Academics

Active engagement across the curriculum

Courses are the heart of Themester. Each fall the College presents undergraduate courses that open the theme, engage with it, and promote cross-disciplinary inquiry.

As part of the liberal arts tradition, Themester courses encourage students to question critically, think logically, communicate clearly, act creatively, and live ethically. Students consistently report that Themester courses and events allow them to understand how topics can be approached from different perspectives. Themester challenges them to consider the complexity of a topic beyond their initial assumptions.

View Themester courses

Fitting Themester into your course of study

All Themester courses count toward graduation as elective credit, while some meet additional College, general education, major, or minor requirements.

You should consult with an academic advisor to learn how Themester courses count in your program of study.

If you find this year’s theme of particular interest you might consider delving more deeply into it to earn an individualized minor—you can use the Themester courses as a foundation.

Find your academic advisor

Vivian Halloran

I always incorporate the extracurricular elements of a Themester into my courses, both to complement the material I teach and to expose students to campus assets they may not have discovered yet, such as the Lilly Library or the Mathers Museum of World Cultures.

Vivian N. Halloran, Associate Professor, Departments of English and American Studies