It assumes no previous knowledge of the language. The course is designed to develop basic communicative proficiency in Russian and teaches the four basic language skills in Russian: speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Practice in and out of class is meant to encourage students to interact in Russian. There is a video component to the class. Major cultural aspects of Russian are also incorporated throughout the instructional materials.

Development of proficiency in speaking, reading, writing and understanding Russian with cultural and linguistic information about the Russian-speaking world. Emphasis is made on communication and culture. Prerequisite: Russian 111, 201 or equivalent.

This course will focus on the further development of communicative skills in Russian. It is designed for intermediate-level students. Written compositions and translations, assigned for homework, are required for the development of grammatical accuracy and stylistic appropriateness. The students will learn new vocabulary and ways of expressing ideas and opinions; they will also develop their cultural competence. Prerequisite: Russian 111, 201 or equivalent.

Students will learn to handle conversations necessary for survival in the target culture, such as personal information related to self, family, home, daily activities, interests and personal preferences, as well as physical and social needs. Prerequisite: Russian 202, 211 or equivalent.

Continued development of speaking, reading, listening and writing skills including creative expression, work with higher-level text types, and the study of selected grammatical structures. Prerequisite: Russian 301 or equivalent.

This course will focus on further development of the linguistic and stylistic practices of advanced students. Focus is on vocabulary expansion as well as correction of high frequency syntax errors that persist beyond the intermediate level. Written compositions and translations, assigned for homework, are required for the development of grammatical accuracy and stylistic appropriateness.

Russian 401 course is a follow-up to the Russ 302 course and is intended to enhance overall communicative competence in Russian and extend students' knowledge about Russian contemporary culture. The main goal of this course is to expand and solidify student's command of Russian vocabulary and grammar and to develop advanced listening, reading, speaking, and writing skills. In-class activities will include a variety of activities. Where possible, textbook work will be augmented by authentic texts about contemporary Russian culture. The course incorporates a variety of online activities and the use of Russian print media.

The course is designed to develop fluency in spoken Russian as well as enhance writing skills, vocabulary development, reading and listening comprehension. Using Russian film and Russian mass media as a basis for conversation provides students with a wealth of culture-based authentic materials. Along with more typical exercises around vocabulary and grammar usage, students will be asked to write, present, or debate in Russian on various themes, plot elements, or characters. They will develop their own skits borrowing from language employed in the films, which will be then presented to class peers. Going beyond the film, the students will be encouraged to discuss real life problems and re-imagine the film characters in new scenarios of their own creation.

Focus is on political Russian. Readings and discussion of materials from historical and current periodical literature as well as Russian TV newscasts, with primary emphasis on current political developments within Russia and problems of Russian foreign policy. The course requires extensive use of the Internet (Russian print media on line and video reports of current events). Students will read Russian mass media sources on different themes, give presentations, participate in discussions, and write summaries and reviews.

The students will read and discuss authentic texts from contemporary Russian literature, excerpts from novels of such famous authors as Chinghiz Aitmatov, Alexei Tolstoy, and Vasilii Aksenov, read, watch, and discuss news reports in Russian print media and online related to topics discussed in class.

In this class, students will analyze and learn to use more complicated grammatical and syntactical structures of the Russian language and will significantly increase their vocabulary by studying Russian root-based semantic groups, idioms, and synonyms. Students will watch Russian films, interviews with Russian famous people, read short stories, poetry, and newspaper articles, complete listening, writing, and oral assignments including short presentations in class.