ARS601 AREA STUDIES

Course Code:8150601
METU Credit (Theoretical-Laboratory hours/week):3 (3.00 - 0.00)
ECTS Credit:8.0
Department:Area Studies
Language of Instruction:English
Level of Study:Graduate
Course Coordinator:Prof.Dr. OKTAY FIRAT TANRISEVER
Offered Semester:Fall or Spring Semesters.

Course Objectives

The course aims to increase the knowledge of the students in the following areas via lectures and readings

1) History of Area Studies as a field

2) Studying other places and peoples: debates of geography, history, anthropology, sociology, political science and international relations as they relate to these issues

3) challenges of globalization to the field

The course aims to improve the skills of analysis and writing via papers and feedbacks. 


Course Content

This PhD course is designed to introduce the key themes in Area Studies as well as a variety of disciplinary theoretical approaches used to study areas in the world. The course will also explore how regional dynamics interact with local, national and global forces. The course will begin with a discussion of the scope, development and interdisciplinary nature of Area Studies. Next, the course will examine the relevance and limitations of the main disciplinary approaches that anthropology, history, sociology, economics, political science and international relations use in studying Areas. The final part of this course will be devoted to students’ individual research projects on the key debates in African, the Middle Eastern, Asian, Eurasian, European and American Studies.


Course Learning Outcomes

Debating meta-theoretical issues in social sciences

Familiarity with Interdisciplinary Research 

Literature Review of Area Studies

Designing Research in Area Studies