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Program Description
The Medieval Studies minor encourages an interdisciplinary approach to the diverse and interconnected cultures of Europe and the Mediterranean rim between the fifth and the fifteenth centuries and to contact zones in the Americas, Near East, and the northwestern Pacific. Students survey and evaluate key dimensions of the medieval period across disciplinary boundaries. They develop skills in critical writing and in analyzing documents, monuments, contexts, and conventions of expression; consider emerging fields such as digital humanities and new media; and examine the abiding cross-cultural and trans-historical significance of historical, social, religious, creative, and linguistic developments from the medieval period. The minor allows students to combine courses, guided readings, and research projects in fields such as history, art, archaeology, literature, languages, philosophy, and religious studies.
What is Medieval Studies?
Medieval Studies is an interdisciplinary field that ranges widely across periods and geographies. We usually imagine the Middle Ages as the millennium between the end of classical antiquity and the start of the Renaissance. But concepts and institutions that we take as distinctively modern—the individual, companionate marriage, the state, vernacular languages as expressions of national identity—begin in the Middle Ages. And the Middle Ages return as a powerful source for imaginative expression in the art and literature of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and in digital culture in the twenty-first century.
You Might Like This Program If...
- You want to grow as an analytical thinker with good writing skills, the ability to synthesize disparate materials, and a deep sense of context.
- You have an interest in studying a rich and dynamic period, and wish to further understand the time through its history, literature, philosophy, and culture.
Program Requirements
| Requirement | Credits |
|---|---|
| Requirements for the Minor | 18 |
Requirements for the Minor
A grade of C or better is required for all courses in the minor, as specified by Senate Policy 59-10. In addition, at least six credits of the minor must be unique from the prescribed courses required by a student's major(s).
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Prescribed Courses | ||
| Prescribed Courses: Require a grade of C or better | ||
| MEDVL/HIST 107 | Medieval Europe  | 3 |
| MEDVL 108 | Medieval Civilization | 3 |
| Additional Courses | ||
| Additional Courses: Require a grade of C or better | ||
| Select 12 credits (at least 6 credits at the 400-level) of the following: | 12 | |
Art History | ||
| Ancient to Medieval Art | ||
| Introduction to the Art and Architecture of the Mayas, Aztecs, and Incas | ||
| Ancient to Medieval Architecture | ||
| Pagans and Christians: Encounters in Early Medieval Art | ||
| Romanesque and Gothic Art | ||
ARTH 330 | ||
| The Illuminated Manuscript | ||
| The Gothic Cathedral | ||
ARTH 413 | ||
| Studies in Medieval Sculpture | ||
| Late Antique and Early Christian Art | ||
| Byzantine Art | ||
| Art and Empire: Aztec, Inca and Spanish | ||
History | ||
| The Byzantine Empire | ||
| Crusades: Holy War in the Middle Ages | ||
| Medieval and Modern Russia | ||
| Islamic States, Societies and Cultures c. 600-1500 | ||
| Research in Medieval Sources | ||
| Early Medieval Society | ||
| Church and State in the High Middle Ages | ||
| Medieval Britain | ||
| Innovation in Medieval Europe | ||
| Medieval Celtic Studies | ||
| Classical Islamic Civilization, 600-1258 | ||
| Japan in the Age of Warriors | ||
Literature and Language | ||
| Introduction to Western Literatures Through the Renaissance | ||
| The Arthurian Legend | ||
CMLIT 401Y | ||
| Heroic Literature | ||
| British Literature to 1798 | ||
| Chaucer | ||
| Medieval English Literature | ||
| French and Francophone Literature I | ||
| Germanic Heroic and Medieval Literature in English Translation | ||
| History of the German Language | ||
| History of German Literature and Culture I | ||
| Jewish Civilization | ||
| Greatest Books of Italian Literature | ||
| Dante | ||
| Dante in Translation | ||
| Iberian Civilization | ||
| Topics in the Cultures of Spain | ||
| The Evolution of Spanish | ||
Medieval Studies | ||
| Special Topics | ||
| Foreign Studies | ||
| Research Project | ||
| Foreign Studies | ||
| Internship | ||
| Foreign Studies | ||
| Medieval Britain | ||
| Medieval Celtic Studies | ||
| Research Project | ||
| Independent Studies | ||
| Special Topics | ||
| Foreign Studies | ||
Philosophy and Religious Studies | ||
| Medieval Philosophy | ||
| New Testament | ||
RLST 420 | (upon advising) | |
Academic Advising
The objectives of the university's academic advising program are to help advisees identify and achieve their academic goals, to promote their intellectual discovery, and to encourage students to take advantage of both in-and out-of class educational opportunities in order that they become self-directed learners and decision makers.
Both advisers and advisees share responsibility for making the advising relationship succeed. By encouraging their advisees to become engaged in their education, to meet their educational goals, and to develop the habit of learning, advisers assume a significant educational role. The advisee's unit of enrollment will provide each advisee with a primary academic adviser, the information needed to plan the chosen program of study, and referrals to other specialized resources.
READ SENATE POLICY 32-00: ADVISING POLICY
University Park
Liberal Arts Academic Advising
814-865-2545
Use the Liberal Arts Meet the Academic Advisers web page to see the contact information for the specific adviser(s) of this program
Career Paths
A minor in Medieval Studies prepares students for those careers which require a broad knowledge of the humanities. Many students combine a Medieval Studies major with a major such as art history, broadcasting, art, language and literature, political science or any of the liberal arts majors, or students may take courses in areas like economics, speech communication, and sociology.
Careers
- Publishing
- Teaching
- Museum Curatorship
- Archiving
- Business
- Medicine
Opportunities for Graduate Studies
Graduate work is required for teaching at the college or university level. Former students in the Penn State major have continued their studies at universities such as Oxford, Catholic University, Bryn Mawr, St. Andrews, and Dublin. Many students continue their work in medieval studies or related fields like art, music, theatre, literature, history, or philosophy at the graduate level.
Contact
University Park
MEDIEVAL STUDIES
108 Weaver Building
University Park, PA 16802
814-865-1367
bdw150@psu.edu