About:

For:

Classical Studies

The major in Classics is broad and flexible providing familiarity with the historical periods, the full range of literature, the intellectual achievements of Greek and Roman thinkers, and/or the material objects of antiquity. It permits students to integrate an understanding of one or more aspects of ancient civilization with analogous features of our own or of another culture. This includes historical, political, sociological, literary, philosophical, archaeological and artistic dimensions. Classics provides a broad foundation for future study and professional experience and its graduates have learned to appreciate the past and its relationship to the present.

SAMPLING OF SKILLS:

Communication: The classical languages reinforce precision in expression, enlarge the vocabulary and sensitize students to the rhetorical and persuasive powers of language.

Comprehension: Languages such as Latin and Greek foster especially close textual reading through linguistic analysis and formal translation and provide a broad frame of reference that improves general comprehension skills.

Critical Thinking: The ability to read critically, to analyze, to synthesize, to evaluate, to interpret, and to speculate are the mental habits that humanities most seek to foster. The relationship of these skills to reading in the classical authors is clear, because Western logic and critical thinking comes to us from the classical world.

TRANSFERABLE SKILLS:

analyzing/synthesizing
attention to detail
comprehension skills
computers as a research tool
creative intelligence
creativity
critical/original thinking
editing

SAMPLING OF OCCUPATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES:

Account Manager
Anthropologist
Archeologist
Attorney
Author
Business Planner
Clergy
Computer programmers
Consultant
Coordinator Arts Council
Cultural affairs advisor
Curriculum Developer
Doctor
Dramatist/Playwright
Editor
Foreign Service officer
Geologist
Journalist
Judge

evaluating
historical interpreting/translating
perspective on modern problems
promoting
selling
speculating
teaching
testing



K-12 School Teacher
Librarian
Literary agent
Marketing Analyst
Media Planner
Newspaper editor
Paralegal
Production Assistant
Professor
Programmer/Analyst
Publisher/Indexer
Reporter
Research Associate
Social Worker
Speechwriter
Technical Writing
Television producer
Translator

Archaeology: If you have never gotten over that urge to play in the mud and dig in dirt, this may be for you.

Graduate Studies: Recent studies have documented that Classics, together with Math majors, have the highest success rates of any majors in law school.

Medicine: Combined with a science, Classics makes an excellent double major for pre-med students. Students who major in languages, including Greek and Latin, have a better success rate getting into medical school than do majors in Biology, Microbiology and the like (see the AAMC's Medical School Admissions Requirements, 1997-98.

Museums: Classics, especially with an emphasis in material culture and archaeology, is an excellent preparation for a career working in or with museums

Non-profit Associations: In addition to museums, many other non-profit associations are looking for the kind of research, writing, and critical analysis skills which Classics graduates have. Many students choose Classics, and the humanities in general, precisely because they did not want to go the mainstream business route. Non-profit work can be very rewarding to those with a humanist bent.

Publishing: Students who follow a more literary criticism track (philology) gain a knowledge of western literary traditions as well as writing and analytical skills useful in publishing -- and a real love of literature!

Teaching: There is a strong demand for Latin teachers around the country. To quote a recent article in the Los Angeles Times on the recruitment of teachers, "Surprisingly, while Spanish majors are highly sought after, the sharpest appetite is for Latin majors...Recruiters are eager to find college graduates who majored in Latin because high school students in significant numbers continue to want to study it. Some are attracted to Latin for the mental discipline and for what it teaches about the inner workings of English and many other languages. Latin is also popular with students who may want to go to medical school or specialize in biology or other sciences that use Latin words in their terminology."

WORK SETTINGS:

Advertising/PR firms
Business
Colleges/Universities
Community Arts Center
Cultural Organizations
Film Co.'s
Finance and Banking
Foreign Service
Foundations
Government
Health facilities
Insurance Companies
Investment Firms
Law firms

Libraries
Management/Consulting Firms
Market Research Companies
Museums/Historical Societies
National Security Agencies
Newspapers/Magazine
Non-profit organizations
Professional Organizations
Publishing Companies
Radio/TV stations
Real Estate agencies
Research Organizations
Retail Stores
Theaters

WEBSITES:

Names and terminology
Resources

PROFESSIONAL ORGNIZATIONS:

American Academy in Rome (fellowships)
American Classical League (scholarships)
American Philological Association (job listings)
American Society of Papyrologists
Archaeological Institute of America
Association of Ancient Historians
California Classical Association (Northern CA)
California Classical Association (Southern CA)
Foundation for Mythological Studies (links)
International Plutarch Society
Mythography
National Committee for Latin and Greek: National Teacher Placement Services (job listings)
Society for the Oral Reading of Greek and Latin
Vergilian Society, Inc. (links)
Women’s Classical Caucus