The Department of Modern Languages and Cultures offers undergraduates the opportunity to explore a variety of languages and cultures through our programs in Chinese, German, French, Italian, Japanese, Russian, Spanish and Comparative Literature. Our courses involve analysis, research, and the pursuit of knowledge across disciplines, engaging students in numerous linguistic and cultural areas including history, film, the visual arts, regional and global politics, philosophy, critical theory and cultural studies. Students are encouraged to earn and maintain the highest facility in oral and written language, careful and detailed critical analysis, strong writing and research skills, and to advance their knowledge of critical theory. The department offers many opportunities for independent research and honors projects. Many faculty members contribute to other departments and programs, and the department maintains close intellectual relations with other undergraduate programs such as Film and Media Studies, Gender and Women’s Studies, African and African-American Studies, Literary Translation Studies, Russian Studies, Jewish Studies, History, Anthropology, English, Philosophy and Art and Art History.

Students wishing to major in one or more of our programs should contact the designated advisor for the program for more specific details. Double majoring in one language and culture area or in Comparative Literature, and in another area such as Optics, Biology, History, International Relations or Chemistry, is common among our students. Many combinations among MLC programs and between MLC and other departments or programs are easily made. The MLC honors program offers students selected by their concentration program the opportunity to research and write a substantial honors thesis in their senior year. MLC also offers minors in all of our programs, as well as numerous clusters, for students seeking to complete their cluster requirements in the humanities. The cluster search engine lists them all. Students with questions about any of MLC’s programs or about possibilities for study here or abroad in any of our fields should contact the advisor in the appropriate program.