Courses & Programs

Liberal Arts is a program dedicated to students who are not only keenly interested in human culture but who would want to develop an understanding of the rich variety of ways that human beings express themselves. For this reason Liberal Arts is an interdisciplinary program, meaning that students take courses from a wide variety of academic disciplines. This interdiscplinarity does not, however, prevent a more specialized exploration, for the program is set up in such a way as to facilitate a student majoring in both Liberal Arts and in any other discipline. We have "double majors" in Liberal Arts combined with everything from Fine Art to Biology, from Music to Modern Languages.

There are six key areas to the program. On this page there is an introduction to each, follow the links to the University Calendar for the nitty-gritty:

1. The Foundation Courses
The Liberal Arts Foundation courses are designed to address some of the most pressing and important themes in Western civilization—love, beauty, our relationship with nature, empire and globalization, religion and the divine and the experience of freedom. Each is taught in a interdisciplinary and historical way so that students learn not only the present-day issues, but the breadth and depth of its emergence in our experience. To see these new courses, please click on this link:
Liberal Arts Foundation Courses

2. The Culture Requirement
When you are enrolled in a foundation course you are required to attend any three (or more) cultural events. These include plays, musical performances, art shows, lectures and so on. Most nearly all of these are in Lennoxville, but each semester there is an opportunity to meet at least one of your requirements in Montreal. The key is not just to attend these events, but to meet with a small group of your colleagues for informal (yet often intense!) discussion afterwards.

3. The Senior Seminar
When you are in your last year at Bishop's you will enroll in a small seminar class that will focus on an interdisciplinary theme and which is taught by two professors, each of whom is from a different discipline. This seminar provides an ideal opportunity to explore a topic in detail, and a convivial environment in which to wrap up your degree at Bishop's.

4. The Core Curriculum and Breadth Requirements
The Interdiscplinary character of the program is developed in the core curriculum and breadth requirements. The core curriculum proscribes a small list of courses, divided into three categories, from which you must choose three courses. These are introductory courses that provide a basis for more detailed study in each discipline. The breadth requirements spell out how many courses you must take from each area of study in the humanities, social sciences and other departments in the university. You are also required to develop basic competency in a second language of your choice.

5. Double Majors
As a Liberal Arts major you are encouraged, but certainly not required, to take an additional major (a "double major") in some other discipline. The program is designed to make this as easy as possible, since some courses can count for the requirements of both majors at once. In this way you can achieve a broad background in human culture (through liberal arts) and a more specialized focus (through your second major).

6. Cultural Explorations in Near-by Cities
As a Liberal Arts major you will have the opportunity to enrich your learning by travelling with your colleagues to New York, Boston, Montreal and Toronto. We visit these cities for weekend trips (day-trips in the case of Montreal) in which we attend films, plays, musical performances and visit museums and other important cultural sites.

There are two such events each year. In the fall first-year students spend a day getting to know each other and the cultural offerings of Montreal. During the winter all Liberal Majors are invited to travel to New York, Boston or Toronto.