Medieval and Early Modern Studies

Harpur College Requirements

Harpur College students must complete the following requirements in addition to those listed for the major:

  • 126 credits
  • 94 liberal arts and sciences credits
  • Minimum of 46 upper-level credits
  • Completion of the Harpur College writing requirement (four to five courses as described in the All-College Writing section of the Harpur College Undergraduate Information section of the Bulletin. Maximum of one C/J course and two W courses may be transferred).
  • Minimum of 44 credits in residence in Harpur College
  • 2.0 or higher GPA

Harpur College requirements are described in detail in the Requirements for Graduation section of the Harpur College Undergraduate Information section of the Bulletin.

Requirements for the Medieval and Early Modern Major

The major in Medieval and Early Modern Studies (MDVL) enables students to build an interdisciplinary program in the history of political, religious and social institutions, and in cultural production — from science and technology to theater, literature, music and art. Majors select courses under the supervision of the undergraduate director, who assists in tailoring the curriculum to the students' individual interests. Majors may concentrate on one geographic region or on the increasing development of global interdependencies while focusing on a particular period or on change over time. Temporal coverage ranges from c.400-c.1650. Within that range, majors choose either the medieval track (late fourth through 14th centuries) OR the early modern track (15th through 17th centuries).

Forty-four credits are required for the major (minimum of C- to count towards the requirements). One course below the 400 level may be taken Pass/Fail.

Requirements for Major:

  • MDVL 101 Introduction to Medieval and Early Modern Studies (or, in exceptional cases, an equivalent course).
  • Two 4-credit courses above the 100 level in a research language pertinent to the student's course of study. Both courses must be in the same language, to ensure reading competence. Note: Depending on prior exposure to the language, introductory/elementary language courses (101/102 courses) are required prerequisites for completion of the major.
  • Five courses in the student's chosen track (medieval or early modern). In cases where ambiguities arise (e.g., when course coverage straddles both periods), the undergraduate director will consult with faculty to determine the track-status of a given course.
  • Three courses in the track not chosen (medieval or early modern) and/or in classical studies. (Courses not designated by the CLAS, LAT or GRK rubric, but still within the disciplinary boundaries of classical studies, e.g., courses in ancient history, philosophy, art history or archaeology, can, with the approval of the undergraduate director, be counted as courses in classical studies.)
  • The eight courses from sections 3 and 4 above must originate in at least three different departments. Courses not designated by the MDVL rubric, but still within the temporal boundaries of the program — e.g., carrying a history, anthropology or Romance languages rubric — can, with the approval of the undergraduate director, be counted among these eight required courses for the major.
  • Six courses (or 24 credits) must be 300 level or higher, with at least one of these being a 400-level seminar.

The major in Medieval and Early Modern studies is administered by ºÚÁÏÊÓƵ's Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies (CEMERS).

The major is recommended for students planning to pursue graduate studies in pre-modern fields in the humanities and social sciences or as preparation for law school. It has also proven to offer excellent preparation for careers in the public humanities and in public history. It may be taken concurrently with a major or minor in another department or another program. There is no limit to the number of courses that can count toward more than one major, but a maximum of two courses that count toward another minor can also count toward a MDVL major.

For additional details on the major, contact the CEMERS office 607-777-2730 or email, visit our website or consult with Harpur Advising.

Honors in Medieval and Early Modern Studies

The undergraduate director administers the honors program offered in Medieval and Early Modern Studies. MDVL majors may become candidates for honors once they have completed 87 credits and, thus, achieved senior standing. Before becoming candidates for honors, majors must consult with the undergraduate director and complete the appropriate form to qualify.

To be eligible to earn honors, a MDVL major must:

  • Have a GPA of 3.50 in courses counting toward the major at the time of candidacy for honors
  • Write an honors thesis, which the student must arrange to research and write under the supervision of a faculty member affiliated with CEMERS
    Majors writing honors theses may (but are not required to) register for MDVL 498 and MDVL 499. These courses may not be used to satisfy course requirements for the MDVL major.

Ideally, the thesis supervisor should be a faculty member with whom the honors candidate has taken upper-level courses that have been counted towards the MDVL major. The supervisor will be selected by the student. Once the faculty member agrees to supervise the project, s/he will be appointed by the undergraduate director.

It is also advisable for the honors candidate to define a topic for the thesis based on advanced work already completed at the 400-level by the time of candidacy.

When the thesis is complete, a second member of the CEMERS faculty will be appointed to serve as the reader of the thesis. Selected by the student, the reader must be approved by the thesis supervisor and appointed by the program director.

The completed thesis will be evaluated by the faculty supervisor and reader, who will judge whether the work is worthy of honors, high honors or highest honors. In case of disagreement between the two readers, a third will be designated by the program director. This process must be completed before the last week of the student's last semester.

Upon successful completion of the project, the student will present a bound copy of the thesis to the MDVL program for its archive.

Medieval/Early Modern Studies Minor

Minors select courses under the supervision of the undergraduate director, who assists in tailoring the curriculum to the students' individual interests.

Six 4-credit courses are required for the minor (letter-grades only; minimum of C- to count towards the requirements):

Requirements for Minor:

  • MDVL 101 Introduction to Medieval and Early Modern studies (or, in exceptional cases, an equivalent course).
  • Five courses in the student's chosen track (medieval or early modern). In cases in which ambiguities arise (e.g., when course coverage straddles both periods), the undergraduate director will consult with faculty to determine the track-status of a given course.

With the approval of the undergraduate director, these five courses may include one course in the track not chosen (medieval or early modern) or in classical studies. (Courses not designated by the CLAS, LAT, or GRK rubric, but still within the disciplinary boundaries of classical studies, for instance, courses in ancient history, philosophy, art history or archaeology, can, with the approval of the undergraduate director, be counted as courses in classical studies.)

  1. The five courses indicated in Section 2 must originate in at least two different departments. Courses not designated by the MDVL rubric, but still within the temporal boundaries of the program — e.g., carrying a history, anthropology or Romance languages rubric — can, with the approval of the undergraduate director, be counted among these five required courses for the minor.
  2. Four courses (or 16 credits) must be 300-level or higher, with at least one of these being a 400-level seminar.
    The minor in Medieval and Early Modern studies is administered by ºÚÁÏÊÓƵ's Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies (CEMERS).

The minor is recommended for students planning to pursue graduate studies in pre-modern fields in the humanities or social sciences or as preparation for law school. It may be taken concurrently with a major or minor in a department or another program. A maximum of two courses that count toward a MDVL minor can also count toward another major. For additional details on the minor, contact the CEMERS office (607-777-2730 or email), visit our website or consult with Harpur Advising.

List of Faculty

This program draws faculty from across multiple departments. For a list of faculty, see the program's website.