Program Overview

Undergraduate Program in Holocaust Studies

The Holocaust Educational Foundation of Northwestern University (HEFNU) offers a Certificate of Achievement in Holocaust Studies. This is a four-course, interdisciplinary program, open to Northwestern undergraduate students enrolled in a degree program.

Certificate of Achievement Overview

The Certificate of Achievement encourages and acknowledges interest in and study of the Holocaust from a variety of disciplinary perspectives. The program is administered and awarded by the Holocaust Educational Foundation of Northwestern University in consultation with a committee composed of NU faculty.

Certificate Application and Award Process

To be admitted to the program, students must fill out an application, including a plan of study, and meet with the Director of HEFNU. Holocaust-related courses that students have completed prior to application may count towards the Certificate of Achievement. The award will be conferred around the time of a student’s graduation from NU.

Requirements

• Visiting Scholars (3/year): In addition to four Holocaust-related courses, Certificate of Achievement participants must attend three quarterly lectures sponsored by HEFNU.
• Courses (4): To earn the Certificate of Achievement, a student must earn a satisfactory grade (at least a C-) in 4 courses:
  • Core Course: History of the Holocaust (HISTORY 349-0)
  • Holocaust Studies Electives (Two Courses):
    • HISTORY 101: Holocaust Testimonies
    • HISTORY 200: The Holocaust and Its Memory in Israel
    • GENDER STUDIES 382-0 / HISTORY 393-0-24: Gender, Race, and the Holocaust
    • JWSH_ST396/RTVF398: Holocaust/Genocide in Film and TV
    • PSYCH 317: The Holocaust: Psychological Themes and Perspectives
    • SESP 351: Public Learning Through the Arts: Magic, Monsters and the Holocaust
  • Context Course (One Course): Any course about Jewish culture, philosophy, or religion in pre-WWII Europe; any course about pre- or post-WWII Europe that has some Holocaust content; any course about genocide or mass atrocity.
    • HISTORY 300: Comparative Genocide
    • HISTORY 348: Jews in Ukraine, Poland, and Russia )
    • GERMAN 234: Jews and Germans: An Intercultural History
    • JWSH_ST 266/ GERMAN 266: Introduction to Yiddish Culture: Images of the Shtetl

Summary of Requirements

• Attendance at 3 lectures
• 4 courses, including:
  • (1) History 349-0
  • (2) Holocaust Studies Electives
  • (1) Context Course in Jewish Studies (pre-Holocaust)
• At least 2 of the 4 courses must be at the 300-level or above.
• At most 1 of the 4 courses can be completed outside Northwestern.