MA in TransAtlantic Studies opens in 2007

Jagiellonian University in Krakow has started a special M.A. postgraduate program in TransAtlantic studies in the English language at the Institute of American Studies and the Polish Diaspora.
In three semesters students obtain a Master of Arts degree in Cultural Studies with a major in Transatlantic Studies. The course covers the relationship betwen the U.S. and EU. The curriculum is nondisciplinary and covers cultural, social, economic, political, international and strategic issues.
?The Jagiellonian University — using its highly developed personnel — is opening up for foreigners and the outside world,? says Dr. Lukasz Kaminski, the coordinator of the project. ?Among a long list of other teachers, Professor Patrick Vaughan from the U.S. reads lectures in the history of the U.S., Cold War, and transatlantic relations.?
Professor Vaughan is currently working on the biography of Zbigniew Brzezinski, Polish-American political scientist and former U.S. National Security Adviser to President Jimmy Carter from 1977-1981. Professor Vaughan?s thesis concerned his fatherland?s use of ?soft power? in the conflict with the USSR in the 1970s and 1980s.
?A lot of foreigners come to Krakow for the Socrates-Erasmus exchange program and after a relatively short time living here decide that they want to stay longer. They find the city easy-to-reach with all of the cheap European airlines and attractive with its old monuments and rich culture,? Dr. Kaminski said. ?So far 10 people have applied for the program. Around 20 more people are interested in applying, many of them have Polish roots.?
The Institute of American Studies opened in 1990. The institution was established in part to cater to the large Polish Diaspora in the U.S., which some estimates put around 8-10 mln.