Areas of Concentration

After completing the Lower Division students may choose to major in either Cultural Studies or Policy Studies.

Cultural Studies

The field of Cultural Studies examines the diverse ways in which different cultures conceive their own identities and relate to individuals and groups in other communities and cultures. Hence, as a field of teaching and research, this area of concentration focuses on practices and writings that shape and convey these individual and collective experiences. The objects of study and analysis include family patterns, religions, social and economic relationships, political structures and power relations, the diverse steps and phases in the development of individual and collective identities, fine arts and popular entertainment, among others.

Given its nature, the major in Cultural Studies combines salient aspects from different academic disciplines. Students become familiar with the methodology and priorities of diverse areas such as history, anthropology, sociology, philosophy, communications, literature, cinema and economics. At the same time, students learn to identify and challenge the traditional boundaries of each discipline and, through the inherent diversity of viewpoints provided by interdisciplinary practice, expand and develop their critical thinking skills beyond the limited spectrum of a linear or one-sided method or analytical approach.

Cultural Studies is a field of study that not only approaches the new multidisciplinary themes of the current world in a complete and comprehensive manner. It also provides the intellectual and practical tools and flexibility that allow students to adapt to a globalizing and changing reality.

Policy Studies

The major in Policy Studies seeks to complete and complement the first two years of studies with a concentration that allows students to have a solid methodological and theoretical base but also a strong practical approach. The theoretical formation is applied to diverse socio-political contexts, focusing especially on Latin American topics.

The students are encouraged to have an active participation in the creation of knowledge and to be able to contemplate and analyze the political activity of the region through a critical and multidisciplinary point of view, including social, political, and historical aspects. The objects of study and analysis include not only the great scholars and theories of political philosophy but also the more practical and contemporary issues of public policy, party systems, democracy, globalization, and regional integration.