Program in American Studies

The Program in American Studies—founded at Princeton in 1942, and thus one of the oldest in the country—represents an interdisciplinary attempt to understand the variety and complexity of the United States. Each year, the program creates a number of conferences or seminar courses (usually between eight and ten) that go beyond normal departmental boundaries in illuminating some aspect of American reality. In recent years, these conferences have included topics such as jazz, prophecy in American life, the literature of the Civil War, Jews in American literature, and the African-American impact on American literature, law, and journalism.

The Program in American Studies is for the student who wishes to develop a finer understanding of the civilization of the United States—its culture, institutions, and traditions—and to share that pursuit in a challenging environment with fellow students and faculty specially invited by the program from different departments. All of our conferences are restricted in enrollment.

You may apply for admission to the program once you have chosen your department. The requirements for a certificate in American studies include completing the core course, two of the American studies conferences, and three one-term electives in the American field, subject to the approval of the program director. Often the conferences completed for American studies will also be accepted as cognates in the departments. Finally, your senior thesis must be related to some aspect of American civilization, broadly understood. In general, a high degree of flexibility will be granted to you, with emphasis placed on the interdisciplinary nature of the program.