Master of Arts in Holocaust and Genocide Studies Requirements

More and more colleges and universities, public, private, and parochial schools are adding Holocaust and genocide studies to their curriculum. And more and more teachers, librarians, museum curators and administrators are realizing the importance of preparing themselves for the study of these subjects.

With this in mind, a Master of Arts degree in Holocaust and Genocide Studies has been developed to help scholars pursue the study of the Holocaust and other genocides and to seek answers as to how they may be prevented. Because this study involves more than the history of the development of genocides, various departments are supplying courses that provide greater understanding of the forces leading to them.

The Masters Degree requires thirty credits. A thesis, if preferred, will fulfill six credits. A Certificate of Studies requires 15 credits.

30 Credit Hours

Three phases: (12 hours; 12 hours; Six hours)

Classes are 3 credits each (Click a Phase below to expand)

Phase I: Core Content 12 Hours

Phase II: Electives 12 Hours

Phase III: Thesis or Non-Thesis Option 6 Hours

18 Credit Hours

REQUIRED

HIS 545 Holocaust (3)

HIS 546 Genocide in Modern History (3)

Four Courses from the following:

Communication Studies

COM 503 Communication and Persuasive Influence (3)

COM 505 Concepts and Criticism of Public Influence (3)

COM 507 Issues in Mass Communication (3)

COM 509 Communication and Conflict Resolution (3)

Criminal Justice

CRJ 505 Nature of Crime and Delinquency (3)

Literature and Film

EGE 409 Impact of Holocaust on German Literature and Film (3)

ENG 615 Special Topics: Literature of the Holocaust (3)

History

HIS 523 History of Modern Germany (3) 

HIS 543 Jews in Modern European History (3) 

HIS 548 Women and the Holocaust (3)

HIS 549 American Perspectives on the Holocaust (3)

HIS 602 Directed Readings in European History (3)

HIS 660 Field Studies in History (3)

SSC 503 Methods for Teaching Holocaust & Genocide Studies (3)

Philosophy

PHI 512 Ethical Theories (3)

PHI 590 Independent Studies in Philosophy (3)

PHI 599 Philosophic Concepts and Sytems (3) Moral Implications of the Holocaust and Genocide

Political Science

PSC 542 Dynamics of Public Opinion and Political Behavior (3)

PSC 590 Independent Study in Political Science (3) The Holocaust in Eastern Europe

Psychology and Sociology

509 Advanced Social Psychology (3)

PSY 540 Multicultural Psychology (3)

PSY 543 Psychology of Group Processes (3)

SOC 590 Independent Studies in Sociology (3) Sociology of religion

The program in Holocaust and Genocide Studies deals not only with historical aspects of the Holocaust, but also with moral and political issues involved in the prevention of future genocides. It may be taken as one of the minors in the Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Sciences programs.

Admission to the Program

An undergraduate in good standing at West Chester University may apply for a Minor in Holocaust Studies. Contact Dr. Jonathan Friedman, Director of the Holocaust/Genocide Education Center jfriedman@wcupa.edu or call 610-738-0486.

Holocaust Minor Advisement Sheet
(18 semester hours required)

Other courses can be substituted at the discretion of the director. Total of 18 semester hours for required + elective courses

Since 1978, WCU has offered undergraduate classes in Holocaust studies. It is estimated that through the years 2,500 undergraduates have completed course work on the Holocaust at the university and in overseas classes. Added to this are over 500 graduate students in both graduate classes and at the Intermediate Center in Chester County, Pennsylvania.

Overview: Undergraduate Course Offerings

EGE 409 Impact of the Holocaust on German Literature and Film (3) How propaganda (particularly film) contributed to the rise of Nazism. Postwar literature and films will be used to illustrate issues such as compliance to the regime, the role of the Vatican and legal institutions, individual and group responsibility, literary and cinematic representation of the Holocaust, guilt and the debates surrounding reconciliation, the contemporary relationship of Germany and Israel, and the legacy of the Holocaust for children of victims and perpetrators.

HIS 332 Holocaust (3) Focuses on ethnic, nationalistic, economic, and religious causes of the Holocaust, including 20th-century Nazism, racism, and anti-Semitism, concluding with study of the Nuremburg trials.

HIS 349 The Jew in History (3) Review of their 4,000 year history and of those civilizations that have welcomed the Jewish people. the study of the Jewish people in contemporary society is an important feature of the course.

HIS 423 Modern Germany (3) Germany in the 19th and 20th centuries: Napoleonic Era, Rise of Prussia, nationalism and unification, imperialism and World War I, National Socialism, World War II, and divided Germany.

PHI 180 Introduction to Ethics (3) Great ethical systems of history and their application to personal and social life. The right and the good; the nature of values; and critical dilemmas.

SOC 490 Topical Seminar in Sociology (3) A topical seminar on the sociology of religion and the Holocaust.

Three overseas trips to Israel, the country that has more survivors than any other in the world, were taken during the past decade. Visited were historic sites as well as the world's most prominent Holocaust Museum, Yad Vashem. Classes were held, field trips taken, as well as visits with survivors, survivors' children and grandchildren. The Netherlands, (Amsterdam) was also visited. Here one group toured the "home" of Anne Frank and her family.

Our most recent trip was to the sites of camps and ghettos in Germany, the Czech Republic, and Poland. Hotels, breakfast and most dinners were provided as well as land transportation and a university professor as the guide.

Current and Future Overseas Trips

Future trips are presently in the planning stages. Three credits (graduate or undergraduate) may be earned through preparation, site visits, and a course paper. For information contact Dr. Jonathan Friedman, Director of the WCU Holocaust and Genocide Education center at jfriedman@wcupa.edu or telephone (610)-436-2972.

Chester County Intermediate Unit Teacher's Workshop

Teacher Education Workshops are held frequently during summer sessions. Presenters are teachers in the public schools, professors, survivors, veterans, museum curators, librarians, and writers. A day trip to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C. is included.

Admission to the ProgramTeachers may apply at the Chester County Intermediate Unit (610) 524-2431