Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity

Core Program Requirements

Required Courses:

1 Introductory Course

• CSRE100: Intro to Comparative Studies in Race & Ethnicity 

2 Comparative Core courses offering a foundation in race studies

• CSRE101A: Indigeneity and Colonialism
• CSRE101B: Institutions and Inequities 
• CSRE101C: Resistance and Liberation

1 Methodology course in a discipline of your choosing

1 Community-Engaged Learning course or pre-approved project 

15 units of Subplan-specific coursework (see below dropdown for Subplan options)

1 Capstone course

• CSRE 200X - CSRE Senior Seminar  
  • CSRE majors draw upon their interdisciplinary expertise and training in race studies to design and complete a public-facing research project or research paper.
• or CSRE 201X, 201Y & 201Z - CSRE Honors Seminar 
  • The Honors Thesis Seminar is a year-long research- and writing-intensive sequence designed to support students as they apply their skills, knowledge, and political commitments to the investigation of a focused research question. 

Comparative Studies majors must complete the remaining units of their 60-unit minimum with elective coursework in the CCSRE family of programs. The majority of elective units must be completed in CSRE.

To find a more detailed overview of this major, please visit our Bulletin page. 

If you are ready to declare, please visit the How to Declare page

In order to earn a Minor in CSRE, students must complete at least 30 units toward the minor.

• 5 Units of an Introductory Course 
• 5 Units of a Comparative Core Course
• 20 Units of CSRE Electives 

Introductory Course (5 Units)

Minors must take CSRE 100 - Introduction to Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity.

Comparative Core Course offering a foundation in race studies (5 Units)

Minors are required to take one Comparative Core Course:

• CSRE101A: Indigeneity and Colonialism
• CSRE101B: Institutions and Inequities 
• or CSRE101C: Resistance and Liberation

CSRE Electives (20 Units)

Minors are required to take a minimum of four additional courses in the CCSRE family of programs; a minimum of 11 units must be in CSRE. 

To find a more detailed overview of this minor please visit our Bulletin Page.

If you are ready to declare, please visit the How to Declare Page

Subplans are required of students majoring in Comparative Studies in Race & Ethnicity (CSRE). (Note that subplans are not available to majors in Asian American Studies, Chicana/o-Latina/o Studies, Jewish Studies, or Native American Studies.)

CSRE majors declare one of the program's eight subplans to direct their studies and may propose an individualized subplan as appropriate. Subplans are noted on CSRE students transcripts and diplomas; individually designed foci will appear as "Self-Designed." Students must complete a minimum of 25 units of subplan-focused courses as part of the 60 units taken toward the major. 

The eight CSRE subplans are listed below. 

Subplan: Education and Inequality

The subplan in Education and Inequality explores history, policy, and practice in education to understand how educational opportunity and learning outcomes are shaped by race, ethnicity, and power. Students will develop an understanding of the core issues facing educators and policymakers and will be prepared to contribute to social and political discourse about education and opportunity. 

Subplan: Environmental Justice

The Environmental Justice subplan develops students' understanding of the uneven and far-reaching impacts of environmental policy, climate change, grassroots environmental movements, and more. Students will develop facility with a variety of methodologies and will leave prepared to work toward just environments for all. 

Subplan: Health and Wellness

The subplan in Health and Wellness supports interdisciplinary exploration of health research, access, and policy. Students will take qualitative and quantitative approaches to understanding how health and wellness are defined and impacted by processes of racialization. 

Subplan: Identity, Diversity, and Aesthetics

The Identity, Diversity, and Aesthetics subplan explores the intersections of culture, race, and social transformation. Through courses taught by Stanford faculty, lecturers, and distinguished Visiting Artists in the Institute for Diversity in the Arts, students experiment with how the arts, activism, and academic research come together to enact aesthetic and societal change. 

Subplan: Politics, Policy, and Equity

The Politics, Policy, and Equity subplan focuses on the ways in which political institutions, public policy, nonprofits, and social movements shape and are shaped by race and ethnicity. This subplan will give students the tools and frameworks to examine the ramifications that politics and policy have on processes of racialization. 

Subplan: Race, Gender, and Sexuality 

The Race, Gender, and Sexuality subplan is designed for students who wish to explore the intersections of race, ethnicity, gender, and sexuality. Drawing from the contributions of women of color feminism and queer of color studies, this concentration challenges normative constructions of race and ethnicity by equipping students with analytical tools from feminist theory, queer theory, post-colonial theory, critical race theory, and other critical methods. 

Subplan: Race, Space, and Belonging 

The Race, Space, and Belonging subplan examines issues of immigrants, citizenship, empire, gentrification, segregation, urban and rural space, human rights, public welfare, social justice, and law. Students take courses from a range of departments and programs to examine the ways in which race and ethnicity shape constructions of and access to space, nation, and public resources. 

Subplan: Technology and Media

Students in this subplan will explore the relationship between technology, media, and racialization. Race and ethnicity are used as a crucial lens for understanding the meaning, power, and evolution of technologies, from type, photography, film, and radio to social media, artificial intelligence, and algorithms. Students are given the tools to assess technology equity and to reimagine how technology might be harnessed to actualize a more just and equitable world. 

Subplan: Self-Designed

A proposal for a self-designed subplan should include a general description of the student's focus, an articulation of why it cannot be accommodated by current subplans, a course plan, and a description of how each course meets the student's educational objectives. A proposal for a self-designed subplan must be submitted with a student's Major Declaration Proposal and will be reviewed by CCSRE Academic Programs.