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Studies & Degrees in East European Studies

East European Studies is an area-studies field. It examines the countries between Germany and Russia, the Balkans, the Baltic states and, in most programmes, Russia itself and the wider post-Soviet space, through their languages, history, politics, societies and cultures. One European master's programme in the field sums up the aim as a thorough knowledge and understanding of historical and contemporary developments in the society, politics, economics and culture of this large and diverse area.

The name varies from one university to another. In the United States the usual label is Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies (often shortened to REEES), and some centres add Central Asia. Whatever the title, a regional language is at the core, combined with courses taken in several departments.

Qualifications and levels

  • Minor: a block of courses next to another main subject. At the University of Washington in Seattle the minor in Russia, East Europe and Central Asia Studies requires 30 credits: a course on contemporary Europe, a survey course on the region and five electives.
  • Bachelor's major: either a major offered by a Slavic or area-studies department or a regional track inside a broader degree. The Department of Slavic, East European and Eurasian Languages and Cultures at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) offers three majors and four minors. The University of Washington has regional tracks within its majors in International Studies and in European Studies. Boston University teaches the region inside a European Studies major of ten principal courses, with a European language other than English studied through at least the sixth-term level.
  • Master's degree: usually an interdisciplinary MA. The University of Washington offers an MA in European, Russian and Eurasian Studies, an accelerated MA for US military Foreign Area Officers, concurrent degrees with its professional schools and a graduate certificate. At The University of Texas at Austin, the Department of European and Eurasian Studies lists Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies among its graduate programmes. In Denmark, Aarhus University has a two-year master's programme in European Studies taught in English; it covers Europe as a whole rather than the east only.
  • Doctorate: the region is normally the specialisation of a PhD in a discipline (history, political science, Slavic languages and literatures) or of an interdisciplinary programme in international studies.

Outside this directory, the University of Glasgow leads an Erasmus Mundus international master's in Central and East European, Russian and Eurasian Studies taught by a consortium of universities. Its website stated in October 2026 that the programme was not accepting applications, and pointed to Glasgow's one-year master's in Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies.

What students learn

Language study sets the pace. UCLA's department teaches seven languages: Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian, Czech, Hungarian, Polish, Romanian, Russian and Ukrainian, five of them on a regular basis. Next to the language, students take courses on the history, politics, literature and culture of the region and write a research paper or thesis. Study abroad is common; UCLA notes that its students frequently study abroad, and Miami University in Ohio offers study abroad scholarships and intensive one-on-one Russian practice through its Havighurst Center, established in 2000.

University centres add lectures, conferences and funding to the degree programmes. Examples are the Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies at Texas, which describes its work as covering the languages, cultures, histories and politics of the region, and the Ellison Center at the University of Washington.

Where to study it

SpainExchange lists 12 active schools for East European Studies: 10 in the United States, one in the United Kingdom (The University of Manchester) and one in Denmark (Aarhus University). The US schools include The University of Texas at Austin, the University of Michigan, The University of Chicago, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the University of Washington, UCLA, the University of California at Berkeley, Boston University, Fairfield University and Miami University.

Teaching is in English at these universities, with part of the work in the language being studied.

Careers

The field does not lead to a single profession. Graduates combine regional knowledge and a less commonly taught language with analytical and research skills. Typical destinations are government and diplomacy, defence and security analysis, international organisations and non-governmental organisations, journalism, translation, business with the region and, after a doctorate, university teaching and research. The accelerated MA for military Foreign Area Officers at the University of Washington shows one of these routes. No official employment statistics are published for this field on its own.

Frequently asked questions

Is East European Studies the same as Slavic Studies?

Not quite. Slavic Studies concentrates on Slavic languages and literatures. East European Studies is broader and interdisciplinary: it adds history, politics and society, and it includes non-Slavic countries such as Hungary and Romania.

Which languages can be studied?

It depends on the university. Russian is the most widely offered. UCLA, for example, also teaches Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian, Czech, Hungarian, Polish, Romanian and Ukrainian.

Can East European Studies be taken as a minor?

Yes. Many universities offer it as a minor next to another major. At the University of Washington the minor requires 30 credits.

Is there a master's degree in East European Studies?

Yes. Examples are the MA in European, Russian and Eurasian Studies at the University of Washington and the graduate programme in Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies at The University of Texas at Austin.