Departments of Instruction, Multidisciplinary Programs, and Interdepartmental Concentrations
Africana Studies
The Africana Studies Program is the oldest multidisciplinary program at Vassar College. The program is concerned with the cultural, historical, political, economic, and psychological consequences of the dispersal of Africans from their ancestral continent to the diverse regions of the world. It comprises the focused and critical study of the people, cultures, and institutions of Africa and the African Diaspora through a generous offering of courses both originating in the program and cross-listed with or approved from other departments. These courses span a majority of the standard disciplines: literature and the arts, area studies, history, social sciences, and psychology.
In addition to a broad array of courses offered on the Vassar campus, the program also participates in several study abroad programs. Most notable of these is Vassar's JYA program at Mohammed V University in Rabat, Morocco. Students may also study in the United States at one of four historically Black colleges: Fisk University, Howard University, Spelman College, or Morehouse College.
American Culture
The American Culture Program offers students a coherent plan of multidisciplinary study that employs the resources of many departments. "Culture" as used in this program encompasses not only the arts but also American institutions and artifacts, politics and economics, work and entertainment, habits, rituals, ideas, beliefs, and modes of communication. Study of the subject matter is multidisciplinary and many courses are team-taught. Typical areas of interest are race and ethnicity in American culture, sports and the media and their effects on society, museums and representations of the American past, and influences of literature and art on American values and attitudes. The program, through its required intermediate course, also explores America's role in the world. The specific focus of each student's program is tailored to the individual student's interests.
A detailed description of the program's organization, requirements, and special course offerings can be found in the catalogue and in a brochure available in the American Culture Office. The introductory course, American Culture 105, focuses on Native Americans and is designed specifically to introduce freshmen to multidisciplinary study. Given the program's broad range of offerings, students should plan to meet with the director as early as possible for their admission to the program, in order to focus their interests and organize their course work.
Anthropology
The field of anthropology promotes a holistic understanding of social life by offering complex accounts of human histories, societies, and cultures. Anthropologists do ethnographic, archival, and archaeological research on various aspects of individual and collective experience in all time periods and parts of the world, and take into consideration history, biology, environment, politics, economics, language, and expressive genres such as art, music, and performance. In recognition of the diversity of our areas of study, the Anthropology Department's curriculum is varied and broad, and includes courses such as Myth, Ritual, and Symbol; Technology and Ecology; Consumer Culture; Human Origins; Language and Culture; Tourism; Colonial and Post-Colonial Societies; Anthropology of Art; Ethnographic Film; and Ethnographies of North America, Mesoamerica, the Caribbean, and the Pacific.
There are four introductory courses which cover the major subdisciplines of anthropology: archaeology, biological anthropology, linguistics, and sociocultural anthropology. Those who decide to major in anthropology also take a course in anthropological theory, obtain some field experience through one of several options, and beyond this, follow their own interests and inclinations, with the assistance of departmental faculty.
Art
Art 105-106 is a year-long course surveying European, American, and Asian art and architecture. Team-taught with the participation of all members of the Art Department, the course entails three weekly lectures and a weekly conference section in which more focused discussion and debate can occur within a small classroom setting. Art 105-106 offers an introduction both to the history of art and to the fundamental methodological concerns of the discipline of art history, encompassing the aesthetic, cultural, religious, and social interpretations of seminal works of art throughout world history. Writing assignments involve visits to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Frick Collection in New York City. The extensive collections of the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center at Vassar College also offer an important resource for the firsthand inspection of works of art in this course. Art 105-106 is the foundation course for the study of art history and visual culture at Vassar College and is the prerequisite for all further art-historical offerings in the Art Department.
There are studio classes in drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, and printmaking available to studio majors and nonmajors. The introductory course, open to freshmen, is 102a-103b, Basic Drawing. This course is applicable for students with a range of previous experience, and is the prerequisite or corequisite for intermediate studio courses. All students receive individual criticism. Studio courses meet four hours a week for one unit of credit, and some intermediate and advanced courses may be elected NRO. Intermediate and advanced architectural drawing and design classes are also offered, with prerequisites that are listed in the catalogue. For painting, sculpture, photography, and printmaking, there is a lab fee which covers the use of equipment and some supplies. Art supply stipends for students receiving financial aid and who are on Vassar scholarships are available up to $100 a semester for studio courses. Applications may be made to the Office of Financial Aid during the first week of classes.
Asian Studies
The Program in Asian Studies offers a multidisciplinary and global approach to studying the peoples and cultures of Asia: their art, literature, religion, and thought, as well as their systems of social, economic, and political organization. The program examines both the traditional societies of Asia and their transformations in recent times. Asian studies majors and correlates work closely with advisors to design their program of study to follow their specific interests: majors choose one or two disciplines and focus on a particular country (generally China, India, Japan, or Korea) or region (East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, West Asia), while also learning about other Asian societies. Vassar has 17 faculty members who specialize in East Asia and/or South Asia. We offer a broad range of courses in both the social sciences and the humanities on topics ranging from East-West encounters, diaspora and globalization, gender and sexuality, art history and popular culture, Asian education systems, social movements, and regional security issues to history, rituals, religion and Asian healing traditions, philosophy, and texts.
Of particular interest to freshmen are Approaching Asia (topic for 2008/09: Challenges in a Globalizing Era) (ASIA 101b); Introduction to Comparative Politics (POLI 150a); Religions of Asia (ASIA 152 X RELI 152a and b), which introduces the religions of East Asia and South Asia; Introduction to Chinese and Japanese Literature: Traditions, Genres, and Methodology (ASIA 120 X CHJAa); and Early Chinese Philosophy (PHIL 110a). Each of these courses can serve to fulfill part of the introductory level requirement for the Asian studies major or correlate. Students interested in the Asian studies major or junior year abroad in an Asian country should begin language study in their freshman year if possible. (Vassar offers classroom instruction in Chinese and Japanese; Hindi and Korean are available through the Self-Instructional Language Program.) The Asian studies correlate sequence encourages, but does not require, language study.
Astronomy (see Physics and Astronomy)
Biochemistry (also see Biology and Chemistry)
Biochemistry is a joint program of the Biology and Chemistry Departments. The program combines introductory studies in biology, chemistry, mathematics, and physics with advanced studies in biology and chemistry and integrative course offerings in biochemistry. Requirements may be found in the catalogue.
This program provides a broad foundation and in-depth studies in biology and chemistry as a sound basis for studying the molecular aspects of biological phenomena. An undergraduate biochemistry education is appropriate to a broad range of graduate studies and careers, including advanced degree programs in the natural sciences and health professions, employment opportunities in research and industry, and academic careers in science education.
Freshmen are strongly advised to elect Biology 105, 106, Chemistry 108/109 or 125, and either Mathematics 121/122 or 125.
Biology
Our biology curriculum allows you to explore the breadth of the biological sciences, to focus on particular subjects in depth, and to gain experience in research. A major in biology prepares you for graduate study in a variety of disciplines, and for a broad array of careers including biological research, biotechnology, conservation, dentistry, education, environmental protection, medicine, and public health. There are a number of reasons why you might choose to take a biology course in your first year. It might be to begin a major in biology or a related field, to broaden your liberal arts education, or to explore scientific, biomedical, or environmental interests. We offer two introductory courses: Biology 105 and Biology 106. Neither course is a survey course in biology, and neither is a repetition of high school AP biology. In Biology 105, you will explore a specific topic from a biological point of view. You will develop your understanding of the central concepts of biology, as well as your critical thinking and communication skills. In Biology 106, you will conduct laboratory or field investigations of particular biological questions. You will develop your abilities to observe, formulate and test hypotheses, design experiments, collect and interpret data, and communicate results. Detailed descriptions of the Biology 105 topics can be found below.
Important note for first-year students: Two units of graded 100-level work in biology (BIOL 105 and BIOL 106) are required for election of 200-level biology courses. For this reason, it is very important to take these courses your first year if you're contemplating a major in biology or a related field. You may take 105 and 106 in either order, but we advise against taking them both at once. Both are popular courses, so if you wish to take one of them this fall, you should place it high on your registration list.
If you have received a score of 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement (AP) Biology exam and reported the score to Vassar College, you will receive one unit of 100-level biology credit toward graduation; you may elect 200-level biology courses once you have completed BIOL 106, and BIOL 105 will not be a requirement for your biology major.
If you're planning to major in biology or biochemistry, you should also complete CHEM 108/109 or CHEM 125 in your first year. If you're thinking about medical school, please consult the section on Preparation for Medical School in this handbook.
If you have any questions, please contact the Biology Department chair (845-437-7302; pregnall@vassar.edu).
The following sections of Biology 105 will be offered in the fall term:
Biology 105.01a. The Biology of Pills, Potions & Poisons
This course will explore the molecular mechanisms of drug action. Humans discovered long ago that certain compounds have profound effects on cellular physiology, and we continue today to search for compounds that will alleviate pain and suffering and cure diseases. The properties and reactions of therapeutic drugs are of interest not only because of their healing qualities but also because they have helped us understand many cellular processes. We will study a variety of compounds such as antibiotics, cancer drugs, painkillers, poisons, and vitamins, concentrating in each case on how these compounds alter the physiology of cells. How a drug works is often an easier question to answer than why it works. For example, why do humans have cannabis receptors or opioid receptors, and why do plants make compounds that bind to them? We will explore these and other questions as we study how drug action has led us to a better understanding of biological processes.
Biology 105.02a. Parasites, Immunity, and Human Biology
This course examines fundamental concepts of biology including biochemistry, cellular structure and function, energetics, reproduction and genetics, immunity, evolution, behavior, and ecology. We will focus on the mechanisms by which parasites interact with host organisms across these levels, with particular attention to malaria and other human afflictions.
Biology 105.03a. Viruses and Their Hosts
This course will explore the fundamentals of biology through the study of viruses and the organisms they infect, from bacteria to plants and animals. Topics will include how viruses use cell biology to replicate, the impact of viruses on evolution, and the role of viruses in classical experiments in biology.
The following sections of Biology 105 will be offered in the spring term:
Biology 105.51b. Pets, Crops and Livestock: Biology of Animal and Plant Domestication
For at least nine tenths of its existence, Homo sapiens survived by hunting wild animals and gathering wild plants. Between 10,000 and 4,000 years ago, our ancestors from at least seven different regions of the world independently domesticated certain species of animals and plants. Taken together, these transitions from foraging to farming were the single greatest event in our cultural history. In this course, we examine the domestication of animals and plants from a biological perspective. Focusing on specific examples such as cattle, cats, corn, wheat, and sunflowers, we will discover how examining the process of domestication helps us understand central biological concepts such as cell theory, the central dogma of molecular biology, Mendelian and quantitative genetics, genetic and environmental regulation of development, natural selection, adaptation, and ecological interactions.
Biology 105.53b. Evo Devo: Insights into Evolutionary Diversity
This course will introduce students to the field of Evo Devo, or evolutionary development. Originally put forth by Charles Darwin and Thomas H. Huxley, the notion that small changes in the development of organisms can lead to considerable divergence in form is not in itself a new idea. However, recent advances in developmental and cellular biology research now provide insights into key mechanisms of the evolutionary processes underlying diversity. The course considers major processes of evolution, as well as mechanisms of regulation of developmental processes, from evolutionary, population, cellular, molecular and genetic levels of analysis.
Chemistry
Chemistry is the study of the composition, structure, properties, and reactions of matter. A major in chemistry at Vassar provides preparation for graduate study in chemistry or related areas, such as medicine, environmental science, materials science, public health, and toxicology, and is also excellent training for future teachers, lawyers, and individuals working in business or an industrial setting.
Students begin their study of chemistry with General Chemistry (Chemistry 108/109). This course covers the fundamental ideas of chemistry and begins to build an understanding of the physical world from the perspective of atomic theory. General Chemistry is open to all students regardless of their background in chemistry. Since much of the work in chemistry is quantitative in nature, at least a working knowledge of algebra is required. Students who have a strong one-year chemistry course in high school, and four years of high school mathematics should elect Chemistry Principles (Chemistry 125). This course is designed to cover pertinent aspects of General Chemistry in one semester. For a description of the college's policy on credit for AP exams in chemistry, see the Academic Information section of this handbook.
An essential aspect of training in chemistry is the experience of independent laboratory work and research. The Chemistry Department, therefore, provides students the opportunity to use sophisticated instrumentation at all levels of the curriculum and encourages student participation in independent research as early as the freshmen year. Freshman may work on a research project under the direction of a member of the department by electing Independent Research (Chemistry 198). Students considering majoring in chemistry should elect chemistry and calculus during their freshman year. Physics 113/114 should be taken either during the freshman year or sophomore year. Students who plan to graduate in less than four years or graduate with a degree certified by the American Chemical Society should consult with a department advisor early in their first semester.
Chinese and Japanese
The Department of Chinese and Japanese is committed to helping students prepare as early as possible for their post-graduation endeavors ranging from graduate studies to careers in both public and private sectors that require Chinese or Japanese linguistic and/or literary skills. The department offers two majors: Chinese and Japanese. In addition, it offers two minors: correlate sequence in Chinese and correlate sequence in Japanese. The department provides four years of language instruction in each of the languages and a wide range of literature and culture courses including poetry, fiction, drama/theater, film, popular culture, and linguistics. Freshmen with no previous training in Chinese or Japanese may elect Chinese 105-106 or Japanese 105-106 (elementary language) and/or one of the courses taught entirely in English: Introduction to Chinese and Japanese Literature (CHJA 120), or any 200-level content course with special permission from the instructor (see catalogue for specific courses under the Department of Chinese and Japanese). A full year of Chinese or Japanese 105-106 fulfills the one-year foreign language requirement of the college. Students who are considering a major or double major in Chinese or Japanese are strongly urged to begin their language study in their freshman year, continuing with intermediate or advanced language courses in their sophomore and junior years. We also recommend taking Chinese-Japanese 120 as early as possible. Students who have taken Chinese or Japanese in high school or have grown up in a home where the language was spoken may take an Advanced Placement test to determine the appropriate level at which they should enroll. Continuing to study the language in the freshman year would be very beneficial because a substantial part of the Chinese or Japanese major requirements consists of language course units. The department administers the Vassar Summer Program in China and the Vassar Summer Program in Tokyo, Japan. The department also places students in strong Junior Year Abroad study programs. It organizes annual events such as Chinese and Japanese Culture Day, Chinese New Year Celebration, and Japanese Cherry Blossom Festival to enrich the students' language and cultural experiences. Students can also benefit from participation in the weekly Chinese or Japanese language table, which is conducted by the respective language fellow. During this time, conversations with native speakers and other Chinese- or Japanese-related activities are held.
Classics
Classics embraces the study of the ancient Greek and Latin languages, and the literatures, history, culture, and material remains of Greece, Rome, and other civilizations of the ancient Mediterranean. In addition to courses in Greek and Latin, the Department of Classics offers many courses that require no knowledge of these languages. As a classics major, a student may concentrate in Greek, Latin, or ancient societies. In Greek and Latin, students take a series of courses from the elementary to the advanced level in which the emphasis gradually shifts from mastery of the language to interpretation of literature and culture. The ancient societies concentration involves some courses in Greek or Latin but its emphasis is more upon the history, culture, and material remains of antiquity as studied from a variety of non-linguistic perspectives. As an alternative to the three concentrations in Greek, Latin, and ancient societies, students may elect a correlate sequence in any one of these. Those interested in learning Greek or Latin are strongly advised to begin in their first year. Freshmen who have not studied Greek or Latin, or have done so only briefly, should take Greek 105-106 or Latin 105-106, which cover the essentials of grammar and include short readings from ancient texts. Those who have had two or more years in high school should consult with a member of the department, who may direct them to a higher-level course such as Greek 215, Greek 230, Latin 215, and Latin 220 or sometimes even a 300-level course. Freshmen who wish to take a course on classical literature and civilization for which a knowledge of Greek and Latin is not required should select from Reading Antiquity (Classics 102b), Crosscurrents: History and Culture of the Ancient Mediterranean (Classics 103a), and Classic Rhetoric and the 2008 Presidential Campaign (Classics 180b), all of which are foundational to the study of classics at Vassar.
Cognitive Science
We human beings take it for granted that we are possessed of minds. You know that you have a mind and you assume that other people do, too. But what, exactly, are we referring to when we talk about the mind? Is a mind just a brain? What endows your mind with the property of being conscious? How does your mind allow you to extract music from sound waves, or relish the taste of chocolate, or daydream, or feel happy and sad, or reach for your cup when you want a sip of coffee? Are minds directly aware of the world out there? Or, when you think that you are perceiving reality, are you just consulting some representation of the world that your mind has built? How similar is your mind to the minds of other people? Do you have to be a human being to have a mind? Could other entities have minds so long as they were built the right way? Does your computer have a mind? These are the kinds of questions that cognitive scientists want to address.
Cognitive science is a broadly multidisciplinary field in which philosophers, psychologists, anthropologists, linguists, neuroscientists, biologists, mathematicians, and computer scientists, among others, combine their respective theories, technologies, and methodologies in the service of a unified exploration of mind. The hallmark of the field is a genuinely multidisciplinary outlook in which the perspectives and methods of all of the component disciplines are simultaneously brought to bear upon a particular question.
Vassar's cognitive science program is the oldest undergraduate degree-granting program in the world. Distinctive aspects of the program include the number of integrative courses offered in cognitive science itself, especially the intermediate level and laboratory course offerings, and the commitment to balanced coverage of the main topics and perspectives that characterize the current state of this rapidly changing field. Opportunities are available for students to obtain summer positions working on faculty research projects at Vassar and other schools.
Introduction to Cognitive Science (COGS 100), which is required for the major but open to all students, is the entrance into the program. The course asks what we mean by mind and who or what has a mind. We examine computer models of mind and the relationship between mind and brain. The course also focuses on what makes cognitive agents able to behave, with an emphasis on perception and action, memory, decision-making, language, and consciousness. We also explore the degree to which cognition requires and is influenced by having a body and acting in a world. Multiple sections of the course are offered each year, and freshmen interested in cognitive science are encouraged to consider taking one. This course also serves as the prerequisite for the intermediate-level courses in cognitive science: Perception and Action (COGS 211), Language (COGS 213), and Knowledge and Cognition (COGS 215). The major in cognitive science requires 12 units. These include our six cognitive science courses; a one-unit senior thesis; Statistics and Experimental Design (PSYC 200); and four courses chosen from one of a list of nine paths, each representing a connection between cognitive science and another discipline. These are: Cognition and Culture; Cognition and Language; Cognition and the Arts; Cognitive Development and Education; Embodied Agents; Evolved Minds; Formal Analysis of Mind; Mind and Brain; and Rationality, Value, and Decision-making.
The program draws on the faculty and resources of the contributing departments (which include psychology, philosophy, computer science, anthropology-linguistics, biology, physics, economics, and the arts) for teaching its courses, advising its majors, sponsoring senior theses, and holding extracurricular events.
College Course
The College Course deals with important questions about human nature, culture, and the natural world. Students explore significant books, works of art, and other expressions of the human spirit, Western and non-Western.
Because the College Course is interdisciplinary and integrative, it exposes students to different instructors, disciplinary approaches, and research techniques in order to illuminate a text, a human dilemma, or a major institution from many directions. Students thus enrich their comprehension of the topic, and enhance their ability to think from multiple perspectives. They also develop an awareness of the connections among bodies of knowledge by crossing borders that separate disciplines and by examining relations among diverse works and across cultures and centuries.
Because of the foundational concerns of the College Course, students gain a framework of knowledge and questions that can help orient and integrate their other studies at Vassar. Freshmen may find these courses especially valuable because they introduce a variety of disciplines and provide the broad historical and cultural perspectives for later, more specialized courses.
Freshmen are encouraged to check the catalogue for descriptions of offerings in the College Course.
Computer Science Vassar's Computer Science Department offers students the opportunity to study the field of computer science in the context of a liberal arts education. The department's program, with its theoretical core, provides excellent preparation for graduate study in computer science as well as work in the profession. Non-computer science majors who want to include a basic knowledge of computing in their undergraduate programs of study can take the introductory computer science sequence, CMPU 101 and CMPU 102. Students majoring in the sciences are advised to include this sequence in their programs of study. Students with significant prior computing experience may substitute CMPU 125 for the introductory sequence. For students who want to complement other majors with substantial work in computer science, the department offers several correlate sequences consisting of 6 or 7 computer science courses with various emphases. In addition to offering a full program of core computer science courses, Vassar's Computer Science Department is somewhat unusual in its offering of courses in areas relevant to the broader liberal arts curriculum, including artificial intelligence; robotics; language understanding by machine; graphics, and animation; and bioinformatics. Cognitive science majors with an interest in artificial intelligence or language may choose one of the tracks within their major including a sequence of relevant computer science courses. The department houses two computer laboratories containing machines running the Linux operating system. Both laboratories are available to majors and students taking courses in the department. Several ongoing research projects within the department offer students the opportunity to work with faculty on real problems both during the academic year and over the summer. Further information on requirements for the major can be found in the catalogue.
Dance
Dance is an elective academic course of study with three full-time faculty, two part-time faculty, a resident lighting designer and technical director, and three adjunct artists/accompanists. Located in Kenyon Hall, the Dance Department's facilities include several dance studios and the Frances Daly Fergusson Dance Theater, which seats 242. All the dance floors are designed specifically to serve the needs of the dance program.
Vassar's student dance performance group, Vassar Repertory Dance Theatre (VRDT), holds an annual audition during the first week of classes in the fall. VRDT performs throughout the year and may be taken for academic credit. It is a year-long commitment. The repertoire includes modern dance reconstructions, classical ballet divertissements, faculty pieces, and original student choreography.
The technique courses offered are beginner through advanced modern dance technique, beginner through intermediate IV classical ballet technique including pointe and adagio when suitable, beginner to intermediate jazz, and intermediate Graham technique and repertory. In addition to the technique courses, the department offers courses in Craft of Choreography, Improvisation, and Movement Analysis. These are open to all students. The Craft of Choreography students and the independent study students often perform in December and April. Details on all courses may found in the catalogue.
For placement or special permission signatures, consult the appropriate individual faculty member. For the VRDT audition date in the fall, performance dates for the year, master class offerings, and other information, call the Dance Office.
Drama and Film
The Department of Drama and Film offers majors in either drama or film, and the course requirements for each concentration are relatively separate. In both cases, the program emphasizes the study of these arts in the wider context of a liberal arts education.
Drama
In drama, each student is required to study the history of the theater and dramatic literature as well as the physical aspects of the theater arts and is expected to gain knowledge in all aspects of theater production. The concentration requirements are flexible, however, and it is quite possible for a student to design a program which emphasizes acting, directing, design, technical theater, playwriting, or dramatic literature and performance studies. The department encourages all students concentrating in drama to enroll in a wide range of supporting courses from other departments of the college. These include courses in art, music, English, and foreign languages, as well as work in additional departments that will help relate a student's own study of drama to the important intellectual and artistic traditions of Western and non-Western cultures.
Freshmen planning to continue the study of drama beyond the freshman year should enroll in Introduction to Theater Making (DRAM 102) and Introduction to Stagecraft (DRAM 103). Drama 102 is the basic prerequisite for all 200 level work in drama. While students may transfer AP or other advanced credits toward the drama major, these are accepted as elective credits only and never replace required courses. Freshmen are generally not allowed to audition for department productions in the first semester, although some backstage work is permitted. The dramatic productions undertaken by the department are curricular in nature, and participation is limited to students who are enrolled in The Experimental Theater (DRAM 200) or Senior Production Laboratory (DRAM 391). Every effort is made to integrate the production season with formal classroom activity.
The department presents six to eight fully-realized productions each year, plus a number of workshop presentations. Both faculty and senior drama majors direct for the department and guest directors are occasionally hired for specific productions. The plays are presented in the Mary Anna Fox Martel Theater, a proscenium theater located in the recently completed Vogelstein Center for Drama and Film, or in the Hallie Flanagan Powerhouse Theater, an experimental black box facility. In addition to the curricular productions undertaken by the department, a large number of extracurricular theatrical presentations are sponsored each year by the Philaletheis Society and other student organizations. Many of these plays are staged in the Susan Stein Shiva Theater, a facility designated for extracurricular student theatrical use.
Film
The film major emphasizes the study of narrative and documentary films. The concentration includes a range of courses in film history and theory, film and video production, and screenwriting. In connection with its courses, the department brings a large number of feature films to campus each year; screenings are listed in the college calendar and are open to the entire Vassar community. The Vassar library also houses extensive resources, including a video/DVD collection of more than 8,000 titles, which are freely available.
Freshmen are encouraged to widen their exposure to film of all countries, styles, and time periods. Film scholars and directors are often invited to lecture and show their films; freshmen are encouraged to attend public events.
The film major does not include courses on the 100 level, although the department does offer an introductory course, The Art of Film (FILM 175). No advanced placement for high school courses is offered in film. Formal film study at Vassar begins with World Cinema to 1945/World Cinema after 1945 (FILM 210/211) in the sophomore year. This sequence serves as the prerequisite for most of the other courses offered by the department. Intensive workshop courses in film and video production are offered to students during their third year at the college.
The Film Department's facilities in the Vogelstein Center for Drama and Film include modern classrooms with smart podia; a screening room with surround sound and 35mm and advanced digital projectors; a soundproof studio equipped with lighting grid and green screen; three editing suites; and a high-tech multimedia laboratory.
Students should consult the catalogue for a full description of courses offered in both drama and film and for concentration in either drama or film. They should contact the department for advice on planning individual academic programs.
Earth Science (Geology)
Geologists at Vassar study the earth as a system of interacting spheres: the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, the biosphere, and the rock sphere. We investigate earth's changes over time, assess its mineral resources and water supply, study the causes and effects of natural hazards, and work to understand the impacts of human activities on the surface of the planet and provide tools to help remedy environmental problems sometimes global in scope.
In 2008/09, The Earth Around Us (ESCI 103a) and Geohazards (GEOG/ESCI 101b), both first six-weeks, half-unit courses, are recommended particularly for first-year students who want to explore the possibility of majoring in earth science or simply educate themselves about basic earth processes relevant to environmental issues. The program's Freshman Writing Seminar, Earth Science and Environmental Justice (ESCI 111), explores social aspects of environmental issues and considers the role of geological knowledge in answering the questions raised. For students seeking an in-depth introduction to major concepts of earth science, the department recommends Earth, Environment, and Humanity (ESCI/GEOG 151), which examines internal and surface processes that shape the earth; and The Evolution of Earth and Its Life (ESCI 161), which treats physical and biological changes over 4.6 billion years of earth history.
Intermediate and upper-level courses focus on topics such as crystals, minerals, and rocks, as well as soils and sediments; surface processes and evolution of landforms such as rivers and mountains; resources of geopolitical significance like oil and water; pollutant transport; and climate change. All courses in the program emphasize field experiences, and many employ cutting-edge technology and computer software to enhance field and laboratory study. Abundant opportunities exist for guided independent as well as collaborative research with department faculty. Examples of current faculty research with Vassar students include terrestrial and submarine avalanche hazards in Japan, the Pacific Northwest, and Nova Scotia; tsunami risk in Indonesia; recent climate change based on lake sediment cores from the Hudson Valley, Shawangunk Mountains, and New Mexico; sediment origin and transport along the Nile and Yangtze Rivers and Caribbean beach environments; and spatial distribution of Superfund sites in the Hudson River Valley.
Faculty members in the department interact with great enthusiasm and frequency. The synergy between faculty in the Department of Earth Science and Geography is evident and creates an atmosphere of intellectual excitement for both faculty and students. Wednesday department tea time in our centrally located student study and lounge provides a regular opportunity for students and faculty in the department to discuss their work.
Recent Vassar graduates in earth science now enjoy careers in resource management, public policy, teaching, environmental science, public health, journalism, and law. Others who have chosen to pursue graduate education have earned advanced degrees recently from the Yale School of Forestry and Environment, Duke's Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences, University of California, University of Hawaii, and University of Massachusetts.
Students inclined toward natural science often are unacquainted with the relevance and significance of earth science for confronting the challenges of this new millennium. Therefore, we strongly advise all students contemplating a major in any natural science to open their minds to geology and earth science. Specifically, we urge you to speak with the chair of the Department of Earth Science and Geography before arranging a final program of courses for your first semester of study at Vassar.
Earth Science and Society
The societal challenges created by climate change, limited natural resources, and natural hazards point to the importance of studying the intersection of earth processes with human systems. Students interested in the interactions between humans and the earth can elect the multidisciplinary major in earth science and society housed in the Department of Earth Science and Geography. By exploring the many processes shaping the planet, earth science provides an understanding of the physical limits of human activity. By examining societies in their spatial and regional contexts, geography helps explain the human dimensions of global change.
Students majoring in earth science and society take departmental courses on such topics as environmental justice, earth's history of climate change, population and sustainable development, petroleum and mineral resources, water, food and farming, and environment and land use planning. Multidisciplinary courses outside the department relevant to the study of earth science and society may also be substituted in partial fulfillment of the major.
Ample opportunities exist for field work and collaborative research with earth science and geography faculty. Examples of such research include compilation of an EPA-funded environmental database for the mid-Hudson Valley to spotlight environmental justice issues; investigation of long-forgotten burial grounds of freed slaves using geophysical techniques; immigrant experiences in cities and border regions; climate change and environmental impact in the Hudson Valley; and land-use studies using geographic information systems (GIS).
Students interested in exploring the earth science and society major are encouraged to enroll in Earth Resource Challenges (ESSC 100). In 2008/09, the topic for the course is Food and Farming. Additional recommended courses include Global Geography (GEOG 102a or b), The Earth Around Us (ESCI 103a, 6-week course), and Geohazards (ESCI/GEOG 101b, 6-week course). Such courses give students a taste of the multidisciplinary courses available in the Earth Science and Society Program.
Economics
Economic forces shape our global society and profoundly influence our daily lives. The study of economics at Vassar will deepen your understanding of these forces and help equip you for a position of leadership in today's world.
Freshmen are encouraged to take economics in their first year. For those who later choose economics as a major, an early start eases advancement through the upper level requirements. This is especially true for students considering the option of study abroad during their junior year. In addition, introductory economics is frequently a prerequisite for courses that are an integral part of multidisciplinary programs of study. Whatever your intended major, early exposure to the topics and methods of economics is valuable. It will sharpen your skills in reasoning, broaden your acquaintance with important economic issues of the day, and deepen your understanding of government policies, business behavior, and personal decision-making. A good background in economics opens doors to careers in a variety of fields including business, law, politics, international affairs, and the media.
The study of economics at Vassar usually begins with Introduction to Macroeconomics (ECON 100) or Introduction to Microeconomics (ECON 101). The former introduces students to the national economy and the latter to the function of markets in our economic system. Each course is offered in both fall and spring semesters and is open to all students. Either or both of these courses are prerequisites for further study in economics, and each satisfies the quantitative analysis requirement.
Education The teacher preparation programs in the Department of Education reflect the philosophy that a broad liberal arts education is the best foundation for teaching, whether at the elementary or secondary level, and whether in public or private schools. The student who is preparing to teach works within a strong interdisciplinary framework of professional methods and a balanced course of study in a select field of concentration leading to the degree of bachelor of arts. The department offers work leading to initial certification in childhood education (grades 1–6) and adolescent education (grades 7–12). See the section on Preparation for Teacher Certification earlier in this handbook for further information. Students interested in the theoretical or cross-cultural study of education, but not in certification, should consult the department for a list of recommended courses.
English
The Art of Reading and Writing (ENGL 101) is open only to first-year students and offers an introduction to the study of English at the college level. In this course we study literature as an art—that is, as the formal and inventive representation of experience in poetry, fiction, and drama—as well as nonfiction writing including essays, journals, and letters. We also attend to the social and historical contexts within which traditional forms arise and change. The focus of English 101 varies, but each section includes substantial reading in more than one genre, regular exercise in writing, and active discussion.
In addition to English 101, the department offers Texts and Contexts (ENGL 170), which is open to first-year students, sophomores, and others by permission. Those who have taken 101 in the fall semester and who wish to continue in English are advised to elect English 170b in the spring of the first year. Freshmen with advanced placement scores of 4 or 5 may elect English 170a in the fall semester. Students may not elect both English 101 and 170 in the same semester, nor take either course twice. For detailed descriptions of the 101 courses offered this year and for advice about electing 170, please see the section of this handbook on Freshman Writing Seminars.
Environmental Studies Vassar's multidisciplinary Program in Environmental Studies involves the natural sciences and social sciences, as well as the arts and humanities. Approximately 40 professors, from virtually every department on campus, participate in the program. Students choose a disciplinary concentration, which can be in any department (from biology to art), and view environmental issues through the perspective of that discipline. They also take multidisciplinary courses treating environmental issues offered by the program itself. These courses, often team-taught by professors from two different disciplines, include the introductory seminars, Environmentalisms in Perspective (ENST 250) and Essentials of Environmental Sciences (ENST 224), as well as special studies courses that analyze significant environmental problems. The special studies courses for 2008-2009 include DRY — Water, Development and Aridity in the American Southwest (ENST 254), It's Only Natural (ENST 270), and Native Americans and the Environment (ENST 283). The program's senior seminar includes a practicum involving a group project focused on a local or regional environmental issue. Freshmen considering a major in environmental studies are encouraged to take Global Change (ENST 107), The Environmental Imagination in Literature and Art (ENST 150), and/or Essentials of Environmental Sciences (ENST 124). We are also offering three 6-week courses in 2008-2009 that freshmen may consider: Special Topic: Henry David Thoreau (ENST 179), Political Theory, Environmental Justice: The Case of New Orleans after Katrina (ENST181), and Environmental Political Thought (ENST 182).
Vassar's location in the Hudson River Valley, one of the world's great watersheds, and its proximity to New York City position students well for both rural and urban ecology study. The program concerns itself both with traditional "green" issues such as conservation and sustainability and with environmental issues of social justice. Funded by a special endowment whose proceeds help sponsor student research and field activity, the program is the result of an intensive five-year development effort that resulted in its inauguration in the fall of 2000. Graduates from the Environmental Studies Program go on to pursue graduate education in areas such as urban ecology, environmental policy, public health, environmental law, and environmental management. Others go on to a wide variety of careers in which a multidisciplinary perspective is valuable, including environmental education, environmental consulting, sustainable agriculture, green architecture, marine conservation, and environmental journalism. For further information, see the program website and visit the program office.
French and Francophone Studies French-speaking communities exist in many parts of the world, including Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, North America, Southeast Asia, and the South Pacific. This diversity is reflected in the French and Francophone Studies curriculum, which is designed to promote understanding and awareness of the language, literatures, and cultures of the French-speaking world. Recent French and Francophone Studies graduates now enjoy careers in teaching, translating, the arts, publishing, law, banking, management, business, and medicine. Except for the freshman writing seminar (French 183a), all courses are conducted in French. An AP score of 4 or 5 can count as 1 unit toward the major. Only students who have never studied French are permitted to begin with 105-106b, followed by 206. All other students should take the online placement exam located on the department web page before pre-registering in July (http://french.vassar.edu/placementExam.html). Students should also consult with French and Francophone Studies faculty at the departmental advising session during orientation. Students who have taken two years of French in high school normally elect 205. Those who have taken three years of French in high school normally elect 206. Students who have taken four years of French in high school normally elect 212 or 213, before moving on to upper 200-level courses. However, since high school experiences may vary, taking the online placement exam and conferring with departmental faculty ahead of time is the best way for students to maximize their chances of getting into the course appropriate to their level. One native French language fellow will be in residence. Students are encouraged to avail themselves of all the opportunities to speak and hear French in informal situations (weekly French table, French Club, French films, conversation with the language fellow and academic interns, watching TV5 in the French Lounge or French and Francophone news via the internet). Students interested in pursuing a major or correlate sequence in French and Francophone Studies should consult the chair or another member of the department as early as possible. Those who do not have a strong background in French may be advised to take an accredited summer course after their freshman year in order to accelerate their program and improve their chances of studying abroad. It is recommended that qualified students spend one or two semesters of their junior year in France or another French-speaking country. The department website provides information on study abroad programs, including the Vassar-Wesleyan Program in Paris. Several of our majors combine French with a major in an interdepartmental or a multidisciplinary program such as Africana studies, environmental studies, international studies, medieval and Renaissance studies, or women's studies. Others combine French with a departmental concentration such as history, art history, political science, or another language. Individually tailored majors involving French and Francophone Studies, such as comparative literature, can be created through the Independent Program.
Geography
In the new millennium, geography is a cutting-edge social science that provides a distinctive approach for studying the world at varying scales of analysis, ranging from rural areas and small settlements to cities, regions, and the entire planet as a dynamic and increasingly interdependent system. Contemporary geographers focus on human-environmental relationships, population issues, urban and regional development, globalization of economic activity, migration and ethnic interactions, changes in the cultural landscape, the spatial distribution of violence and terror, and other human and physical features on the earth's surface. Provocative thinkers whose work is geographical in nature include Jared Diamond, Mike Davis, and David Harvey.
First-year students interested in contemporary global issues will benefit immediately by taking Global Geography: Place-Making in the Modern World (GEOG 102). Students in the course consider major contemporary issues such as population distribution, land use patterns, cultural landscapes, urbanization, economic development, and geopolitics, along with the analytical tools of mapping, cartographic communication, and spatial data analysis.
Thematic courses offered in the program provide chances to engage topics such as Urban Geography (GEOG 250), Conservation of Natural Resources (GEOG/ESCI 260), Population, Environment, and Sustainable Development (GEOG 266), and Geographies of Mass Violence (GEOG 272). Regional courses focus on China (GEOG 238), Brazil (GEOG 242), and the U.S.-Mexico border (GEOG 248), to name just a few examples. Methods courses such as Cartography: Making Maps with GIS (GEOG/ESCI 220), Geographic Information Systems: Spatial Analysis (GEOG/ESCI 224), and Remote Sensing (GEOG/ESCI 226) provide practical skills that equip students for careers in architecture or land use and urban planning. Students with such training have distinct advantages in finding internships and career opportunities in a wide variety of fields.
Because geography is by nature a multidisciplinary subject, many geography courses at Vassar satisfy requirements in multidisciplinary programs at the college, including Africana studies, American culture, Asian studies, environmental studies, international studies, Latin American studies, and urban studies. Recent Vassar graduates in geography now enjoy careers in urban planning, environmental and resource management, public affairs, transportation analysis, international development, architecture, computer software development, journalism, law, and teaching.
Geography-Anthropology
This interdepartmental concentration combines the perspectives of these two social sciences in examining the cultural, ecological, and spatial relations of societies and their environments. Requirements for concentration include 13 units from geography and anthropology. For freshmen, it is helpful to take Geography 102 and an introductory anthropology course (especially Anthropology 120 or 140).
Geology (see Earth Science)
German Studies
The Department of German Studies offers an integrated and holistic approach to the study of language, literature, and culture. This approach embodies Vassar's liberal arts principles of "going to the source" by engaging with primary documents and by exploring the fundamental debates and processes that have shaped German culture and its relationship to the contemporary world. Germany's location at the intersection between Eastern and Western Europe, as well as the size of its economy, continues to make German an advantageous language in today's global world, while Germany's history and culture continue to pose significant questions for our contemporary society.
The department's faculty has developed an innovative curriculum that redefines what language study means. In particular, the department seeks to provide students with intellectual engagement at all levels of the curriculum. Thus, rather than merely memorizing grammar rules and vocabulary, the department's language courses are organized around a sophisticated study of engaging topics, such as childhood, contemporary identity, and media politics, that facilitate language learning. Because the department's faculty participates actively in most of the college's multidisciplinary programs, German courses feature interdisciplinary methods and topics. Through technologies such as videoconferencing and an immersive online learning environment, students regularly have the opportunity to work in real time with students at German universities as well as interview leading authors, actors, and public intellectuals. Finally, the relatively small size of the program enables an individualized course of study in which students develop close working relationships with faculty members.
Freshmen who have never studied German should enroll in Beginning German (105-106) or Intensive Beginning German (109), a two-unit, one-semester course.
Students with previous training in German should consult with the German Studies Department to ensure that they enroll in a course appropriate to their level of competence. Generally, students with less than two years of German in high school should enroll in 105 or 109; students with more than two years and less than four should enroll in 210; students with more than four years of high school should enroll in 230. More advanced courses in German begin with 260 and extend to 300-level courses, which offer an intensive exploration of salient topics in German studies. In addition to these courses in German, the department also offers several courses each year in English translation: Introduction to German Cultural Studies (235), German Film (265), and Advanced Topics in German Cultural Studies (275). Most of these courses, however, include a weekly German-language section for those students interested in a German studies major, correlate sequence, or intensive language practice; to receive credit for these courses for the major or correlate, students should enroll in 239 and 269, respectively.
The department also offers a Freshman Writing Seminar called Vampires, Lunatics, and Cyborgs: Exploring the Uncanny Recesses of the Romantic Consciousness (German 101a), conducted entirely in English. Students interested in majoring in German studies should consult with the department as early as possible. Students majoring in other programs but wishing to pursue their study of German may elect a correlate sequence, which requires six units of graded work in German. The department has seen a recent increase in the number of students who elect a double major with German studies. Course selection is made in consultation with the department. Vassar students graduating with a major in German studies have received numerous grants to study in Germany and have gone on to establish successful careers in law, medicine, business, international affairs, education, and government.
Vassar conducts a six-to-seven-week summer program in Münster. The program is open to students after one year of Beginning German or the equivalent and offers a range of intermediate to advanced courses for two units of Vassar credit. Excursions will complement classroom instruction, including a trip through Southern Germany and a one-week stay in Berlin. The German Studies Department also offers the opportunity to study abroad on JYA for either a year or a semester at universities such as Berlin, Heidelberg, and Munich. Students are offered additional opportunities for practicing German through the activities of the German Club, such as the monthly Kaffeeklatsch, film showings, and get-togethers with our German language fellow. In addition, the German Studies Department offers a weekly German Stammtisch, 24-hour German TV in the German lounge, and frequent excursions to museums and performances in New York City.
Greek (see Classics)
Hispanic Studies
The curriculum in Hispanic studies has a twofold purpose: to teach the skills required to understand, speak, read, and write the Spanish language and to guide the student in the search for an understanding of the literatures and cultures of Spain and Latin America. Except for the occasional bilingual seminar on Latino/a studies, our courses are taught in Spanish.
In addition to formal course work, the department sponsors a weekly Spanish table (in the student dining hall) designed for informal, conversational practice; the department also screens a series of Hispanic films. Both activities—open to all students—are directed by the Hispanic studies language fellow, a recent graduate of a Spanish or Latin American university, who also assists with the conversation sections of HISP 206.
The department sponsors two study abroad programs in a Spanish-speaking country, one during the academic year (Spain) and one during the summer (Mexico). The six-week summer program in Oaxaca, Mexico, is open to any Vassar student eligible to take intermediate-level college Spanish (Hispanic Studies 205) or above. (Students who completed three or more years of high school Spanish are eligible even if they have not studied Spanish at Vassar.) The summer program grants two units of credit: one in Spanish language and another in Mexican culture. The academic year program, located at the Universidad Carlos III in Madrid, Spain, is cosponsored by Wesleyan University. This program, normally taken during the junior year, may be elected for either semester or the full year; to qualify, students must have completed HISP 206 or its equivalent. Courses in the Vassar-Wesleyan Program in Madrid are listed in the catalogue at the end of the section on Hispanic Studies. Hispanic studies majors are encouraged to study in a Spanish-speaking country during their Vassar career.
In order to decide which is the appropriate Spanish course for you, please use the following guidelines. Students with less than two years of high school Spanish should enroll in Elementary Spanish (HISP 105a-106b); students with two years should enroll in HISP 109b (spring term only); students with three years of Spanish should enroll in Intermediate Spanish (HISP 205a, fall term only); and students with four or more years of high school should enroll in Hispanic Studies 206a or b.
Additional guidance about appropriate placement will be available during New Student Orientation.
History
The History Department at Vassar College has a distinguished tradition of helping students "go to the source" as they take up the craft of history. From the beginning, students learn how to examine historical problems, using the rich resources of the library and presenting their findings in class discussions, presentations, and papers. All courses stress the examination of both original sources and historical interpretations. The aim throughout is to help students develop skills in independent research, critical analysis, and imaginative synthesis.
Incoming Vassar history students frequently ask whether they can "place out" of 100-level courses and begin at the 200 level. We strongly recommend that students begin with a 100-level course. First year students, whatever their academic background, tend to find our introductory classes quite different from any history course they have taken in the past. These courses include extensive class discussion, deep engagement with original historical documents, and independent research. Some 100-level courses introduce students to such fields as the so-called "Dark Ages," the histories of Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and the modern Middle East. Others, such as Readings in Modern European History (HIST 121), and American Moments (HIST 160), are overwhelmingly grounded in class discussion and primary-source readings.
Ordinarily, one 100-level history course in any field is the prerequisite for enrolling in a 200-level history class. If, however, you wish to enroll in a 200-level course in your first semester, and if you believe your background prepares you to do so, you should consult the instructor by email or attend the first class session and ask the instructor to consider your request.
If you become a history major, and if you received a 4 or 5 on an AP history exam (either U.S. or European history), you may count one AP credit toward the 11 units required for the major. The department also offers a correlate sequence that permits students to combine a sequence of 6 history courses with a major in another discipline. More information can be found in our History Handbook, available in the front foyer of Swift Hall, just to the left of the stairway. Feel free to stop by and pick up a copy, or explore the history department website for more information about our faculty, courses, Majors Committee, department activities, and the recently established Evalyn Clark Travel Awards for history majors.
History faculty are most willing to advise first-year students, whether or not they are considering a major. Any arriving students with questions about the history program—especially prospective majors—are cordially invited to stop by Swift Hall and introduce themselves to the department chair, Rebecca Edwards. Her office is Swift 35, at the top of the stairs, and she is best reached by email (reedwards@vassar.edu) for an appointment or consultation.
Independent Program
The Independent Program exists to facilitate the study of subjects that can best be approached in a multidisciplinary way and for which Vassar does not already have a formalized interdepartmental or multidisciplinary program. For example, a student wishing to understand the roots of human behavior might well become an Independent major and draw upon courses in sociology, biology, psychology, anthropology, religion, and history (to name a few of the most obvious). Alternatively, the same student might choose to take a somewhat more narrow perspective, majoring in a multidisciplinary program such as neuroscience and behavior or women's studies, or be still more specialized by studying the roots of human behavior from the point of view of a single discipline.
The Independent Program is available to students who wish to elect a field of concentration that is not provided by one of the regular departments, interdepartmental concentrations, or multidisciplinary concentrations of the college. Prospective majors make formal application to the Committee on the Independent Program, usually during their sophomore year. Once admitted to the Independent Program, each student follows the agreed upon course of study, culminating in the senior thesis, under the continuing guidance of two faculty advisors.
The variety of possible major concentrations is made possible both by the breadth of Vassar's curriculum and by access to courses at other institutions through various exchange programs.
Interdepartmental Courses
See Interdepartmental Courses section in the catalogue.
International Studies
The International Studies Program is multidisciplinary in nature. The resulting framework allows students, in close consultation with the director and panel of advisors, to design their own distinct course of study at the beginning of sophomore year. The participating faculty include professors from departments such as anthropology, economics, English, French, geography, German, Hispanic studies, history, political science, Russian, religion, and sociology.
Although the international studies major is flexible, there are specific requirements for majors to follow to ensure a coherent plan of study. Majors must complete work at the advanced seminar level in two departments in addition to course work at the intermediate level in at least one other department, and complete a thesis by the end of senior year. In addition, our majors must demonstrate proficiency in a language corresponding to the geographic area selected by the student as his or her area of focus.
To further advance their understanding of their chosen geographic area, majors in the International Studies Program generally spend all or part of their junior year at academic institutions overseas. In the last several years our students have attended universities in Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Cameroon, Chile, China, England, France, Germany, Italy, Madagascar, Malaysia, Morocco, Russia, South Africa, and Taiwan.
As part of the program, International Studies sponsors an annual study trip, open to all Vassar students, credited as a semester course. In recent years, students have traveled to Indonesia, Jamaica, Russia, Vietnam, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Cuba, Brazil, China, Morocco, Lesser Antilles, and last spring, Chile. Students learn about the culture, economics, history, language, and political situation of the area they will visit. The International Studies trip has not been announced for the 2008/2009 year.
As participants in a multidisciplinary program, international studies majors have a unique rapport with participating faculty. To ensure the effectiveness of their proposed course work, students interact regularly with professors. For instance, most international studies courses are jointly taught by at least two professors, allowing for adequate attention to the students' needs. For the senior thesis, majors work with two advisors from different departments.
Italian
The Italian Department offers a full range of courses in Italian language and literature. All courses are taught in Italian except With Dante in Hell (ITAL 181a), Dante's Divine Comedy in Translation I (ITAL 237b), and Four Italian Filmmakers (ITAL 255). Freshmen with no previous experience in Italian should take 105-106, which is an introduction to the language. In the second part of this course, attention is also placed on the culture (reading of short stories and plays, listening to opera, etc.). In the second term, an intensive two-unit introduction to Italian (107b) is offered. Those students with previous knowledge of Italian will be placed in the appropriate courses after an interview with the department chair and a placement exam (see Advanced Placement).
To coordinate the different language activities, one native Italian language fellow will be in residence. The first two years of language instruction schedule weekly drill sessions and video lab sessions. Students are encouraged to attend the weekly Italian "Caffé" for informal practice, and such extracurricular departmental activities as opera events at the Metropolitan Opera House and the yearly Italian Cinema Club in Manhattan.
Italian majors and correlates are encouraged to spend a semester or a year in Italy, usually during their junior year. To qualify, students must complete the 105-106/205-206 sequence, or the equivalent. Typical correlate combinations include art history, studio art, drama and film, medieval and Renaissance studies, history, and women's studies.
The department sponsors its own summer program in Siena where students take the two semesters of Intermediate Italian (205, 206). In conjunction with Wellesley College and Wesleyan University, Vassar offers a study abroad program in Bologna, Italy.
Japanese (see Chinese and Japanese)
Jewish Studies Jewish studies courses explore the creation and transmission, as well as the questioning and transformation, of Jewish cultures in the multiethnic settings of ancient and modern Israel, and the diaspora from biblical times through the Middle Ages to the contemporary world. The program is supported by instruction in Hebrew language from elementary through advanced levels, with opportunities to study abroad in Israel and elsewhere during the junior year. Yiddish language at the elementary and intermediate levels is available through the Self-Instructional Language Program, and special instruction in Aramaic, the language of the Talmud, is available. Since a large and important population of Jews in the pre-1948 era lived in the linguistic and cultural milieu of Arab lands, students may wish to consider taking advantage of the Arabic language curriculum in support of their work in Jewish studies.
Jewish studies draws upon faculty from a wide variety of departments including anthropology, classics, English, Hispanic studies, history, political science, psychology, and religion, reflecting the multidisciplinary orientation of the field. This approach stresses the diversity of Jewish experience and includes study of the history, religion, and culture of Jews in Western and non-Western societies.
First-year students are invited to begin study in the field through our Freshman Writing Seminar, New Voices, Old Stories (JWST 184), or Western Religious Traditions (JWST 150), cross-listed with religion.
The program strongly recommends that students pursue one of the many options that exist for a junior year abroad experience whenever possible. Students are encouraged to begin discussions about this with their professors as soon as possible. In addition to the core courses in Jewish studies, the program is reinforced by an ample list of approved courses on topics in Jewish culture offered in the constituent disciplines of the field (consult the catalogue under Jewish Studies). These courses, along with approved courses taken junior year abroad, may be credited to the major and correlate sequence. Requirements for the major and correlate sequence are detailed in the catalogue; in brief, students chart their own paths through the diversity of disciplinary methodologies and subject areas, establishing their own points of significant intersection, thus contributing to the definition of this emerging field of study. No prior background in the study of Jews or Judaism, whether of a religious or cultural nature, is assumed.
Latin (see Classics)
Latin American and Latino/a Studies
The Program in Latin American and Latino/a Studies is designed to offer a multidisciplinary approach to the study of Latin America and the Latino/a populations of the Americas. The program allows students to explore the multiplicity of cultures and societies of Latin and Latino/a America in ways that acknowledge the permeability, or absence, of borders. Participating faculty are drawn from the following disciplines: anthropology, geography, Hispanic studies, history, political science, and sociology.
A reading knowledge of Spanish or Portuguese is required; deeper knowledge of the relevant language is recommended. An introductory course in Latin American and Latino/a studies and a senior seminar are required, and students are expected to elect work above the introductory level in at least three departments. In the senior year, each student must write a senior thesis of multidisciplinary nature under the guidance of two professors from different disciplines. Students are encouraged to pursue a structured academic experience relevant to the student's program beyond Vassar during the junior year, either in Latin America or in an appropriate domestic institution.
Mathematics
Mathematics is one of the oldest learned disciplines and is the basis for understanding much of the physical world. It is essential for the study of modern developments in the social sciences. Mathematics graduates are very much in demand in teaching, the business world, and the computing professions. A strong background in mathematics also increases an applicant's chance of admission to law and medical schools and to graduate programs in business management and economics. It is essential for graduate programs in statistics, computer science, and the physical sciences.
The department offers a number of course sequences for freshmen. For any questions about appropriate placement, please consult the department during the departmental advising session.
Freshmen who have had a year of calculus in high school will enroll in Topics in Single Variable Calculus (MATH 125a) or Linear Algebra (MATH 221a or b), depending on their particular background. (See the section on Advanced Placement in this handbook for further information.)
Single Variable Calculus (MATH 121a/122b) begins with first principles and is designed for students who have had little or no calculus in high school. This sequence is recommended for science majors and for anyone planning on taking additional courses in mathematics.
Introduction to Calculus/Topics in Calculus (MATH 101b/102a) begins in the spring semester; 102a is taken the following fall. The first half deals with basic techniques and the second with applications, principally applications in the social sciences. This sequence is not suitable for students who have had prior work in calculus.
Pre-Calculus/Introduction to Calculus (MATH 100a-101b) is for those students who, because of insufficient preparation in high school, are not yet ready to study calculus. As a hyphenated course, it is necessary to take the entire year to receive the 1/2 unit of credit for the first term. Students who feel that they need the remedial study offered in pre-calculus may pre-register for 100a, but should consult with the department to confirm appropriate placement.
Any one of the following satisfies the pre-medical calculus requirement:
- Math 101b/102a
- Math 121a/122b
- Math 125a
- Math 221a or b
It is important that students considering a major in mathematics complete 221a or b/222a or b by the end of the sophomore year. Consequently, 121a/122b or 125a should be completed by the end of the freshman year. The department encourages its majors to design well-balanced programs with representative courses from the arts, foreign languages, humanities, physical sciences, and social sciences.
The Learning and Teaching Center offers noncredit minicourses for review of high school mathematics for all students.
Media Studies Program
The Media Studies Program offers students a multidisciplinary approach to the study of media culture. The program's curriculum provides students with the intellectual and creative tools to become sophisticated analysts of both contemporary and historical media environments, developing theoretical and critical skills that can be used in everyday experiences of media consumption and production. The program's curriculum includes considerations of the form and aesthetics of media objects, the history of old and new media technologies, the economic and organizational structure of media industries, indigenous and oppositional media forms, and the social implications of and ethical issues associated with various media.
The program includes a set of core courses that provide students with a strong base in media theory and analysis, beginning with a thoroughly multidisciplinary introductory-level class, Approaches to Media Studies, and culminating in a senior seminar and an individual senior project for all majors. The specific focus of each student's program is tailored to individual student interests. Media studies majors work with a faculty advisor and the program director to design a plan of study from a set of approved courses from departments such as anthropology, art, computer science, English, film, and sociology, among others. Students are encouraged to link their theoretical and critical study of media with hands-on, practice-based courses, and/or internships in media-related workplaces.
Additional details about the program's curriculum, faculty participants, and requirements are available in the Media Studies Major's Handbook, which is updated each academic year. Because the media studies concentration incorporates courses originating within the program as well as a wide range of courses from other programs and departments, students wishing to major in media studies should consult with the program director as early as possible to design their course of study.
Medieval and Renaissance Studies
The interdepartmental Program in Medieval and Renaissance Studies is designed to provide students with a coherent course of study of the art, history, literature, and thought of European culture from the fall of Rome to the 17th century. Students are expected to elect Medieval/Renaissance Culture (MRST 220), as well as work from three groups of disciplines: art history and music; history, political science, philosophy, and religion; and language and literature. In addition, students are expected to gain a reading knowledge of requisite foreign languages and, in their senior year, to write an interdisciplinary essay under the supervision of one or more of the participating faculty. Majors frequently study abroad in the junior year.
Freshmen interested in medieval and Renaissance studies should consult with the coordinator soon after arriving on campus. MRST/History 116 is recommended for freshmen considering majoring in the program. In addition, in consultation with the coordinator, one of the following 100-level courses may be applied toward the major: Art 105, Classics 102, Classics 101, Italian 175, History 123, Religion 150, or Philosophy 101 or 102. Students should begin or continue their study of languages. Latin is strongly recommended for all majors.
Music
Music is studied at Vassar in each of its distinct but interrelated aspects: theory, history, and performance. Freshmen may choose from among Fundamentals of Music (MUSI 101a or b), Harmony (MUSI 105a/106b), Introduction to World Music (MUSI 136a) or Music as Literature (MUSI 140a, 141b). Those intending to major in music should understand that 105a/106b is prerequisite to all subsequent courses in the major. Music 105/106 is a study of tonal harmony in the 18th and 19th centuries. This course requires familiarity with the rudiments of music. Music 101 (taught both semesters) is a study of music fundamentals and requires no previous musical training; Music 101 cannot be counted toward the major. Music 140a, 141b focuses on various topics in the history of music. Please see the catalogue for topics for 2008/09.
Freshmen may elect performance study in the following: piano, jazz piano, organ, harpsichord, voice, violin, viola, cello, double bass, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, saxophone, French horn, trumpet, trombone, tuba, percussion, classical guitar, electric bass, and harp. All students electing performance with or without credit must have an audition given before the beginning of classes, details of which are available from the Department of Music. Enrollment is limited in each instrument with preference given to music majors and those students electing credited performance. Performance scholarships for students electing credit study are available to those on financial aid.
Freshmen are invited to audition for the choir, the madrigal singers, the women's chorus, the orchestra, the wind ensemble, and the jazz ensemble. Available for credit at the rate of 1/2 unit per entire year of participation, each of these organizations gives at least two concerts a year. Students must register for the noncredit sections of these groups in the fall if they wish to enroll in the half-credit sections in the spring. Auditions take place during New Student Orientation and the first week of classes; for further information, please see the Vassar Music Department website at music.vassar.edu and inquire at the Music Department Office in Skinner Hall, extension 7319.
Neuroscience and Behavior
Neuroscience and Behavior is an interdisciplinary program that applies the perspectives and techniques of biology and psychology to the study of the brain and behavior. Neuroscientists are interested in how the interactions of brain, body, and environment contribute to animal (including human) behavior. Neuroscientists study the structure and function of the nervous system, the development and evolution of neural and behavioral systems, and interactions among behavior, environment, physiology, and heredity.
Detailed study of different behavioral systems and different levels of organization raises many intriguing questions. How do the cells of the brain "learn"? How do various drugs alter both brain function and behavior? What kinds of environmental and social events influence how and when an animal will eat or mate? How do different animals communicate, whether it be humans using language, rodents emitting special odors, or spiders vibrating a web? The major in neuroscience and behavior is designed to give you rigorous training and exposure to the breadth of approaches in the discipline. The core of the required courses consists of the following: Introduction to Biological Processes (BIOL 105), Introduction to Biological Investigation (BIOL 106), Introduction to Psychology (PSYC 105 or 106), Neuroscience and Behavior (NEUR 201), Statistics and Experimental Design (PSYC 200), Research Methods in Learning and Behavior or Research Methods in Physiological Psychology (PSYC 229 or 249), Principles of Physiological Psychology or Neuropsychology (PSYC 241 or 243), and the Seminar in Neuroscience and Behavior (NEUR 301). In addition, you must elect five courses from eligible courses listed in the catalogue. You are strongly encouraged to complete CHEM 108/109 and 244/245 and would profit greatly from coursework in mathematics, physics, and computer science. You are also encouraged to conduct independent research (NEUR 298 or 399).
As you consider a major in neuroscience and behavior, it may be helpful to know what one does with a degree in the field. Many of our graduates go directly into graduate or medical schools for advanced degrees and training in biological, psychological, and health-related sciences, especially (but not exclusively) as related to the neurosciences. Others go directly into research positions, using their background and excellent laboratory skills to work in the biomedical, veterinary, or other scientific areas. Still others use their degrees and unique backgrounds in such fields as journalism, law, and education.
Philosophy
Philosophy is the most general study of the principles that govern the world around us, our actions in that world, and our claims to knowledge about that world. It helps students to improve their understanding in these areas and to evaluate arguments within and outside philosophy. Freshmen have the opportunity to begin a study of philosophy by means of five courses open to them, and should choose those which most clearly correspond to their present interests and to their plans for future study.
Philosophy 101 and 102 are courses in the history of Western philosophy and treat many of the great philosophers of the past, from the Greeks to the 18th century. In the first semester the focus is on the origins of Western philosophy in pre-Socratic thought and its culmination in the works of Plato and Aristotle. In the second semester representative works of continental thinkers such as Descartes and Liebniz and English thinkers such as Berkeley and Hume are read, culminating in the study of Kant. This sequence provides an essential background for understanding later philosophical inquiries, and is a significant supplement to work in a great variety of fields.
Philosophy 105 and 106 are organized around philosophic problems, rather than authors or periods. Philosophy 105 explores some traditional problems concerning the relation between mind and body, the nature of truth, the scope and limits of human knowledge, and the basis of ethics. Philosophy 106 treats philosophic problems arising out of contemporary moral and political issues. Both courses are concerned with helping students to develop their critical powers and philosophic views.
Philosophy 110 is an introduction to ancient Chinese philosophy, focusing on early Confucianism, Taoism, and other philosophies. This course assumes no background knowledge of philosophy or Chinese culture.
Physical Education
The instructional program in physical education offers 1/2 unit of academic credit for the following courses: Badminton (beginning and intermediate); Basketball (beginning and intermediate); Golf (beginning and intermediate); Squash (beginning and intermediate); Tennis (beginning, low intermediate, intermediate, and advanced); Volleyball (fundamentals and intermediate); Weight Training; Fundamentals of Conditioning; Swimming (beginning, intermediate, and advanced); Fencing; Racket Sports; Flag Football; Triathlon Training; and Lifeguard Training. Introduction to Athletic Injury Care and Nutrition and Exercise are offered for one unit of academic credit, as is the Water Safety Instructor course.
No more than a total of two units of half-unit courses in physical education may count toward the degree. One-unit courses are exempted from this limitation.
Beginning classes assume no prior experience. Those who think they qualify for an intermediate or advanced section should register for it. However, they should be prepared to drop it after the first class if the instructor thinks they are not ready for that level of work.
Our Life Fitness Program offers noncredit courses in many areas, including step aerobics, toning and strength training, pilates, kayaking, massage, yoga, tai-chi, swing dance, noncontact boxing, and aqua-aerobics. Although most of these classes are free, some require a small fee. In order to use the fitness center, everyone must take an introductory class. Contact extension 7471 for a schedule of these 30-minute introductory classes and for the list of noncredit courses being offered.
Physics and Astronomy
Astronomy
The Astronomy program accommodates students interested in careers in professional astronomy as well as those who wish to combine a strong background in astronomy with specialization in another field. Except at the introductory level, astronomy courses have small enrollments (3 to 10 is typical), and students have good access to faculty as well as instrumentation. Recent graduates have gone on to graduate astronomy programs at Caltech, UCLA, Penn State, Columbia, Boston University, Hawaii, Indiana, and University of Florida. Other recent astronomy graduates are pursuing careers in physics, secondary education, law, engineering, media consulting, journalism, computing, finance, medicine, music and drama. Those interested in astronomy should consider enrolling in Astronomy 101, 105, or 150. These introductory courses survey many areas of modern astronomy and presume little mathematical or scientific background. All introductory courses satisfy the Quantitative Analysis requirement. Astronomy 150 is a Freshman Writing Seminar, which satisfies Vassar's requirement. Students with some background in science and calculus may wish to consider Introduction to Observational Astronomy (ASTR 240). Students with an advanced background in physics and math may enroll in Stellar Astrophysics (ASTR 220), with special permission. First-year students with an interest in majoring in astronomy should consult with Fred Chromey (extension 7355) in SP 200 or Debra Elmegreen (extension 7356) in SP 201 at their earliest convenience. In May 1997, the College celebrated the opening of a new facility on campus, the Class of 1951 Observatory. The building houses a 32-inch telescope and a 20-inch telescope, each computer-controlled and equipped with an electronic camera. A spectroscope and various small telescopes, including a solar telescope, are also at the site. We support a program of monitoring variable objects (such as quasars and stars with extrasolar planets) by student observers at the observatory. Research is also done during the academic year and during the summer (through the URSI program) using data from the Hubble Space Telescope and other national observatories. Recent student-faculty research projects have included work on spiral galaxies, high redshift galaxies, quasars, supernovae, exo-planet searches, stellar spectroscopy, the twilight sky, and image processing techniques. Much of the analytical work on these projects is done on department computers optimized for image processing. Because astronomy is a relatively small field, the department at Vassar finds it important to maintain strong ties with other schools and programs. We have a strong tradition of student participation at astronomy meetings off-campus. Vassar students typically attend one or two such meetings each year. We participate in the Keck Northeast Astronomy Consortium of eight liberal arts institutions, a group that exchanges summer research students, supports faculty visits, and collaborates on several research projects. America's first woman astronomer, Maria Mitchell, was also the first director of the original Vassar College Observatory, now an historical landmark on campus. She believed astronomical education is best accomplished when students do their own research, and that students work best when they are part of a supportive scientific community. The department today works to maintain Miss Mitchell's legacy.
Physics The curriculum of the department is designed to satisfy the needs of students with various goals, including both majors and non-majors. A rigorous course selection is available for those interested in physics, astronomy, or engineering (students may apply for a dual degree with the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth), and for pre-medical students, other science majors, or students electing a correlate sequence in physics. Courses are also available for those students with an interest in learning about the ideas of physics with a less quantitative approach. Freshmen who are interested in majoring in physics should elect Physics 113 and 114 in their first year, as well as an appropriate mathematics course. Physics 113/114 are appropriate not only for potential physics majors, but also for those planning possible majors in other sciences and for pre-medical students. The major topics covered in this one-year sequence are the fundamentals of classical mechanics, wave motion, thermodynamics, electricity and magnetism, optics, and an introduction to modern physics. The recommended option for those receiving 4s or 5s on AP B or AP C (mechanics and EM) is to enroll in Physics 115/116 in the fall followed by Physics 210 in the spring. Although it is possible to complete the requirements for the physics major by starting in the sophomore year, it is extremely difficult if physics and mathematics are not elected as a freshman. Interested students are strongly encouraged to work closely with a department advisor in planning their program. Students may call the department office at extension 7340 to set up an appointment for advising. A freshman who has not taken calculus should enroll in calculus concurrently. The department offers two courses primarily for non-science majors and for which major credit is not given. These are A Tour of the Subatomic Zoo (PHYS 168) and The Science of Sound (PHYS 180). The Science of Sound will be offered in 08-09 and again in 10-11. A Tour of the Subatomic Zoo will not be offered until 09-10. College units towards graduation are given for scores of 4 or 5 on the AP exams. If a freshman has not received a 4 or 5 on AP exams, but feels that he or she is prepared to skip one or both semesters of introductory physics, that student may be allowed to do so upon consultation with the department. Freshmen interested in any one of these options should consult with faculty in the Department of Physics and Astronomy. New Student Orientation offers a convenient time to deal with these issues. See the department's discussion of AP credits in the Advanced Placement section of this handbook. There are opportunities in the department for research collaboration and thesis work with faculty in fields including acoustics, physics education, ultrafast laser physics, the history of physics, and atomic molecular and optical physics. Physics majors also routinely assist in the development of new laboratory projects for the Modern Physics Laboratory. Summer research with faculty is available through Vassar's Undergraduate Research Summer Institute (URSI).
Political Science
Politics, the pursuit and exercise of power, exists in many realms of social life—not just in government but in businesses, religious institutions, universities, clubs, the media, and families. Political science is the study of politics in its various forms and manifestations.
The academic discipline of political science focuses mainly on the politics of states (governments), including their political relations with members of society and with one another. It examines the sources, distribution, and exercise of power; the roles of class, race, and gender; the political attitudes and behaviors of individuals and groups; the functioning of domestic and international political institutions; the relations among states and other actors in the international system; political beliefs, values, and ideologies; mass media and communications; the place of legal systems in domestic and international politics; major issues of public policy such as affirmative action, abortion rights, family law, welfare reform, and governmental budgets; and major global challenges.
Political science also addresses questions of values. What forms of government, society, and economy ought to exist? How can liberty, equality, justice, or security best be achieved? How should conflicts between them be resolved? What is the proper relationship between the individual and the state? What rights do people have? What obligations? What are the rightful limits, if any, on the powers of government? In considering these questions, courses consider the ideas of political philosophers from Socrates and Aristotle to John Stuart Mill, Karl Marx, Hannah Arendt, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Michel Foucault.
Finally, political science looks at questions of method. How does one decide issues of value? What political phenomena are susceptible to social-scientific, quantitative investigation? What methodologies are best suited to studying such phenomena?
Four one-semester courses corresponding to the major fields of political science are offered at the introductory level: American Politics, Comparative Politics (political systems outside the U. S.), International Politics (the relations among nations), and Political Theory (political philosophy). Freshmen planning to major in political science would normally elect one introductory course. This fulfills the introductory level requirement for concentration in political science. Students are required to take one unit at the 100-level in political science, and are allowed to count up to two units at 100-level in political science toward the major.
A concentration or major in political science not only serves the purposes of a liberal arts education but is especially relevant to careers in law, business, finance, governmental service at all levels, politics, teaching, and political journalism. Opportunities exist for internships and practical experience outside the college in such settings as the United Nations, Capitol Hill, law offices and courts, and political campaigns; and for study abroad in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, or the Middle East.
Psychology
The department offers two one-semester introductory courses. Introduction to Psychology: A Survey (PSYC 105) is designed to introduce the student to fundamental psychological processes, their nature and development, and contemporary methods for their study through a survey of the major research areas in the field. Introduction to Psychology: Special Topics (PSYC 106) is designed to introduce the student to the science of psychology by exploration in depth of a specific research area. One or the other of these courses is a prerequisite for all other coursework in psychology. Psychology 105 and 106 also meet the college's quantitative analysis requirement and include a number of readings and assignments introducing basic concepts of research design and data analysis. Advanced placement in 200-level courses is available only to students who have completed an introductory course in psychology at a college or university. Such students should submit to the department chair the syllabus and description of the text used in the course, as well as an official transcript. A high school course in psychology does not qualify a student for advanced placement. A CEEB Advanced Placement examination in psychology similarly does not qualify one for advanced placement in 200-level courses. In addition, a CEEB Advanced Placement examination in statistics does not meet the requirement for the statistics course in psychology. A college-level course must have been taken, and the syllabus and description of the course must be submitted and approved by the chair of the department. A wide range of intermediate-level course offerings is available covering the major sub-areas of the diverse field of psychology. These include development, learning and behavior, memory and cognition, personality, individual differences, physiological, and social psychology. Students interested in majoring in psychology or pursuing advanced course work should consult with the department and obtain a copy of the Psychology Major's Handbook.
The following sections will be offered in 2008-2009:
Psychology 106.01and 106.51 Experiencing Art
We survey various fields of psychology (as with all 105 and 106 courses), with a view particularly to how we make, do, and appreciate art. We explore how biology and environment co-act to support activity. We also sample some of the methods that psychologists use to evaluate activity. Throughout our semester together, we share art stuff and ask lots of questions about why humans are so artistically engaged.
Psychology 106.52 From Chromosomes to Communities
Evidence links individual differences in behavior to genetic and epigenetic variation. DNA molecules appear to influence human behavior at many levels, from our most basic perceptions of tastes and colors to preferred ways of moving through the world, to those characteristic patterns of behavior we identify as personality to the interpersonal complexities of pair-bonding, political attitudes, and other forms of social participation. From Chromosomes to Communities will explore the complex, probabilistic pathways from the genome and epigenome through diverse environments across a lifespan of development that lead, ultimately, to diverse behavioral and social outcomes. As we move from molecular to global levels of human psychology, we will consider perspectives from evolutionary and comparative psychology, neurophysiology, learning and behavior, cognitive science, human life-span development, personality, and social psychology.
Religion
Courses in the Department of Religion give students an opportunity to engage major religious traditions, explore a variety of approaches employed within the study of religion, and examine diverse problems that religions seek to address. Many of today's pressing political and social problems are illuminated by an understanding of the religious beliefs and practices that lie beneath the news headlines. By exploring the public and private concerns that religions engage—for example, the nature of community and solitude, suffering and death, good and evil—students will discover new ways of interpreting the complex world in which they live. As students venture into the religions of Asia, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, and Europe, they will learn about beliefs, behaviors, values, rituals, texts, and forms of community. Students will also discover something about conflict and accord within and between religions, as well as between religious and secular perspectives. The department's goals for majors, correlates, and non-majors enrolled in religion courses include: (1) developing tools for understanding and interpreting religions in varied historical, cultural, and social contexts and for identifying and interpreting patterns across religious histories and cultures, and (2) engaging critically the various ways in which scholars of religion have attempted to understand and evaluate the nature and functions of religion as a vital force in human society, behavior, and global politics, both in the past and in the present.
Western Religious Traditions (RELI 150) and Religions of Asia (RELI 152) offer students a comparative historical introduction to a number of religious traditions as well as perspectives on approaches to the study of religion. Religion and the Civil Rights Movement (RELI/AFRS 105) will also be taught in the fall semester. A range of intermediate courses, some of which are open to freshmen, address religious traditions in particular social and historical contexts and deal with major themes in religious studies in comparative contexts.
The Department of Religion offers a major as well as a correlate sequence.
Russian Studies
In 1939, Vassar College became the first among the original Seven Sisters colleges to institute regular courses in Russian. In the same tradition of strong commitment to language learning, Vassar also became the first liberal arts college in the nation to install the equipment necessary to receive Russian-language TV broadcasting direct from a Soviet satellite.
The Department of Russian Studies offers three years of language instruction and a wide range of literature and culture courses. Freshmen with no previous knowledge of the Russian language may elect Elementary Russian (RUSS 105-106) or the one-semester Intensive Russian (RUSS 107) that covers the same amount of material in a more concentrated fashion. In 2008-09 freshmen may also enroll in one of the courses given entirely in English translation. In the first semester we offer Russian Classics (RUSS 135), which focuses on the literary giants of 19th-century Russian literature, and Russia! (RUSS 165), a survey of the most striking features of Russian culture up to the beginning of the 20thcentury. In second semester we'll be teaching Tolstoy in Battle (RUSS 141), on War and Peace and other works, Russian Modernism (RUSS 152) on the most significant Russian literary works of the 20thcentury, Utopia in Power (RUSS 169), a survey of culture in the Soviet period, and Russia and the Short Story (RUSS 171), a Freshman Writing Seminar.
Students who are considering the option of majoring in Russian studies are urged to begin the study of the language in their freshman year, continuing with intermediate and advanced language courses in their sophomore and junior years. For those who will be starting their language study here, this sequence is mandatory unless one of these levels is covered in an accredited summer program. However, those who have taken Russian in high school or have a knowledge of the language from home should sign up for a placement test that will indicate the appropriate level at which they should enroll.
Every semester the department offers a specialized course on a literary or cultural topic given entirely in Russian; access to such courses is open to students who have completed Advanced Russian or have the equivalent language competency. A number of other courses are given in English but make it possible to do part of the readings in Russian.
Students can benefit from participation in the weekly Russian tea, the Russian Club, from conversation with the native speaker who serves as departmental language fellow, and from other Russia-connected extracurricular activities. The department encourages junior year abroad study in one of a number of excellent programs in Russia that are approved by Vassar College. The new Vassar-administered program in St. Petersburg offers extraordinary opportunities to students interested in art history. The department has established the Masha N. Vorobiov Prize, which is awarded each spring to a promising student of Russian who intends to pursue summer study of the language in preparation for further work in Russia-related fields.
Science, Technology, and Society
The Science, Technology, and Society (STS) Program is a multidisciplinary program that studies science and technology in a social, cultural, and historical context. Established in 1971, it was one of the first programs of its kind at an undergraduate institution. Today, many graduate and a few undergraduate institutions have programs of a similar nature. As an undergraduate program, however, Vassar's is unique in the flexibility it gives its majors and in the close relationship it fosters between students and faculty.
By taking a broad range of courses across the curriculum and within the program itself, the STS major learns how the interrelationships among science, technology, and society have developed, and what major figures in the sciences and humanities have thought about it. The STS program is designed to enable students to pursue three objectives: a) to understand the central role of science and technology in contemporary society; b) to examine how science and technology reflect their social, political, philosophical, economic and cultural contexts; and c) to explore the human, ethical and policy implications of current and emerging technologies.
Faculty who teach in the STS program are drawn from many departments in the college. Presently, there are faculty from anthropology, biology, chemistry, economics, philosophy, physics, political science, psychology, and sociology. Adjunct instructors from the fields of law and medical ethics also take part in the program.
STS majors continue on in an extremely broad range of professions. Recent graduates have entered law, medicine, public health, and policy making. Recent senior theses have been: "The Human Genome Patent Debate," "The Controversy over the Use of Transgenic Organisms in Agriculture," "Paradigms in Conflict: Technological Development in Rural India," and "Wireless Communication and the 21st-Century Employee."
The director of the program, Janet Gray, would be delighted to discuss the program with you and answer any questions you may have. She can be reached at grayj@vassar.edu.
Self-Instructional Language Program (SILP)
For offerings in Hindi, Irish/Gaelic, Korean, Portuguese, Swahili, Swedish, Turkish, and Yiddish, see the Self-Instructional Language Program section of the catalogue, or consult the Self-Instructional Language Program coordinator, extension 5729.
Sociology
The Department of Sociology offers a wide range of courses designed to deepen and broaden the understanding of modern society, social issues, and social problems.
Introductory Sociology surveys the classic traditions in social theory and the seminal ideas of Marx, Durkheim, Simmel, and Weber, among others. Readings from original sources are supplemented with selections from more contemporary thinkers, thus illustrating the relevance of the classics to modern social concerns.
Building on the background provided by the introductory course, 200-level offerings in the department deal with a broad range of social institutions, social issues, and social policies, as well as providing the student with concepts and methods of sociological analysis. Among the choices available are courses that focus on fundamental organizational forms of modern social life. These include inquiries into law, medicine, and the family. Certain courses analyze significant aspects of social behavior viewed in terms of contemporary American society, as well as globally, in the areas of political sociology, sex and gender, mass media, race and ethnicity, stratification, the city, and culture. Other courses deal with social problems or social policy including deviance, birth and death, criminology, and drug use. In addition, the department offers courses in modern social theory and sociological methods, as well as independent study or field work under the sponsorship of individual faculty members.
Advanced courses provide students with the chance to examine selected sociological topics in seminar settings. Areas studied include comparative cultural institutions, women and new technology, cities of the world, theories of modernization and development, social welfare, contemporary social movements, science, ideology, postmodernism, and varieties of social theory. Students may also opt to do advanced independent work under the guidance of a member of the department. In the senior year, students are given the opportunity for individual work and expression through the requirement of a senior thesis, which allows the student to plan and execute an original sociological investigation on a topic of his or her choosing.
Students who earn an A.B. degree in sociology have pursued a wide variety of careers in government, education, social work, research, and business. Others have gone on to graduate study in law, health care, and sociology, as well as in other academic or professional disciplines.
Spanish (see Hispanic Studies)
Urban Studies
The urban environment increasingly dominates both the American and the international landscape. In the Urban Studies Program, the complexity of the city and the process of urbanization are examined from a multidisciplinary perspective. As part of their major, students choose courses in architecture, art, economics, education, geography, history, political science, and sociology.
Introduction to Urban Studies (URBS 100) sets the tone of multidisciplinary study. This course concentrates on the classical arguments and the recent debates in urban theory and different disciplinary approaches to urban studies to explore changing urban space both historically and cross-culturally within the context of economic, political, social, and cultural relations. This course will be coordinated by the director of urban studies in cooperation with the urban studies faculty.
The senior seminar examines advanced debates in urban studies and is designed to encourage students to produce research and grant proposals for projects in urban studies.
Students in urban studies are encouraged to gain practical as well as theoretical expertise through field work and independent projects. Students in urban studies have found careers in government, public administration, architecture, urban planning, teaching, human services, and many other related fields in which a multidisciplinary perspective is valuable.
Victorian Studies
The interdepartmental Program in Victorian Studies enables students to combine courses offered in several departments with independent work and, through an interdisciplinary approach, to examine the assumptions, ideas, ideals, institutions, society, and culture of 19th-century Britain, a complex society undergoing rapid change at the height of its global power.
Freshmen considering a possible Victorian studies major or correlate sequence are encouraged to consult with the Victorian studies coordinator or any of the advisors. The path to the major is considerably eased—to say nothing of the accompanying intellectual gains—when students take survey courses or 100-level courses in at least three of the departments involved in this interdisciplinary program. A grounding in English literature and history is expected, and potential majors would do well to take English literature courses as well as History 151.
For further information, please consult the catalogue under Victorian studies.
Women's Studies
The Women's Studies Program – open to all students – offers courses designed to introduce the student to the cultural, social, economic, and political dimensions of women's lives and experiences in the past and present. It offers new perspectives on gender in different cultures and periods.
The Women's Studies Program offers a multidisciplinary major and a six-unit correlate sequence. Students may select from team-taught integrative courses at the introductory, intermediate and advanced levels, as well as from a variety of courses listed in the departments. Of particular interest to freshmen will be Women's Studies 160, Issues in Feminism (WMST 160). Many of the departmental courses are open to freshmen. Courses offered in past semesters have included: Literary Perspectives on Women, Feminist Theory, Women and Film, Global Feminism, Women Making Music and three new courses: Interpreting French Feminism, Women of Color in the U.S., and Gender, Social Problems and Social Change in the Contemporary U.S. A full list of courses currently offered in Women's Studies is circulated before each registration period. The Director of Women's Studies also advises students interested in pursuing independent majors in this field. For further information, contact the office of Women's Studies, extension 7144, and consult the catalogue under Women's Studies.