Discover the Coolest Courses on Ethnicity at the University of Colorado in Boulder

Discover the culturals of the world and how they've been looked at over the years, learn many great and interesting facts about our Native Americans, and America's overall development and growth over the years in any of the cool classes listed below.

What does Ethnicity mean?

An ethnic group or ethnicity is a population of human beings whose members identify with each other, either on the basis of a presumed common genealogy or ancestry, or recognition by others as a distinct group, or by common cultural, linguistic, religious, or territorial traits. Processes that result in the emergence of such identification are summarized as ethnogenesis. Members of an ethnic group, on the whole, claim cultural continuities over time, although historians and anthropologists have documented that many of the cultural practices on which various ethnic groups are based are of relatively recent invention.

The term is used in contrast to race, which refers to a classification of physical and genetic traits perceived as common to certain groups.

Coolest courses in Ethnic Studies

Crosscultural and Comparative Studies

ETHN 1011: Ethnic Notions (3 Credits) - This course introduces first-year students to the study of contemporary issues in American society through the eyes of culturally diverse groups (Chicana/os, African-Americans, Asians, and Native Americans) as expressed in film, the ethnic press, music, TV programming, and other cultural representations produced by members of these groups.

ETHN 2001: Foundations of Ethnic Studies (3 Credits) - You will get a comprehensive, comparative introduction to ethnic studies. The course applies analytic perspectives, especially racial formation theory, to the experiences of the four principle peoples of color in the United States: American Indian, African-American, Chicano/Latino, and Asian American.

ETHN 2761: Survey of Post-Colonial Literature (3 Credits) - This class surveys the development of literatures in English in former British colonies. Among the topics researched in this class is the spread and adaptation of English language literary forms in Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, and the far new world (Australia and New Zealand). Students learn the causes of the dispersion and the motivations for the clearly different uses of English literary forms in the ex-colonies.

ETHN 3011: Race, Class, and Pollution Politics (3 Credits) - Students examine communities affected by major toxic contamination threats in the U.S., evaluating race and class factors in levels of governmental and private sector responses and actions. You'll also be learning investigative research methods at case study sites to provide skills necessary for assessment of any environmental threat for protective action.

ETHN 3201: Multicultural Leadership: Theories, Principles and Practices (3 to 4 Credits) - This course focuses on leadership theories and skills necessary for effectiveness in multicultural settings. Students gain understanding of traditional and culturally diverse approaches to leadership and change through comparative analyses of western and non-western theories and practices.

ETHN 3301: Elements of Religion (3 Credits) - Students explore universal components of religion, as inferred from religions of the world, ranging from smaller-scale oral to larger-scale literate traditions.

ETHN 3671: Fight the Power: People of Color and Social Movement Struggles (3 Credits) - Students learn that people of color the world over are struggling for sovereignty, independence, civil and human rights, food security, decent wages and working conditions, healthy housing, and freedom from environmental racism and other forms of imperialism. This course analyzes and brings alive these struggles.

American Indian Studies

ETHN 2003: Introduction to American Studies: Precontact Native America (3 Credits) - You will explore the attainments of various American Indian civilizations in the period immediately prior to first contact with Europeans. Students will examine agriculture, architecture, governance and social organization, medicine, mathematics, and population.

ETHN 2203: American Indians in Film (3 Credits) - This course examines images of American Indians in films. Films are analyzed and critiqued within historical, social, and artistic contexts, and examined in terms of the impact their images have exerted upon audiences.

ETHN 2703: American Indian Religious Traditions (3 Credits) - You will be introduced to religions of the peoples indigenous to the Americas. Concerns include ritual, mythology, and symbolism occurring throughout these cultures in such areas as art, architecture, cosmology, shamanism, sustenance modes, trade, and history.

ETHN 2713: Native American Literature (3 Credits) - Traditional and contemporary North American Native American literature, from traditional oral forms to contemporary genre literature of novels, short stories, and poetry are surveyed in this class. This is the same as ENGL 2717.

ETHN 3213: American Indian Women (3 Credits) - The experiences, perspectives, and status of American Indian women in historical and contemporary contexts are explored in this class. The course examines representations of indigenous women in mainstream culture. This class also emphasizes the agency of American Indian women--their persistence, creativity, and activism, especially in maintaining indigenous traditions.

ETHN 4563: North American Indian Acculturation (3 Credits) - Get a comprehensive survey of changes in the native cultures of America north of Mexico caused by occupation of the continent of Old World populations, including a review of processes of contact, environmental changes, changes in major institutions, the nature of federal/state administration, the reservation system, and contemporary developments.

American Studies

ETHN 2004: Themes in American Culture 1 (3 Credits) - Students will be enabled to explore various themes in pre-1865 American culture. This course examines these themes, which vary each year, in their social context.

ETHN 3954: Methods in American Studies (3 Credits) - Through structured discussions, selected readings, and written assignments, students develop an understanding of how American studies scholars evaluate various complex issues.

ETHN 4324: Media Institutions and Economics (3 Credits) - The institutions and practices of the media industries are introduced to students in this class. Media Institutions surveys the histories, structures, and activities of these organizations and the contemporary issues surrounding them.

ETHN 4344: 20thCentury American Intellectual History (3 Credits) - This class addresses the impacts of political, social, and economic developments on ideas about democracy, science, race, gender, faith, the supposed mission of America, and the role of intellectuals in society.
About the university or college

ETHN 4834: Studies in American Music (3 Credits) - You'll be given intensified work in folk, popular, and art music of the United States. This course may be repeated up to 12 total credit hours.

About the university or college

Little known facts: The school was established back in 1876. Their motto is "Let Your Light Shine". There have been approximately 24,000 undergraduates and 4,000 post-graduates. They were the first to create a new form of matter, called the "Bose-Einstein condensate" which is a few hundred billionths of a degree above absolute zero. They were the first to observe a "fermionic condensate" formed from pairs of atoms in a gas. They discovered a protein in the blood that can prevent the AIDS virus from reproducing and spreading to healthy cells. The university has also accomplished many more things; such as, the creation of a classifying and numbering system for human chromosomes, and the production of computerized 3D images of the entire body in anatomical sections.

University or college location: Boulder, Colorado

Directions to the college or university

From DIA: You will fly in or out of DIA or should I say, Denver International Airport. Driving time between DIA and Boulder is approximately 60 to 90 minutes. From DIA, follow Peña Boulevard (10 miles) south to I-70, and exit onto I-70 west. Follow I-70 west to I-270 west. I-270 merges into U.S. 36 west and takes you west into Boulder (about 23 miles). Exit at Baseline Road; turn left on Broadway and turn right or north. The campus is to the right. For alternate routes, see the map from DIA to Boulder.

From the Denver Area and South: To get to Boulder from the Denver area, go west on U.S. 36 (from I-25 or I-270) and exit at Baseline Road. Turn left (west) on Baseline Road, then right or north on Broadway to campus.

From the North: From the north, take U.S. 287 south to Highway 119. Highway 119 becomes Highway 157 (Foothills Parkway) just north of Boulder. Turn right or west from Foothills Parkway onto Baseline Road. Drive west on Baseline to Broadway, then turn right (north) on Broadway to campus.

From the West: Take I-70 east to U.S. 6. Go east on U.S. 6 to CO. 58. Turn right (east) on CO.58 to CO. 93. Make a left (north) onto CO. 93 towards Boulder. CO. 93 will turn into Broadway once in Boulder. Continue on Broadway west until you see the campus on your right. It will be shortly after you pass Baseline Rd.