Culture and Politics (CULP) Major Requirements
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Major Requirements
Required Courses
Students must take a total of 10 courses in the following categories:
- CULP 2100: Introduction to Culture and Politics (must be completed by the end of Year 3)
- 4 CULP courses tagged as CULP in at least two different disciplines (i.e., course prefixes)
- 5 topical electives oriented around a self-constructed theme within the major
Sample Courses
GU-Q offers a variety of courses that fulfill the CULP major requirements. You can view all current and upcoming CULP courses in the schedule of classes. Recently offered courses include:
- ANTH 3360: War Ethnography
- ARAB 3340: Arabic Drama
- ENGL 4000: Capitalism and Mysticism
- HIST 4607: Islamic Law and Gender
- THEO 3020: Religion and Violence
Writing in the CULP Major
Culture and Politics is a major of articulations; it develops the understanding, discovery, and creation of connections between Culture and Politics and across disciplinary boundaries, even as it fosters the critical expression of those connections. Intensive work on writing is therefore a core component of the major, spread throughout the curriculum in the following sequence:
- CULP 2100: Theorizing Culture and Politics. In this foundational course for the major, students learn the fundamental elements of writing about and with the theoretical texts that form the basis of CULP, beginning with simple modes of textual and conceptual explication, and ending with a more complex, synthetic cultural analysis.
- Each course in the major adds additional writing practice within the field it studies. As they complete the major, students will gain expertise in more than one disciplinary field—and the ability to critically articulate the relations between them. Moreover, should they choose, students will also be able to develop a bilingual facility in writing in both English and Arabic.
- As they progress in the major, eligible students may elect to pursue an Honors thesis, a project that allows them to propose an original research topic engaging culture and politics, then pursue it through a survey of existing literature, the development of an appropriate methodology (qualitative or quantitative), and the construction of a rigorous critical argument. Alternatively—or additionally—CULP majors may apply the skills they have gained to a certificate in Arab and Regional Studies, American Studies, or Media and Politics.
CULP Topical Areas
This major is unique in that it offers students the opportunity to develop an area of study specific to their interests. Students are required to identify and take five courses for the CULP topical area as part of the CULP major. It’s an opportunity to design a component of the curriculum tailored to individual interests. It is expected that this topic may evolve over time as students explore topics in their upper-level coursework.
Examples of past CULP topical areas include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Cultural hybridity in the GCC
- Statehood and identity in the Middle East
- Identity politics, law and marriage
- Women and politics in the media
- Arab/Israeli conflict
- Women and children in conflict zones
- Gender, religion and economic development
- Psychology of addiction
Honors in the Major
The CULP honors program allows students to examine a scholarly issue in detail and to focus time and attention on an issue the student is deeply interested in. Honors theses are original works of thought and research, not merely summaries of the work and ideas of others. The standards and expectations for honors-quality work are consistent with the idea that students graduating with honors from the school are among the premier thinkers and writers at Georgetown.
How to Apply
Students must fulfill the following requirements by early March of their junior year:
- Earn a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 or higher, and 3.67 or higher in the CULP major, or show strong evidence of the capacity to achieve these by graduation.
- Submit a complete research proposal using either the honors in the major proposal form or following the proposal guidelines. The proposal is reviewed, and admission to the program is determined by a CULP faculty Honors committee.
- Identify a Georgetown faculty mentor who has agreed to work on this project.
- Adhere to the revision and final submission dates if invited to revise a proposal.
Honors Requirements
To graduate with CULP Honors, students must complete two semesters of work dedicated to thesis preparation. This includes CULP 4998 (3 credits) in the fall semester of the senior year and CULP 4999 (3 credits) in the spring semester of the senior year.
- CULP 4998 is a three-credit honors research seminar that strengthens research and writing skills. All honors students must enroll in this course in addition to maintaining a relationship with their mentor. Even though mentors are not teaching a thesis course in the fall semester, they are expected to continue working with students during that time on the specific content of the thesis.
- CULP 4999 is a three-credit tutorial with the thesis mentor. The mentor meets with the thesis student(s) every week to guide the completion of the thesis.
Note that students cannot pursue honors and a certificate simultaneously, due to the heavy workload. If a student wants to complete a certificate in addition to the honors program, then the certificate thesis must be completed during their junior year. The deadline for submitting the certificate thesis in its approved form would be the first day of classes in the student’s senior year.
Benchmarks to progress from fall to spring semester honors work
- Students must have approval from a thesis reader by November 1 of the senior year, so the reader can engage in the project during the fall semester.
- Students must complete the fall semester Honors course. A grade of A- or higher in this course indicates that a student is making good progress, and this is the recommended grade to proceed with honors in the spring semester. Earning a grade lower than an A- is an indicator that the project may not be successful, and the student and mentor need to discuss overall progress.
- The thesis mentor ultimately will determine if the project proceeds to the spring semester of the senior year, so the mentor must confirm by January 4th if the student is making good progress on the project and should be allowed to continue pursuing Honors in the Major for the spring semester.
- Earn a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 and a grade point average of 3.67 in the CULP major at graduation.
- Submit a senior thesis by April 10 (deadline subject to change) of the senior year, which is judged to be of honors quality by a faculty committee appointed for this purpose. The committee will comprise the CULP field chair and 2-3 additional CULP faculty who are not mentoring the thesis.
- Make a formal public thesis presentation in late March (specific date announced each year) of the senior year.
- Note: A thesis paper can be judged to be of honors quality, but if other requirements are not met, the student can’t earn honors. If this is the case, the honors classes, if completed successfully, will still count toward the student’s CULP topical electives and degree program.
Outstanding CULP Graduating Senior Award
An award is given every year to the Outstanding Graduating Senior CULP major who has demonstrated excellent performance as demonstrated through written work, cumulative grade point average, leadership, and other markers of academic success, throughout his or her undergraduate years.