University of Virginia College of Arts and Sciences
The University of Virginia College of Arts and Sciences is one of and the largest of the University's ten schools by student population. Consisting of both a graduate and an undergraduate program, the College comprises the liberal arts and humanities section of the University.
On July 1, 2014, Ian Baucom began his tenure as the Buckner W. Clay Dean of the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences after serving 17 years in Duke University's Department of English. Dean Baucom was a professor of English and directed the John Hope Franklin Humanities Institute at Duke.
History
The College of Arts & Sciences, first named the "academic department" was authorized by the Board of Visitors in 1824 along with the School of Law and the School of Medicine. Classes first conferred in March 1825. Under the presidency of Edwin Alderman, the department was officially separated into the "College of Arts and Sciences" and the "Graduate School of Arts and Sciences", and was substantially expanded, including the founding of departments of music and fine arts (funded through a gift by University benefactor Paul Goodloe McIntire).
In 1969, the Board of Visitors voted to lift all of the restrictions regarding the admission of women to the College. In September 1970 the first class of undergraduate women entered the College of Arts & Sciences at U.Va.
Academics
The College enrolls approx. 12,000 students undergraduate and 5,000 graduate students in over 55 fields. For the class entering 2007, 18,048 students applied and 6,274 were offered admission with 3,260 accepting admittance into the College. 88% of the enrolling students ranked in the top 10th of their graduating classes. [1]
Echols Scholars
The Echols Scholars program was created in 1960 as an answer to the soaring numbers introduced by the GI Bill. The Faculty Senate decided to create a program that would provide "ambitious academic privileges to students". [2] The program was designed to attract applicants deemed by the admissions committee to comprise the very top academic echelon of the prospective incoming class; the significant academic freedoms and other benefits afforded the small selection of applicants honored with the offer of an Echols Scholarship was meant to entice students likely to be accepted into Ivy League and other top schools to choose UVA in their stead. These privileges include living in an exclusive dorm first year, exemption from area requirements, an exclusive counseling program, an interdisciplinary major, and others. Echols Scholars are not selected through a separate admissions application process; rather, all applicants are automatically reviewed for Echols status during the general admissions process. For enrolled students not originally accepted with the Echols distinction, the school offers an additional first-year application program in which students enrolled in challenging classes are invited to apply. If accepted, they are then allowed to join the Echols Scholars Program for the rest of their tenure at the University.
The current Dean of the Echols Scholars Program is Dr. Sarah Cole.
Fields of Study
The College offers over 50 majors and minors in the following fields:[3]
- African American and African Studies
- American studies
- Anthropology
- Archaeology
- Art History
- Art, Studio
- Astronomy
- Astronomy-Physics
- Behavioral Neuroscience
- Biology (BA and BS)
- Chemistry (BA and BS)
- Chinese Language and Literature
- Classics
- Cognitive Science
- Computer Science
- Drama
- East Asian Studies
- Echols Interdisciplinary Major
- Economics
- English
- Environmental Sciences (BA and BS)
- Environmental Thought and Practice
- French
- German Language, Literature, and Culture
- German Studies
- Global Commerce in Culture and Society
- Global Development Studies
- Global Environments and Sustainability
- Global Public Health
- Global Security and Justice
- Global Studies: Middle East and South Asia
- History
- Human Biology
- Interdisciplinary Major Program
- Italian Studies
- Japanese Language and Literature
- Jewish Studies
- Latin American Studies
- Linguistics
- Mathematics
- Media Studies
- Medieval Studies
- Middle Eastern Languages and Literatures
- Middle Eastern Studies
- Music
- Neuroscience
- Philosophy
- Physics (BA and BS)
- Political and Social Thought
- Political Philosophy, Policy, and Law
- Politics: Foreign Affairs
- Politics: Government
- Psychology
- Religious Studies
- Slavic Languages and Literatures
- Sociology
- South Asian Languages and Literatures
- South Asian Studies
- Spanish
- Statistics (BA and BS)
- Women, Gender and Sexuality
External links
- ↑ Web. Finding the Leaders of Tomorrow Today
- ↑ Web. Echols Scholars Program
- ↑ Web. Majors in the College of Arts & Sciences, University of Virginia, October 1st, 2024