Research Opportunities

The University of Minnesota is one of the largest research institutions in the United States. We offer a comprehensive range of academic programs and the opportunity to work with faculty doing pace-setting research in a variety of disciplines.

Graduate studies at the U of M are interdisciplinary, offering many opportunities to work collaboratively on coursework, research projects, or scholarly events in numerous academic centers.

• African American and African Studies offers an interdisciplinary minor that is of particular interest to students specializing in Francophone literatures and cultures.
• The Center for Early Modern History (CEMH) promotes a comparative approach to world history between 1350 and 1750. CEMH coordinates research groups, publications, colloquia, a conference series, and a minor field in Early Modern Studies.
• The Center for German and European Studies organizes lecture series, symposia, and projects that bring together students and scholars from all areas of the humanities and social sciences whose research has a European focus.
• The Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies offers digital archives, regular programming and events, an interdisciplinary graduate student group and a graduate fellowship opportunity. 
• The Center for Medieval Studies offers masters and doctoral minors in medieval studies and organizes numerous lectures and conferences.
• Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies (GWSS) offers a graduate minor in Feminist and Critical Sexuality Studies.
• The Immigration History Research Center promotes the study of immigration and ethnic history, with extensive archives, conferences, and internships.
• The Interdisciplinary Center for the Study of Global Change supports interdisciplinary and cross-cultural study and research on issues of conflict, social change, justice and human rights, social and ecological sustainability, and the consequences of an increasingly global economy and culture, particularly in contemporary developing societies.
• The Institute for Advanced Studies brings to campus each year a number of senior scholars in various disciplines for lectures related to the IAS’ chosen theme for the year.
• The Institute of Global Studies (IGS) connects students, scholars, and communities dedicated to social justice, understanding, and transforming our globalized world.
• Moving Image, Media and Sound (MIMS) offers a graduate minor in Moving Image Studies. 

Visit our Research & Collaboration page for more information on our department's primary areas of scholarship and collaborations.

Library Resources

With over five million volumes, the University of Minnesota Libraries constitute a world-class research center, ranking fifteenth among academic research libraries in North America. The University’s libraries include some 130,000 French titles and subscriptions to more than 250 French periodicals.

You can make use of several rich collections of rare books, maps, and manuscripts, including the James Ford Bell collection documenting European expansion and immigration, and the Wangensteen Historical Library of Biology and Medicine, with 48,000 rare books and manuscripts dating from the early 1400s to 1920. Other nearby humanities research centers include the Newberry Library in Chicago and the Hill Monastic Manuscript Library at St. John's University.

The University of Minnesota's Subject Specialist for French Language and Literature is Brian Vetruba. He can be reached at [email protected].