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Russian Program

Russian is the only program in the Department of Languages & Literatures of Europe & the Americas that offers a Certificate in the critical needs language vital to the US national security interests, as defined by the US government.

A European language, Russian is a high-priority program for UH Manoa, as it relates to UH’s leadership in Pacific-Asian studies, and our understanding of Russia as an Asia-Pacific nation. This is in contrast with the European orientation typical at other universities.

Russia is a global power with a significant presence in Asia-Pacific. Its diplomacy in Asia-Pacific is a diversified one, guided by its economic and trade cooperation with the countries in Asia-Pacific rim. Russia considers the Asia-Pacific region to be a big market for its energy resources and sees opportunities to develop multilateral cooperation in sectors like oil, gas, nuclear energy and mining in the region. Russian language knowledge thus makes you extremely marketable.

The Russian program at UH Manoa offers language instruction at the beginning, intermediate and advanced levels in Russian leading to a Russian Language and Culture Certificate. Our small size classes, highly relevant to contemporary culture and to today’s job market, cater to the individual needs of students. Our LLEA courses are designed to provide our students with a strong foundation in the literature, culture, and cinema of Russia.