Minor in Catholic Humanities

With a Catholic Humanities minor, you’ll have the opportunity to connect your major or other area of interest to an interdisciplinary and integrated approach to the humanities and the Catholic and Dominican intellectual tradition. Professional study usually emphasizes specialized knowledge, and even within the humanities a narrow disciplinary focus is common. In contrast to this, Catholic Humanities students pursue connections between disciplines and between professional vocations and the life of the mind, ultimately searching for the underlying unity of the world around us and seeing as best one can from the perspective of our Creator.

The foundation of the Catholic Humanities minor is an interdisciplinary introduction to the humanities and an interdisciplinary introduction to the Catholic and Dominican intellectual tradition. You will then choose three elective courses—often connected to your major or other important area of focus—and conclude with our Catholic Humanities Capstone where you’ll integrate what you have learned in service of a chosen theme.

Requirements: minimum of 18 credit hours including

HUM 175 – Introduction to Humanities

HUM 325 – The Catholic Intellectual Tradition or
HUM 326 – The Dominican Intellectual Tradition

HUM 480 – Humanities Capstone

9 Elective Credits contributing to the consideration of a focused theme

The 9 elective credits can be drawn from outside the Program, offering every student the opportunity to integrate the Catholic Humanities minor with disciplines across campus, and when appropriate electives can be drawn from core courses, courses from a major or second minor, or other special area of interest.

Electives are chosen in consultation with the Program director so that they contribute to an integrated consideration of the student’s chosen theme addressed in the Humanities Capstone.

Interested students should contact Dr. Jim Keating, the Director of the Humanities Program, or Dr. Raymond Hain, the Associate Director of the Humanities Program, and review the guidelines for Change of Major/Minor/Concentration.

Catholic Humanities Beyond the Classroom

The Humanities Program sponsors a wide range of extracurricular opportunities, many of which are ideal for Catholic Humanities minors.

All students are encouraged to participate as juniors or seniors in The Rome Semester, a life changing fall study abroad opportunity in Rome, the heart of the Church. Students live in community at the Pontifical Irish College, a few blocks from the Colosseum, and take courses at the Pontifical Gregorian University.

Prospective and current students are also invited to apply to our competitive St. Dominic Fellows program. Fellows are degree seeking students in the Humanities Program, take a leadership role on campus in service to our Catholic and Dominican mission, and participate in our Duc in Altum immersion experiences.

We also make resources available to the entire campus in support of our Catholic and Dominican mission through our Mission Mini-Grants, a collaboration with the Office of Mission and Ministry.

See our Signature Initiatives for a complete description of these opportunities and many more.