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The College of Arts & Sciences
The Program in American Studies offers an interdisciplinary engagement with what America means in the United States and in a global context. Faculty encourage students to look at the meaning and reality of the evolving United States as a question still in need of answering and as an experiment still in process, not as a dream fully realized. We use multiple perspectives and methodologies and require that students synthesize knowledge in ways that develop the skills needed for rigorous, complex analysis.
Giving to the American Studies Program
You can make a gift online at Cornell’s Alumni, Parents & Friends page or send a check payable to “Cornell University” (Memo: American Studies Program) to: Cornell University |
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Commentary in the Washington Post: Americans have never agreed about what should be taught when it comes to our nation’s history and government, which has real implications for schoolchildren.
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This summer, 101 students in the College of Arts and Sciences will take part in groundbreaking research on campus with 61 faculty as part of the Nexus Scholars Program.
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Claudia León is an American Studies major.
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Rayna Klugherz is a history of art and American studies major.
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Celia Shapiro is a government and American studies major.
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May 2, MacArthur Fellow P. Gabrielle Foreman will give a talk, “Why Didn’t We Know?!: The Forgotten History of the Colored Conventions and 19th-Century Black Political Organizing,” on the history of 19th century Black activism.
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Jessica Rosberger recent acceptance into the 3+3 Pathways Program allows her to matriculate at Cornell Law School and combine her undergraduate and graduate years of study.
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Learn more about Tom Bradbeer's '25 unique blend of professional and academic experience during his four years at Cornell.
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Megan Zhang was an American Studies major who also took a premed curriculum:
"My American studies major gave me a unique background during med school interviews, and was definitely a conversation starter. It makes you a much more competent person in dealing with people who have different backgrounds than yourself. I appreciate the confidence it gives me to ask people about their side of the story, because there’s always another side of the story.”
After graduating, Megan spent a gap year working with families at a women’s and children’s shelter outside of Boston has opened her eyes to the diversity of experiences and situations that can lead someone to become homeless.