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American Studies

College of Arts and Humanities
Moore 324
1890 East-West Road
Honolulu, HI 96822
Tel: (808) 956-8570
Fax: (808) 956-4733
E-mail: amstuh@hawaii.edu
Web: www.hawaii.edu/amst/

Faculty

* Graduate Faculty

• *P. Hooper, PhD (Chair)--regional and international studies
• *W. Chapman, PhD--historic preservation
• *M. Helbling, PhD--literature, ethnicity, and cultural theory
• *J. Hughes, PhD--politics and women's studies
• *F. Matson, PhD--politics and social science
• *D. Ogawa, PhD--Asian American and communication studies
• R. Perkinson, PhD--southern and western history, race and gender, crime and punishment
• *D. Stannard, PhD--social problems
• *K. Tehranian, PhD--culture, arts, environment, and society
• *M. Yoshihara, PhD--cultural history, race and gender, United States-Asian relations

Cooperating Graduate Faculty

• J. Stanton, PhD--culture and arts

Affiliate Graduate Faculty

• S. Armitage, PhD--folklore and regional studies
• D. Bertelson, PhD--literature and social thought
• H. Kato, PhD--popular culture
• J. McCutcheon, PhD--social, cultural, and urban history
• W. Murtagh, PhD--historic preservation
• B. Riznik, PhD--historic preservation
• P. Spickard, PhD--multicultural studies
• F. Tang, MA--Asian American relations

Degrees and Certificates Offered: BA (including minor) in American studies, MA in American studies (including dual AMST/MLISc MA), PhD in American studies, graduate Certificate in Historic Preservation

The Academic Program

Since its inception in the 1930s, American studies (AMST) has offered an integrated multidisciplinary exploration of the historical and contemporary American experience. This involves the study of American popular and high culture; environmental issues; institutional structures, including political and economic institutions; systems of thought and belief; and gender, ethnic, racial, and cross-cultural relationships. A combination of historical, literary, social-scientific, and other methodological approaches is used. In addition to such traditional aims, American studies at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa also explores the role of Hawai'i, the Pacific, Asia, and, to a lesser extent, other parts of the world within the American experience, an objective that imparts a cross-cultural dimension to its program and differentiates it significantly from most other programs in the field.

At the undergraduate level, American studies offers a balanced general education experience, as well as excellent preparation for both advanced study in the field and professional studies ranging from law to travel industry management. Advanced degrees are intended primarily as preparation for college and university-level teaching, but recipients are also engaged in such activities as journalism, library management, business administration, and government service. A dual MA can be taken in cooperation with the Library and Information Science Program. In addition to regular degrees, the graduate Certificate in Historic Preservation is offered as preparation for professional employment in the preservation field.

Affiliations

The department is affiliated with the American Studies Association, National Council of Preservation Education, and National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Advising

The undergraduate adviser advises all undergraduate majors, and the graduate chair advises all graduate students.

Undergraduate Study

Bachelor's Degree

Requirements
Students must complete 30 credit hours, including:

• 6 credit hours from AMST 201, 202, 211, or 212
• 24 credit hours of upper division courses:
• AMST 381 and 382
• 6 credit hours of 400-level American studies courses
• 12 remaining credit hours may include allied humanities and social sciences courses. Selection must form an orderly pattern around an appropriate theme, and approval of the departmental undergraduate adviser is required.

Minor Requirements
Students must complete 15 credit hours, including:

• AMST 381 and 382
• 9 credit hours of 300- or 400-level American studies electives

Graduate Study

Application Requirements

Applicants for graduate programs should present an academic record indicating a broad range of study in the humanities and the social sciences with an emphasis on American culture. Specific requirements for all graduate degrees and certificate programs are detailed in brochures available from the department upon request. Write to Graduate Chair, Department of American Studies, Moore 324, 1890 East-West Road, Honolulu, HI 96822.

Proficiency in a foreign language is not required unless it is necessary for dissertation research. Students having a special career interest in Asia may select courses offered in the Asian studies program to satisfy some degree requirements in American studies.

Courses for the graduate program are to be selected from among the courses listed in the back of the Catalog, from appropriate American studies graduate courses and upper division and graduate courses in related fields. Consent of the departmental graduate chair is required for enrollment in all undergraduate courses and all graduate courses in other fields. The courses listed in the back of the Catalog are numbered and grouped as follows: 500, Master's Plan B/C Studies; 600–609, introductory courses; 610–689, fields of study courses; 690–699, special topics courses; and 700–800, thesis and dissertation research. AMST 500V, 699V, 700V, and 800V are offered each semester; AMST 600, 601, 602, and 603 are offered annually, and most other 600-level courses are offered once every three years.

Master's Degree

MA candidates are expected to possess the BA degree and have a background knowledge of American culture.

Requirements
MA students may select either the Plan A or Plan B program. Students must complete 33 credit hours as follows:

Plan A (Thesis)

• 6 credit hours of AMST 700
• 18 credit hours in courses numbered 600 and above, including AMST 600, 601, 602, 603 and a graduate seminar course
• 9 credit hours in a chosen field of specialization
• oral examination

Plan B (Non-thesis)

• 18 credit hours in courses numbered 600 and above, including AMST 600, 601, 602, 603 and a graduate seminar course
• 15 credit hours in a chosen field of specialization
• written and oral examinations

More specific requirements are detailed in materials available upon request from the department.

Doctoral Degree

PhD candidates are expected to possess the MA degree in American Studies or its equivalent and should have a scholarly attainment of a high order and widespread intellectual interests.

Requirements
Students must complete 48 credit hours including:

• 18 credit hours in courses numbered 600 and above, including AMST 600, 601, 602, 603 and a graduate seminar course
• 30 credit hours in a chosen fields of specialization

Students must also complete:

• A qualifying examination consisting of two written parts covering each of two areas of concentration chosen by the student, followed by an oral examination dealing with all two areas
• An oral comprehensive examination administered by the dissertation committee
• A dissertation of high quality and its successful oral defense

More specific requirements are detailed in materials available upon request from the department.

Certificate

Graduate Certificate in Historic Preservation
Candidates for the Certificate in Historic Preservation must possess the BA degree. The Certificate in Historic Preservation combines course work and applied experience. 

Requirements

Students must complete 15 credit hours of graduate course work:

• 3 credit hours of AMST 675, Preservation: Theory and Practice
• 3 credit hours of AMST 695, Historic Preservation Practicum
• 3 credit hours of ANTH 645, Cultural Resource Management 
• 6 credit hours in field of specialization

A maximum of 3 credit hours may be applied simultaneously to the historic preservation certificate and to another degree. Internships are usually undertaken with local firms and organizations that have a preservation interest or with individuals who are qualified to direct independent work in preservation. The program concludes with a formal colloquium presentation. 

Additional information and application forms are available upon request from the Historic Preservation Certificate Program.

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