Given Russia’s fascinating past, its rich cultural legacy, and its current centrality in the global political arena, studying Russian at Bowdoin is both an intellectually enriching experience and a smart career choice.
The Department of Russian is a small, close-knit, and supportive community that fosters student engagement and achievement. Our faculty challenges students to immerse themselves in the Russian language, literature, and culture and exposes them to the thought-provoking existential questions prevalent in the Russian cultural tradition.
We, faculty and affiliated faculty members of the Russian Department at Bowdoin College, call for the release of Bowdoin alumnus and Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Gershkovich, who has been detained while reporting in Russia on its war on Ukraine, and we echo Bowdoin President Clayton Rose’s statement that the work of journalists like Evan is the linchpin of a free society [see the President’s full statement here]. We stand in solidarity with Evan and our thoughts are with him and his family.
Welcome to the Russian department! Hear from recent alumni about how studying Russian at Bowdoin has enriched and changed their lives!