Why CSCL?

Old film reel

Do you like to examine paintings, musical pieces, movies, or magazines through a cultural lens? Do you think about how the world should be, what society should reflect, and how culture is ever changing? Do you want to study in an environment that promotes and celebrates the sharing of ideas and philosophies? If so, CSCL is the right place for you.

Strong opinions, open minds

In a lot of ways, the Department of Cultural Studies & Comparative Literature is a unique and utopian place at the University of Minnesota. Taking a comprehensive and holistic approach to liberal arts education, our programs allow students to pursue the areas of study that most interest them. Our courses incorporate both elements of the humanities and social sciences in an attempt to combine and find meaning in multiple fields of study in the pursuit of greater cultural understanding.

Studies in our program will challenge you to look at the culture we are inhabiting, how it works, and what we can do to make it better. You will learn to see all people and cultures as multi-faceted, complex, and dynamic. You will grow as a critical, logical, and independent thinker.

Our alumni have found their niche in multiple areas of society, in academia, film production, advertising, and more. They go on to find meaningful careers in a variety of fields that work to shape our culture and the world we live in today.