Russian Studies


315-859-4782

Russian Studies

The goal of Hamilton's Russian Studies Program is to encourage students to investigate the rapidly changing political and economic scene in Russia and evaluate what those monumental changes mean for the rest of the world.

Overview

"A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma" is how Winston Churchill described Russia in a still-famous phrase from 1939. A half-century of Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union did little to soften that characterization in the West. But in recent years, Russia has begun to reveal itself, and Hamilton's Russian studies program is dedicated to fully unraveling the Russian mystery. More ...

Academic Program

Study Abroad Opportunities

Students in Russian studies are strongly encouraged to study in Russia or one of the other republics of the former U.S.S.R. in a one- or two-semester program. Programs are arranged on an individual basis by the department. In recent years, Hamilton has placed students in Moscow State University, St. Petersburg-Herzen Pedagogical Institute, Irkutsk University in Siberia, Novgorod Pedagogical Institute and Vladivostok State University in the Far East.


The Senior Program

The Senior Program at Hamilton is a culminating intellectual experience in which students draw on and integrate the knowledge, research and language skills gained in the first three years. At the center of the Senior Program is the senior project, which in Russian studies usually takes the form of an extended research thesis or translation using Russian-language sources and carried out under the close supervision of at least one faculty member. More ...


Resources

Faculty members regularly organize study tours to Russian that include visits to such highlights as the Kremlin, the Hermitage and the Catherine Palace. Students are encouraged to interact with the Russian-speaking community in Central New York, home to hundreds of recent émigrés from Belarus and the Ukraine. Also locally, frequent field trips are offered to the Holy Trinity Monastery in nearby Jordanville, N.Y., headquarters of the international Russian Orthodox Church. On campus, the Russian Club is one of Hamilton's most active student organizations and is famous for its annual Russian feasts.