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ACADEMIC PROGRAMS
Birmingham-Southern College Catalog 2016-2017
74
Minor Requirements
The following courses are required (5 units):
GWS 200 or Exploration term equivalent
four additional units from the following:
ARH 299
ARH 400
EH 220
EH 226
EH 394
EH 420
HI 210
HI 309
HON 315
PS 300
PY 208
RE 375
SO 215
One course in an independent study and up to one Exploration term course in topics
related to gender and women studies can be used to satisfy the minor requirements.
Global and Comparative Studies
Bachelor of Arts
Natalie M. Davis and Robert J. Slagter, Program Coordinators
In global and comparative studies, students gain fundamental knowledge of the emerging
field of globalization studies and examine the ongoing worldwide processes and effects
of rapid integration and interdependence across political, economic and social
dimensions. Students also learn the major theories and models derived from the tradition
of comparative research in the social sciences, and the tools necessary to develop the
skills of comparative research and the capacity to apply these methods to contemporary
topics. Throughout the global and comparative studies major, comparative analysis
allows for the identification of meaningful similarities and differences among regions,
nation-states, social groups and organizations across the globe; theory and research
provide explanations for similarity and difference and for assessments of global trends.
The organizing themes of the major are social and economic change, power dynamics,
and the interactions within and between the elements of global society. Core global
concerns such as sustainability and human and international security are assessed in terms
of transnational social movements and nongovernmental organizations, transnational
corporations and multinational governing bodies, and the impact of economic and
technological developments in the global arena.
The major enables students to analyze problems of global and/or comparative scope,
generalize from that analysis, identify potential outcomes consistent with the theoretical