL 4352: Frames of Modernity II: Postmodernity and Globalization
GSL 4353: Frames of Modernity III: Classics and Modernity
GSL 4354: Frames of Modernity IV: The Global South Before WWII
GSL 4355: Frames of Modernity V: The Global South From WWII to Present

Advanced Coursework (18 credit hours)
Any 3000- or 4000-level course with the prefix GSL, ARAB, CHIN, CLAS, FREN, GERM, INDI, ITAL, JWST, or LATI.

Make it your own: You may substitute up to 9 of these advanced credit hours with courses from other departments, including AAS, ANTH, ARTH, COMM, DANC, DIGM, ECON, ENGL, HIST, HON, MAS, PHIL, POLS, RELG, SPAN, and WGSS, plus select courses in BUSI, COMD, MUSI, PSYC, and SOC. Contact the Director of the Global Studies and Languages program for more information.

Good to know: Some upper-division courses outside GSL may have prerequisites. If you plan to double major or add a minor, talk with your advisor first, since no more than six credit hours can be shared between degree plans.

Global Studies and Languages Minor

Add a global edge to any major.

Whatever you’re studying, the GSL minor helps you see it through a wider lens. In just 18 credit hours, you’ll build the cultural fluency, critical thinking, and cross-border perspective that employers and graduate programs look for, and that today’s world demands.

Why Add a GSL Minor?

It pairs with anything. Business, nursing, engineering, journalism, political science, education: a global perspective strengthens them all.
It’s flexible. Shape your minor around your own interests, with nine credit hours chosen to fit your declared emphasis.
It’s efficient. Eighteen credit hours is enough to make a real difference on your résumé and in how you see the world.
It sets you apart. Language skills and cultural insight signal to employers that you can work, communicate, and lead across cultures.

What You’ll Learn

You’ll begin with Global Cultural Studies: An Introduction, exploring how language, culture, and power shape societies around the world. You’ll finish with a capstone in Frames of Modernity, where you bring your ideas together in advanced, discussion-driven study. In between, you’ll deepen your knowledge through language study or courses on race, gender, women’s studies, or non-Western cultures, guided by your own goals.

Your Minor at a Glance

Minimum: 18 credit hours

Introductory Course (3 credit hours)
GSL 2351: Global Cultural Studies: An Introduction
Capstone (3 credit hours)
One 4000-level Frames of Modernity course
Language or Cultures Course (3 credit hours)
Choose from:

A modern and classical languages course at the 2302 level or above in your chosen language area
A course on race, gender, women’s studies, or non-Western studies

Electives (9 credit hours)
Select courses that match your interests, with approval from the GSL Director.

Good to Know

At least 12 of the 18 hours must be completed in residence, including nine hours at the 3000- or 4000-level.
Up to three approved courses may be taken outside GSL.
A minimum 2.0 GPA is required in all minor coursework.

Modern and Classical Languages