American Studies at the University of Edinburgh American Studies General and Background Information American Studies encompasses the history, literature, languages, culture, institutions and society of the American continent. The MA Honours degree is a four-year course.
Students spend the third year at an approved North American university or college.
Breadth of expertise among teaching staff in Edinburgh means that students have the opportunity to carry out work on Canada, Central and Latin America as well as on the United States, and are able to engage not only in historical and literary studies, the two fields that have traditionally dominated American Studies programmes, but in a wide variety of other disciplines. In their first year students take a course on the History and Geography of Canada, and choose two further courses from literature in English, History, and French or Spanish. These courses provide a broad introduction to the discipline and provide both the tools for future study and the background necessary to understand the development of American culture. Students spend their third year at an American university and are able to take courses that will develop their specific interests in the area of American studies. The opportunity to spend an entire academic year in the USA or Canada is, in itself, of tremendous educational value, and the range of courses offered by North American colleges complements and develops the work done in Edinburgh.