Programs in the School of Arts and Humanities

The School of Arts and Humanities emphasizes education that seeks and creates connections, combining critical with creative thought, theory with practice, and arts and humanities with other fields of knowledge. Our goal is to foster in students intense curiosity informed by rigorous attention and the ability not only to solve challenging problems but also to communicate the process and importance of the solution.

You will find a rich array of courses in the School of Arts and Humanities. We offer courses in literature, foreign languages, history, philosophy, music, dance, drama, film, and the visual arts.

We also offer innovative programs like Arts and Technology that connect the worlds of engineering, humanities and the creative arts. Our program in Translation Studies and our Center for Translation Studies are internationally renowned.

What distinguishes our program is this: we always try to present each field as part of an integrated and coherent curriculum rather than as separate and distinct bodies of knowledge.

The School offers six undergraduate majors. Literary Studies, Historical Studies, Art and Performance, Arts and Humanities, Arts and Technology (ATEC) and Emerging Media and Communication (EMAC) offer thorough training in one area that is offered within the context of larger humanistic issues. The major in Arts and Humanities allows students to build a personalized program that integrates aspects of the other majors.

At the graduate level we currently offer the following degrees:

These unique graduate programs provide students with a flexible, interdisciplinary context in which to pursue a personalized course of study. Rather than identifying narrow, fixed disciplinary areas, we have designed our graduate degrees around three broadly defined areas of interest: Aesthetic Studies (HUAS), History of Ideas (HUHI) and Studies in Literature (HUSL). The interrelationship and mutual influence of these broad areas is emphasized as the essential aspect of our approach to graduate education.

The School of Arts and Humanities offers the advantages of a research university and the nurturing atmosphere of a liberal arts college.

Students in the School of Arts and Humanities are encouraged to explore the boundaries and the interrelationships of the major fields of study within the school. Consistent with this focus on the integration of the arts and humanities and a commitment to interdisciplinary education, the school has no conventional departments. Rather, its curriculum is designed to allow study that crosses and transforms traditional disciplinary lines. This flexible design allows faculty members to create learning communities based on mutual interests and in response to the educational needs of students.

The School of Arts and Humanities also offers an Honors Program giving students an opportunity for advanced creative and scholarly work and recognition.

Each student in the school consults regularly with an advisor who helps the student design an integrated program of course work. For ATEC and EMAC, contact Tara Riall or Misty Williams to make an appointment. For all other A&H majors, contact Mary Jo Rex or Andrea Moody to make an appointment. For more specific requirements for each degree, see Degree Plans.

In addition, the School offers curriculum in creative writing, language study and rhetoric.