Academics: Departments, Majors and Programs

All undergraduate students at CMC must complete at least one major. In addition to completing the major requirements, students have the option to complete a “sequence,” which consists of a series of courses related to a subject, and selected from different disciplines offered at CMC or the other Claremont Colleges. The colleges offers a number of accelerated, joint or dual degree programs as listed below. CMC has a single graduate program, a master of arts degree in finance.

Outdoor class at Kravis Center

Departments

Search and explore all the areas of study at CMC

Undergraduate Majors

Sponsored by the five undergraduate Claremont Colleges, American Studies is a multidisciplinary major that encourages students to think critically and creatively about American culture. The American Studies Program is coordinated by an intercollegiate faculty whose aim is to introduce students to the complexity of the American experience.

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Asian Studies is a cooperative program of The Claremont Colleges which provides an opportunity for undergraduate students to pursue an interdisciplinary program of study. The main programs of concentration available within Asian Studies are East Asia, South and Southeast Asia, and China and Southeast Asia.

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This is a combined major at the interface of biology and chemistry that partially overlaps the requirements for the two individual majors. It is particularly appropriate for students interested in graduate work in biochemistry or molecular biology. It also provides a strong background for students interested in medical, dental, or veterinary graduate work.

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Students wishing to continue their education in biology-related graduate or professional school programs will need to supplement the basic biology curriculum with additional course work in the natural sciences. Several suggested programs are available and Keck Science faculty should be consulted for advice at the earliest possible opportunity.

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The biophysics major integrates the physical principles that are part of the core material found in a traditional physics major with areas of interest in the life sciences. Offering many possible avenues via molecular/cellular, biomechanical, organismal and/or physiological sequences, the major is appropriate for students interested in attending graduate school in physics or biophysics and provides a solid background for students planning a career in the health fields.

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The student of chemistry examines, describes, and explores the composition, structure, and properties of substances and the changes they undergo. This curriculum provides a firm foundation in the principles of chemistry as well as sufficient experience to prepare the student for basic research, secondary school teaching, the pursuit of a career in medicine, or graduate study in the field. The Keck Science chemistry major is accredited by the American Chemical Society (ACS).

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The classical studies major provides a broad, liberal arts education and the cultivation of critical thinking skills in multiple disciplines. It is designed for students who want a background in classical civilization while preparing for careers in business and commerce, education, government and law, medicine and the sciences, and other research-related fields such as consulting.

It is also complementary to graduate study in various disciplines of the humanities and social sciences (e.g., art history, government, history, law, literature, philosophy, religious studies, psychology) and provides auxiliary preparation for students planning to do graduate work in those areas. The major participates in the interdisciplinary classics program taught by faculty from Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, Pomona and Scripps Colleges, which offers access to a wide range of classics-related topics, including archaeology and art history, classical culture, government and political science, history, literature in translation, mythology, philosophy and religious studies.

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Data science is an interdisciplinary subject drawing from statistics, computer science, and domain knowledge skills. The sequence is intended to give participants a foundation in the principles and application of data science. A student completing the sequence should be familiar with the types of tools used for data science, and should be capable of handling real-world problems arising in science, government, and industry.

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The Economics major is part of the academic program of the Robert Day School of Economics and Finance. Emphasis is placed on understanding economic behavior and institutions and the development of specific analytical skills. An economics major is especially appropriate for students interested in careers within business, accounting, law, government, or teaching.

Students majoring in economics take a combination of courses suited to their particular interests. Major requirements are flexible and, with approval of the chair of the faculty, can be modified to fit the program interests of individual students. Liberal provisions are made for the individual student, either as a major or as a non-major, to choose electives from an extensive list of special interest courses.

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The Economics and Engineering program allows students interested in a liberal arts education, together with a demanding curriculum in both economics and engineering, to earn two undergraduate degrees within five years. This is commonly called a “3+2 program.” Students in the Economics and Engineering (E&E) program study at CMC for the first three years, completing general education and E&E major requirements toward the Bachelor of Arts degree, then transfer to a regionally accredited school of engineering to complete a Bachelor of Science degree.

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The Economics-Accounting major is part of the Robert Day School of Economics and Finance. The major in economics-accounting is a unique opportunity to learn accounting within a liberal arts setting. The major in economics-accounting emphasizes analytical, communication, and interpersonal skills in fields including consulting and financial advisory services.

In keeping with the broader aims of a liberal arts education, economics-accounting majors are encouraged to combine study in economics-accounting with other areas of study for a dual or double major while still offering the breadth of courses necessary to prepare students with the technical skills for careers in public accounting, consulting, and financial management.

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The interdisciplinary Environment, Economics, and Politics (EEP) major is designed to prepare students for careers in a variety of environmental fields as well as for graduate study in a related field. The major is designed to develop a general understanding of the various disciplines that study environmental systems including biology, chemistry, economics, and government policy.

The program also emphasizes the ways in which the various disciplines inform each other in environmental decision-making settings. This major cannot be combined with economics or government as a dual major. Faculty members from several disciplines contribute to the required courses for the EEP major. The EEP major is administered by the Environment, Economics, and Politics Committee.

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One of the greatest challenges facing humankind in the new century is the need to develop a sustainable civilization in a world with natural systems and limits under increasing strain from economic expansion and population growth. The Environmental Analysis (EA) is designed to prepare students for careers in many environmental problem-solving fields, including law, policy, medicine, chemistry, conservation, global climate change, urban planning, and resource management. It also provides a solid background for careers in environmental education and community environmental action.

Claremont McKenna participates in a five-College collaboration that allows students to take advantage of a broad range of courses, facilities, and opportunities in the study of environmental issues. CMC sponsors a concentration in EA Science. Other concentrations are available through Pitzer and Pomona.

The majors that constitute the Environmental Analysis (EA) at CMC are designed to prepare students for careers in many environmental problem-solving fields, including law, policy, medicine, chemistry, conservation, global climate change, urban planning, and resource management. It also provides a solid background for careers in environmental education and community environmental action.

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Film studies is part of an intercollegiate program in film and media studies which provides an opportunity for undergraduate students to pursue an interdisciplinary course of study. The program emphasizes the history, theory, and critical assessment of film, especially in terms of its impact upon, and reflection of, contemporary culture and society. The interdisciplinary nature of the program allows students to connect the study of film to other interests, and, in cooperation with the other Claremont Colleges, to combine studies in theory and criticism with experience in film production. The major in film studies is completed as part of a dual major with another academic discipline.

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The study of foreign languages, literature, and culture increases enables students to develop the skills and competence necessary to appreciate the richness of different cultures and societies. The study of foreign languages is a necessary component of students’ general education. It increases opportunities for those interested in careers in law, international relations, foreign service, teaching, public policy, and business. CMC students are encouraged to continue the study of a foreign language throughout their study at CMC or to take advantage of the opportunity to learn a new language.

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The program in government offers an approach to a liberal arts education that emphasizes the literature and methods of ancient, modern, and contemporary students of politics and government. The object is to place students in the midst of controversy over the great issues of politics and the differing understandings of those issues, and to equip them to deal rationally and prudently with these issues.

The major is selected by students preparing for careers in law; local, state and national government; foreign service; business; government relations; and other areas of the private and public sectors in which a broad knowledge of the problems of modern society is appropriate. Advice on specific careers is available through the department chair.

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Studying the past has the intrinsic value of stretching the imagination and satisfying our curiosity about human experiences. Additionally, history prepares students to become informed participants in an increasingly complex and interdependent world. A chief goal of the history major is for students to become comfortable locating themselves as valuable contributors in nearly any globalized context. For this reason, the Department of History teaches, as much as possible, a global map of cultures, religions, institutions, and their respective historical backgrounds. The faculty in the Department of History have areas of expertise that range across the geographical regions of the world and that span a chronological scope from antiquity to the present. Our courses offer an interdisciplinary array of methodologies, including traditional approaches, theory-driven interpretations of culture and society, and anthropological and literary approaches to material and textual evidence. The study of history builds skills and habits of thinking that are indispensable for any career: research, writing, and verbal skills; effective use of evidence and argument; and critical awareness of alternatives and consequences of choice.

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The International Relations program is a multi-disciplinary program designed for students preparing for graduate work or careers with an international focus, whether in government, business, or professions such as law, teaching, or journalism, or in other areas such as private foundations or international organizations.

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The literature major is designed to give students an understanding and appreciation of our literary heritage, and to allow them to develop and pursue their personal literary interests. Literature is a humanistic discipline that emphasizes close observation and analysis, imaginative response, thinking in a broad intellectual and historical context, and the skills of speech and writing. Literature majors thrive in many professions, but the skills we emphasize translate most directly into careers in law, government, business, advertising, journalism, education, and entertainment.

The major consists of a two-course survey of the principal writers of British literature, usually taken in the sophomore year; an intensive course in the history of literary criticism, usually taken in the junior year; one course focusing on the work of a single British or American author; one course in American literature; and a set of four electives, two unrestricted and two distributed by period. Literature majors should have an advisor in the department, or regularly consult with a member of the department as they are planning their courses.

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The Department of Mathematical Sciences offers programs of study in pure and applied mathematics which help to prepare students for graduate education in mathematical sciences, natural sciences, economics, or engineering. Many mathematics majors pursue careers in business, industry, or finance immediately upon graduation or combine their major with pre-law or pre-med programs.

The department offers a sequence in Computer Science which is described in its own section of this catalog. All prospective mathematics students are encouraged to seek the advice of department faculty in selecting their courses and in choosing one of the three programs within the major: pure, applied, or general mathematics.

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The Middle East Studies major is an interdisciplinary major designed for students preparing for graduate work or professional careers in the government, business and finance, or with international and non-governmental organizations. The Middle East Studies major provides students with the skills necessary to understand the complex issues of the Middle East, and prepares them for careers in which a deep understanding of the region is essential.

The Middle East is an area of tremendous political, strategic, and social importance, and one that possesses a great historical and cultural heritage. The major is therefore robustly interdisciplinary, requiring advanced knowledge of at least one regional language and a Senior Seminar in Middle East Studies, which provides the major with a comprehensive understanding of the most prominent trends and movements in the social, political, religious, and cultural arenas of the Middle East.

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This interdisciplinary major is focused on biology and the physical sciences, and incorporates a significant amount of mathematics. The major is research-oriented and is designed to prepare students for graduate studies, medical schools, or careers in biotechnology and the pharmaceutical industry.

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The major in Neuroscience is an interdisciplinary program of 15 courses (minimum) designed to provide students with an appreciation of diverse approaches to understanding the function of nervous systems, as well as the ability to conduct investigations within a particular subfield of interest. The major provides good preparation for graduate work in biology, psychology, neuroscience, and a variety of other programs including medical school or other graduate health professions programs.

Admission to particular advanced degree programs may require additional course work. Students majoring in Neuroscience complete (1) a common core program, (2) a sequence of 4 electives determined in consultation with an advisor in neuroscience, and (3) a 1- or 2-semester thesis on a topic related to the 4 course sequence.

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This major provides a research-and-field-oriented background for students interested in research careers in either physiology or ecology/evolution and their allied fields.

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Philosophy addresses some of the most important questions human beings ever face, questions central to a true liberal arts education. These include: What are the limits of human knowledge? Do human beings have free will? Do we have immortal souls? Does God exist? What is the right ethical code to live by? What are the right political principles for our society?

Most importantly, the study of philosophy develops one’s analytical, critical, and interpretative skills. Because of this unique combination, philosophy is an excellent foundation for any career path, and philosophy has long been known to provide an especially good foundation for law, business, and public policy. Students who complete the philosophy major will gain both broad and in-depth knowledge of some of humanity’s most crucial questions.

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The major in Philosophy and Public Affairs (PPA) allows students to design a specialized course plan integrating philosophy with government and/or economics. This interdisciplinary major is housed in the Philosophy Department and offers students the chance to combine a philosophical knowledge of how society should work with practical information from government and economics about how society does work.

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The Tutorial Program in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) at Claremont McKenna College is a specially designed, enrollment-limited, interdisciplinary major. It is adapted from a similar program at Oxford University and makes use of small seminars and tutorials to encourage students to develop their expository skills. Students apply for acceptance into the program in the fall of their sophomore year and usually start the program in the spring semester of the sophomore year.

Participating students are designated as either Edward J. Sexton or Akshata Murty Fellows, in recognition of a major endowment gifts to support the program, and receive a small grant for educational expenses. The core of the PPE major is the three seminar-tutorial courses, one in each of the three disciplines of the program. In these double courses, students typically participate in a weekly class seminar together with a weekly tutorial in which papers are read and discussed under the supervision of one of CMC’s senior professors.

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Physics explores the fundamental principles governing the behavior of our universe, from the subatomic scale to the cosmological scale. These principles underlie most modern technologies, and have direct applications to biology, chemistry, neuroscience, engineering, environmental analysis, etc., making physics a highly versatile undergraduate major. Physics majors work closely with faculty as they develop a broad range of highly flexible analytical and quantitative model-building and problem-solving skills.

Our program places particular curricular emphasis on computational/numerical modeling techniques, so that our majors are well versed in tackling complex problems which are not readily solved by traditional methods. Physics alumni go on to a variety of positions, including industrial and academic research, biophysics, engineering, finance, law, medicine, mathematics. Course requirements for the physics major are kept relatively modest, allowing students with multiple interests to pursue double and dual majors and minors.

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Psychological Science courses offer valuable background for a broad diversity of careers in which understanding of human and social processes is useful. The major in psychology may be elected by students who are interested in preparation for graduate study in psychology and by those who regard it as a liberal arts foundation for other careers. In addition to the helping professions, CMC psychology majors have developed professional roles in education, law, administration, health care, business, and public service. Given the diversity of career interests of students and the richness of course offerings available at The Claremont Colleges, students are strongly encouraged to develop consultative relationships with faculty members of the department.

Some unique features of the psychology program at CMC include opportunities for students to get experience in applied research programs. Students may participate in the work of the Center for Applied Psychological Research, Claremont Autism Center, Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Cultural Influences on Mental Health Center, Decision Neuroscience Laboratory, Developmental Laboratory, Human Cognition Laboratory, Human Learning and Memory Laboratory, Kravis Leadership Institute, or the Moral Emotions and Trust Laboratory. Several of these programs offer students opportunities for paid research assistantships and internships during the summer.

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The Public Policy Major supports the College’s mission “to educate its students for thoughtful and productive lives and responsible leadership in business, government, and the professions, and to support faculty and student scholarship that contribute to intellectual vitality and the understanding of public policy issues.”

The major facilitates student mastery of the analytical tools, written and oral communication skills, and knowledge of governmental process required for professional and academic work in public policy. The major takes an interdisciplinary approach to policy that melds concepts from economics and political science. It emphasizes experiential learning through internships and faculty-supervised projects for real-world clients via the Policy Lab course. The major builds the interdisciplinary skill profile necessary to compete and succeed in the competitive public policy job market, and also helps prepare students who are interested in pursuing graduate studies in public policy.

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The major in religious studies is a cooperative program offered jointly by Claremont McKenna, Harvey Mudd, Pitzer, Pomona, and Scripps Colleges. The program of study is designed to serve both as a focus of a liberal arts education and as a foundation for students planning to pursue the study of religion beyond the baccalaureate degree. Students may enroll in religious studies courses offered at any of the undergraduate colleges, and advanced students may, with permission, enroll in master’s-level courses in their concentration at Claremont Graduate University. All students who decide to major in religious studies should obtain a member of the religious studies department as advisor and plan their courses in consultation with their advisor.

While offering a broadly based and inclusive program in the study of religion for all liberal arts students, the religious studies major affords the opportunity for more specialized work at the intermediate and advanced levels in, for example, particular historic religious traditions, geographical areas, philosophical and critical approaches, and thematic and comparative studies. Students may choose such concentrations in consultation with their religious studies advisor. Language study appropriate to the concentration and a period of study abroad are strongly encouraged.

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This program is designed to provide students with a solid background in science, economics, and fundamental managerial skills. The major requires a minimum of 18 courses in addition to the College’s general education requirements. Majors complete a core program of a minimum of 13 courses in addition to a 5-course sequence. Students may also construct their own sequence in science with consultation with the Science Management advisor. Some major requirements may be waived due to placement. New students who plan to major in Science Management may enroll in five courses.

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With the population of Latinos in the U.S. rising to almost 30% by 2015, not to mention a world-wide population of 350 million Spanish speakers, studying Spanish language, cultures and literature opens many doors to you. Not only will you develop the language skills and cultural competence needed to engage meaningfully with Spanish speakers at home and abroad, you will find increased opportunities in fields such as law, international relations, foreign service, teaching, public policy, and business. Bilingual workers can even earn as much as $125,000 more over their lifetimes compared to monolingual peers.

The Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, cooperating with the Spanish programs at Pitzer, Pomona and Scripps, provides you with many opportunities to enhance your ability to communicate effectively in Spanish and to learn more about the various and diverse cultures and peoples that make up the Spanish-speaking world. CMC students are encouraged to continue the study of a foreign language throughout their study at CMC or to take advantage of the opportunity to learn a new language. Students will not receive credit for college work in a foreign language that duplicates other college courses or foreign language study completed in high school.

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Sequences

The Ancient and Medieval Studies program is an interdisciplinary sequence focusing on the pre-modern world, encompassing coursework in Classics and Classical Studies, History, Government, Late Antique and Medieval Studies, Literature, Philosophy, and Religious Studies. The program is designed for students with an abiding interest in pre-modern cultural experiences across multiple disciplines in the humanities and social sciences.

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The Intercollegiate Department of Asian American Studies (IDAAS) offers a rigorous, multi-disciplinary academic program that emphasizes social justice, critical thinking, and innovative analysis of the history, society, and cultural production of Asians in the United States, within both multiracial American and transnational contexts. The program seeks to prepare students for various careers in the community, private or public, along with graduate work. CMC offers a sequence in Asian American Studies, a multi-disciplinary program that examines the historical and contemporary experiences of Asians in the United States.

The sequence is designed to accompany majors in other disciplines. In consultation with an IDAAS advisor, students take appropriate courses in a range of disciplines throughout the undergraduate colleges, including interdisciplinary core courses in Asian American Studies. To ensure balance and to accommodate the wide range of majors students may combine with the sequence, all courses must be approved by the CMC faculty member responsible for the oversight and administration of the sequence. Completion of the sequence will be noted on students’ transcripts. Interested students may complete a major in Asian American Studies through Pitzer College.

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CMC, Harvey Mudd College and Pomona College offer courses in computer science in close collaboration. Students interested in majoring in Computer Science may do so through Harvey Mudd College or through Pomona College, with the approval of the sponsoring department. Students pursuing the Harvey Mudd Major should take the first three courses in the curriculum at HMC (5, 60, 70). Students pursuing the Pomona major should take the first three courses at Pomona (51, 52, 62). Students may not mix courses from these introductory sequences, but once the introductory series is complete, students may apply upper-level coursework from Pomona or HMC toward either major.

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Data science is an interdisciplinary subject drawing from statistics, computer science, and domain knowledge skills. The sequence is intended to give participants a foundation in the principles and application of data science. A student completing the sequence should be familiar with the types of tools used for data science, and should be capable of handling real-world problems arising in science, government, and industry.

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The College’s concern in the area of public affairs involves considering what ought to be as well as what is. Consequently, it offers an interdisciplinary sequence of courses focusing on ethical theory and its application both to the conduct of individuals and to the formulation of public policy. The Ethics Sequence is designed to accompany other majors, and its purpose is to assist students in thinking critically and constructively for themselves on issues of individual conduct and public policy. Completion of the sequence will be noted on students’ transcripts.

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The Financial Economics Sequence is part of the Robert Day School of Economics and Finance. The curriculum of the Sequence is designed for students interested in pursuing careers in the financial sector and/or graduate education in economics, finance, and related fields. The Sequence has a rigorous quantitative focus and is designed to complement majors in economics, economics-accounting, and mathematics, as well as dual majors having an economics component. Under the auspices of the Financial Economics Institute (FEI), students complete the Sequence, which is noted on the transcript, thereby attesting to their solid understanding of the discipline.

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The multi-disciplinary Gender and Sexuality Studies Sequence is committed to the critical analysis of gender and sexuality. Gender and Sexuality Studies (GSS) investigates the meaning, expression, and social construction of gender across cultures and historical periods. The Sequence aims to raise important methodological questions by crossing disciplinary boundaries including the humanities, the social sciences, and the natural sciences. GSS courses offer students an opportunity to consider how assumptions about gender and/or sexuality operate in society and shape class, racial/ethnic, gender and sexual identities.

Students analyze how such assumptions inform social and political structures. In exploring gender as a central category of social and cultural analysis, students also think critically about how gender and sexuality shape our lives as individuals and as members of larger communities and institutions, from the local to the global. GSS students are encouraged to engage with the Claremont consortium by taking courses across the Colleges. At least one of the five courses must be completed at CMC.

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The sequence in Human Rights, Holocaust and Genocide studies was developed in 2003-04 to help students obtain the knowledge, skills, and moral insight needed to identify, analyze, and act constructively to prevent current human rights abuses, and genocidal conflict. While the sequence emphasizes historical analysis and practical experience, it is interdisciplinary in its structure and balance of course requirements.

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The Jewish Studies sequence is an interdisciplinary program that examines Jewish life and thought through a range of disciplines including art history, history, literature, philosophy, politics, and religious studies. Jewish Studies involves a critical engagement with the humanities and social sciences, and undertakes an examination of major historical and cultural issues, such as ethical beliefs and practices, and relations between minority communities and dominant political and social ideologies and systems.

The sequence will provide students with the opportunity to gain a better understanding of Jewish history and life over the past three millennia. Coursework will include a study of the breadth of Jewish history, from antiquity to the present, in major centers of Jewish life (e.g., Middle East, Europe, United States), and in its various literary, social, and cultural forms.

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The Leadership Studies program is a multi-disciplinary program focusing on the nature of leadership and followership. It addresses the scientific, philosophical, and literary approaches to the relationship between leaders and followers in political, business, and other settings. The Leadership Sequence is designed for CMC students interested in pursuing a career involving the scholarly study and/or practice of leadership, who feel that an understanding of leadership would be helpful to them in another career, or students who are interested in the subject.

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The intercollegiate and interdisciplinary program in Legal Studies seeks to illuminate law from a liberal arts perspective, with ideas and methods from disciplines in the social sciences and humanities. It is also intended to help unify and increase the student’s appreciation of these other disciplines by using them to study law as a central social phenomenon and repository of values. A premise of the program in legal studies is that law, when approached from a liberal arts perspective, reveals a collection of magnificent intellectual and social structures that are too important - and too interesting - to be left entirely to professionals.

By contrast, American law schools are specialized graduate institutions, with their own traditions and systems of values, and have a largely professional orientation. They teach the doctrine of law brilliantly, in their severely analytic style, but for this very reason they can give at best only secondary attention to the goal of exploring the relationships of law with other aspects of intellectual and social endeavor.

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5-College Majors

The Intercollegiate Department of Africana Studies (IDAS) offers a multidisciplinary curriculum that examines the experiences of African, African American, and Caribbean people from the liberal arts perspective. Faculty members from all undergraduate colleges are members of the faculty of IDAS. Other faculty members may also teach Africana studies courses. The Africana Studies curriculum helps to unify an important area of intellectual investigation, and enhances appreciation of particular disciplines in the humanities and social sciences.

Courses accommodate the needs of majors and non-majors, providing significant preparation for careers in education, social work, public policy, law, medicine, business, international relations, and advanced research. A major in Africana Studies is available through Pitzer College, Pomona College, or Scripps College. The interdisciplinary major introduces students to the broad range of research and scholarship of African, African American, and Caribbean people.

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The Intercollegiate Department of Chicana/o Latina/o Studies of the Claremont Colleges is concurrently a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary field of academic inquiry broadly relating to people of Latin American descent within the hemisphere, particularly within the United States and the wider diaspora. Courses in Chicanx - Latinx studies take into account the intersection of race, ethnicity, class, culture, gender and sexuality. These courses are distributed across three areas of study that make up the Chicanx Latinx Studies major: 1) Educación: Identities, Cultures, and Communities; 2) Experiencia: Literature, Music, and Representation; and 3) Sin Fronteras: Latinx Experiences in the Americas. Chicanx Latinx Studies contribute to all fields in the humanities and social sciences including professional programs such as education, social work, medicine, and law.

Chicanx Latinx Studies emerged in the academy as a product of education and social movements of the 1960s. These movements led to the initial creation of the program at The Claremont Colleges in 1969, making it the second oldest Chicanx studies department in the nation. More recently, Chicanx Latinx Studies has emerged as a field of inquiry relating to Latin Americans in the hemisphere and has been the site for work seeking to transcend the gaps between area studies and ethnic studies. A major in Chicano studies is available through Pitzer, Pomona, and Scripps Colleges. Courses are open to all students of The Claremont Colleges.

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Intercollegiate Media Studies at the Claremont Colleges is an interdisciplinary program that investigates social histories, cultural contexts, theoretical approaches, and technologies of media forms. IMS production is oriented toward “independent” narrative forms, documentary, video and digital art, and community-based and activist media. A major in Media Studies is available through Pitzer College.

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Claremont McKenna College participates in The Claremont Colleges Theatre Program under the direction of the Pomona College Department of Theatre and Dance. Through a synthesis of body, mind, and spirit, theatre and dance celebrate the community of world cultures. The curriculum includes the study of performance, design and technology, dance, theatre history, dramaturgy, and dramatic literature. Theatre students become proficient in devising creative solutions to complex problems. They also develop sensitivity to the interpersonal relationships inherent in the collaborative process preparing them for a wide variety of careers in professions and organizations that value these qualities.

The department also prepares students for further study on either the graduate or professional level. The department presents four major productions each year and numerous student generated works. Student performers and production personnel are drawn from majors and non-majors alike throughout The Claremont Colleges. A major in Theatre is available through the Pomona College Department of Theatre and Dance.

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Accelerated, and Joint or Dual Degree Programs

The Economics and Engineering program allows students interested in a liberal arts education, together with a demanding curriculum in both economics and engineering, to earn two undergraduate degrees within five years. This is commonly called a “3+2 program.” Students in the Economics and Engineering (E&E) program study at CMC for the first three years, completing at least 24 courses toward the Bachelor of Arts degree including all E&E major requirements and all general education requirements except for senior thesis.

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M.A. Program in Economics

CMC students interested in graduate economics training for business, government, or non-profit enterprise are encouraged to consider the accelerated BA/MA program in economics at Claremont Graduate University (CGU). Participants in this program enroll, with the permission of the program advisor and the CGU instructor, in graduate courses as part of their undergraduate education.

M.B.A. - Robert A. Day 4+1 BA/MBA Program

The Robert A. Day 4+1 BA/MBA Program provides an opportunity for CMC students to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree from CMC and a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree from the Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management at Claremont Graduate University (CGU) in just five years. The program is a unique alternative to the traditional route to an M.B.A.. Rather than interrupting their careers to pursue an M.B.A. degree, Day 4+1 students begin taking M.B.A. courses during the senior year at CMC. Students then graduate from CMC with their undergraduate classmates before completing the M.B.A. in a fifth year of full-time study at CGU.

M.A. Program in Political Science

Government majors in good standing and interested in pursuing a Master of Arts degree at Claremont Graduate University may begin work on a master’s degree in political science at the Center for Politics and Economics at The Claremont Graduate University (CGU) during their senior year at CMC. In their last year at CMC, program participants select classes that will count toward both the Bachelor of Arts degree (with a major in government) at CMC and one of the following master’s programs at CGU: public policy (MAP), international studies (MAGIS), or politics (MAP).

M.A. Program in Psychology

CMC and The Claremont Graduate University (CGU) offer psychology and neuroscience majors the opportunity to obtain an accelerated M.A. degree in psychology from CGU one year after receiving the Bachelor of Arts degree from CMC. Under this program, CGU will grant up to 16 units of graduate credit for advanced undergraduate courses taken while the student is an undergraduate at CMC. In addition to the CMC courses, in their senior year program participants must take two graduate courses (eight units) at CGU, including a core course and a four unit course in either statistics or methodology. After entering CGU, program participants must complete at least 32 units (eight courses) for the M.A. degree.

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The Robert Day School of Economics and Finance at Claremont McKenna College offers a one-year Master of Arts in Finance degree program for graduates of the Claremont Colleges and small number of nominating partner institutions. This unique program of study provides a premier postgraduate education in financial economics that builds on the fundamental elements of a liberal arts education.

The rigorous and intensive 10-month program includes coursework in corporate finance, investments, accounting and related electives designed to foster analytical and quantitative expertise. Students who complete the graduate program enter the workplace with a deep knowledge of financial economics.

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The Robert Day School offers a combined BA/MA program which allows students to complete both a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts in Finance within four years. The BA/MA program requires 36 units of coursework, at least 20 of which must be completed in residence at CMC during at least 5 regular semesters. Students may alternately elect to complete the program in four and a half or five years (9 or 10 semesters). Students who anticipate taking more than four years to complete the combined degree program should plan their college expenses accordingly. 

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