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Contact Us Please contact us with specific questions about degree programs administered by the college or to schedule a personal visit.
Admissions CoordinatorCollege of Arts & HumanitiesUniversity of Maryland1102 L Francis Scott Key HallCollege Park, MD 20742
www.arhu.umd.edu
arhu The college of
arts & Humanities
www.arhu.umd.edu
Faculty and students in the College of arts and humanities study the cultures
of the world, past and present, in all their rich variety. through teaching
and research that investigate human experience, thought, expression and
creativity, the college aims to produce global citizens who think critically,
communicate effectively and value the transforming power of the imagination.
the college is leading the way in interdisciplinary approaches to the arts and
humanities by developing emerging fields like digital humanities and offering
study programs with exciting, multifaceted views of such regions of the world
as Latin america, the middle east and east asia.
think outside the shell
ARHU graduates have challenged themselves to follow their passions and uniquely apply their ARHU experiences to fulfilling entrepreneurial and industrial career options ranging from entertainment and academic entities to government or business. Proficient in critical and creative thinking and written and oral communication, our students have an unlimited array of career options.
Don’t take our word for it. Meet a few of our graduates:
David Baggett, linguistics ’92 » Co-developer of “Crash Bandicoot” for Sony PlayStation.
Gail Berman, theatre ’78 » Former president of entertainment for Fox Television.
Jeff Imwald, Spanish and marketing ’06 » Jeff spent two years teaching a bilingual sixth-grade class in the Bronx, N.Y., through Teach for America and recently worked with the Knowledge Is Power Program, a successful national network of charter schools, to open its first high school in New York City.
Alex Lambi, music ’08 (Italian minor, pre-med) » Now enrolled in a dual doctorate program at Temple University School of Medicine. Alex will graduate with a medical degree as well as a doctorate in cellular biology and anatomy, specializing in bone research.
Krystle Norman, Spanish ’08 » Currently enrolled in the University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy graduate program, Krystle recently spent a summer interning at the Department of State in the nation’s capitol and was photographed with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a swearing-in ceremony for the new ambassador to the United Kingdom.
Maria Otero, English ’72 » Undersecretary of state for democracy and global affairs.
Kevin Patrick, English ’92 » Vice president of corporate bond research for HSBC Securities (USA).
George Pelecanos, American studies ’80 » Former producer, writer and story editor for the acclaimed HBO series “The Wire.”
Location, location, location.
Located just miles from Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, the University of Maryland’s College of Arts and Humanities offers students the best of both worlds: a small liberal arts experience within a top-ranked public research university.
ARHU’s associations with the National Gallery of Art, National Archives, Folger Shakespeare Library and Theatre, Library of Congress and John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts provide research, performance and career opportunities for our students and faculty.
MITH and the Library of Congress » A project of the Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities, or MITH, is focused on the way digital technology can be used to both create and preserve American musical theater. Doug Reside, assistant director of MITH, is working with the Library of Congress to preserve the digital files of the Tony Award-winning musical “Rent,” which the family of late composer and playwright Jonathan Larson willed to the federal institution. “As digital technologies continue to replace more traditional ones as the preferred tools for creating art, digital artifacts will begin to join paper ones in the world’s archives,” Reside says. “Twenty-first century scholars must learn how to access and interpret this data just as scholars of earlier generations learned how to work with primary source documents inscribed on vellum, paper and film.”
Majors
American studies
Arabic studies
Art history and archaeology
Central European studies
Chinese
Classics
Communication
Dance
English
French
Germanic studies
History
Italian
Japanese
Jewish studies
Linguistics
Music
Persian studies
Philosophy
Romance languages
Russian
Spanish
Studio art
Theatre
Women’s studies
Minors
Ancient Greek language and literature
Arabic studies
Art history
Black women’s studies
Chinese language
Classical mythology
French studies
Germanic studies
Israel studies
Italian language and culture
Japanese
Jewish studies
Korean studies
Latin language and literature
Linguistics
Middle East studies
Music performance
Persian studies
Philosophy
Portuguese language, literatures and cultures
Religious studies
Rhetoric
Russian studies
Spanish language, business and cultures
Spanish language and cultures
U.S. Latina/o studies
academic majors/minors
4,400 undergraduate majors
322 tenured/tenure-track faculty
13:1 student major/faculty ratio
15 academic departments
25/26 academic majors/minors
12 academic buildings
3.95 average GPA (incoming freshmen)
1289 average SAT (incoming freshmen)
28% students of color
26 countries represented by international students
arhu undergraduaTes by The numbers
Explore your passion, discover your purpose and feed your creativity!
With a combined total of more than 50 majors and minors, you’ll be encouraged and challenged to broaden your perspective: learn to speak Arabic; read Shakespeare; dance; discover an appreciation for art history; become globally engaged through cultural and language immersion in Egypt, Chile or France; intern with the Smithsonian; or become an involved student who understands the importance of service to the community.
Whether you major in arts, humanities or an area of interdisciplinary study, you’ll build a versatile knowledge base and set of experiences that prepare you for the competitive global workforce, and more importantly, for becoming a lifelong learner. The college offers courses of study and degree programs for all levels of interest: bachelor’s degrees, undergraduate certificates and minors. Open your mind and explore!
Honors Humanities, a living and learning program with a small-school feel » “I know the
lessons learned and skills developed in Honors Humanities classrooms—as a student, teaching assistant and, occasionally, teacher—will influence me the rest of my life. The innovative, graduate-level classes encouraged me to ask pointed questions of beliefs that structured my world, while teachers, mentors and friends within the program encouraged me to cultivate all of my disparate interests—writing and research, psychology and cultural studies, comedy and pedagogy—in the name of becoming an active, thoughtful, innovative citizen.” —Daniel Greene ’09, English
Teaching in a virtual world » Zita Nunes, associate professor of comparative literature, leads a class of Maryland undergraduates who communicate online through Second Life in an online world
called Virtual Harlem. Students are required to research historical figures they represent online, getting to know their work and how he or she might have dealt with social or aesthetic issues. “We wanted to develop new ways to make this material relevant, and were pleasantly surprised to see students quoting extensively from an author’s work in many online conversations,” Nunes says.
Scholarly teaching and enrichment programs
The College of Arts and Humanities attracts outstanding teachers and researchers who are highly regarded in their fields. Among them are Distinguished University Professor of History Ira Berlin, one of the world’s experts on African-American life in the 19th century, and communication Professor Edward L. Fink, an internationally known authority on persuasion.
Many faculty members augment the undergraduate curriculum by leading special academic programs that offer additional teaching and learning in an environment that supports talented students with similar interests and goals. Each program provides a living and learning experience in areas of focus ranging from the value of the arts to daily language immersion.
Honors Humanities is a living and learning program within the Honors College that offers a rigorous, interdisciplinary investigation of the value of the arts and humanities and their role in society. First- and second-year students participate in special seminars, learn from visiting artists and scholars and pursue individual research projects.
Digital Cultures and Creativity is a new interdisciplinary program within the Honors College exploring new media technologies through activities such as digital music and video production, digital art, creative electronic writing, virtual worlds and the development of software and online communities.
Departmental Honors is a nonresidential experience in Arts and Humanities that offers talented third- and fourth-year students opportunities for honors seminars and independent research as part of their major studies.
College Park Scholars in the Arts is a vibrant community that attracts the university’s most creative performers, artists, designers, photographers and more. Students benefit from a broad range of arts workshops, local arts exploration and close faculty-student interaction.
Language House offers the opportunity for students who are serious about learning a language to share an environment where they can converse with others and learn about different cultures in an organized study environment. Through daily contact, organized activities and special course work, students focus on one of 10 languages: Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Persian, Russian or Spanish.
Jiménez-Porter Writers’ House is a literary center for creative writing across cultures and languages. Meeting spaces, a library and staff offices are all under the same roof as participants’ housing, so students can hone their skills writing poetry and fiction through peer review workshops, colloquia and lectures led by visiting writers.
ARHU offers many opportunities that enhance the vibrant intellectual and creative life of the college, the university and the greater community.
Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center » One of the nation’s largest, most advanced university performing arts complexes, the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center connects artists and the community through performances, residencies and dialogues that raise questions about who we are, what we believe and how we shape the world. Each season features artists from diverse cultures around the world, as well as students and faculty from the School of Music and the departments of theatre and dance. In all of its work, the center invites people into the creative process to promote learning, growth and exploration.
Driskell Center » The David C. Driskell Center (pictured above right) provides an intellectual home for artists and scholars to study the visual arts and culture of African Americans and the African diaspora. The center, the only facility of its kind at an American research university, presents a variety of events including art exhibitions, symposiums, lectures and dialogues.
Tawes Hall » Formerly a performing arts venue, Tawes Hall was recently transformed into a state-of-the-art facility and home of the Department of English. Its highlights include Ulrich Recital Hall, a 100-seat lecture hall, more than 20 classrooms, four media classrooms, 58 faculty offices, the Richard Eaton Broadcast Center (UMTV) and a rooftop terrace. Nearly all undergraduate students visit Tawes Hall, as the university’s curriculum requires them to take lower- and upper-level English courses.
Inspirations for creativity and discovery
Spotlight on student experience » Kathryn Lerner, a junior majoring in English and dance, was dance captain for the Department of Theatre’s March 2009 production of “The Winter’s Tale.” She learned about acting, Shakespeare, puppetry and dramaturgy, collaborated on choreography and ran some rehearsals in the choreographer’s absence. She says, “This was by far the best experience I have had in the performing arts world to date.”
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