Academic Minor Program
Have you ever wondered about the past? Or just been curious about the actual myths and legends behind Yggdrasil--not the Marvelverse version? Japanese ghosts and monsters? Early English-language protest literature? Books that were banned in Italy for their "corrupting" messages? Middle Eastern food and drink? If you answered "yes" to any of these, or even if they just piqued your interest, then the MEMS minor could be for you.
Michigan's MEMS program is one of the few in the country that thinks of the world before today in global terms (rather than just looking at Europe), and the minor is designed to let you take advantage of that. Our world has always been interconnected, and we believe students who are able to see beyond today are able to not only better appreciate the past and present, but also think creatively about the future. For the minor, you will choose two regions of the world to explore (Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East) and two lenses through which to do so (for example, material culture; women and gender; literature, religion, food history, colonialism, and more). Our minor is designed to give you both the flexibility to pursue your particular interests but also to offer enough structure to let you maximize your investigation of the variety of ideas and experiences that have brought us where we are today.
The MEMS minor offers you:
--an individually curated plan to encourage your growth and meet your interests
--participation in a global community of students and scholars
--a new understanding of the networks that shape our world today
Minimum Credits: 15 credit hours (and five courses), including at least two upper-division courses, in the medieval and early modern periods, chosen in consultation with the MEMS department advisor. These courses must include:
1. Geographic area courses. Select one course from two of these five areas:
African cultures
American cultures
Asian cultures
European cultures
Middle Eastern cultures
2. Disciplinary courses. Select one course from three of these four disciplines:
historical studies
art historical or archaeological studies
language or literary studies
musicological studies
A single course may count toward both geographic and disciplinary distribution requirements. With the approval of the department advisor, students whose major includes a medieval and early modern studies course in one of these disciplinary categories may substitute one course from a discipline different from that of the major.
Constraints: none.
For general questions about the Minor, please contact the MEMS Program Associate (MEMS-staff@umich.edu). To set up an advising appointment, please email the MEMS Director (mems-director@umich.edu).
