College of Arts and Sciences

Dean: Daniel Press

Associate Deans: Kathy Aoki, John Birmingham, Katherine Saxton

Senior Assistant Dean: Kathleen Villarruel Schneider

Assistant Dean: Alison Trybom Lucas

The goals of the College of Arts and Sciences are to foster a learning community committed to addressing the fundamental problems of society with a spirit of inquiry, mutual respect, and intellectual excitement and to prepare students to understand and appreciate a broad range of peoples and cultures so they may exercise moral leadership in a pluralistic world. In this way, the college is central to Santa Clara’s Jesuit, liberal education.

With more than 1,500 courses in the humanities, arts, social sciences, and natural sciences, the college offers an inclusive and welcoming academic environment providing:

  • A common educational experience for all undergraduate students through the University’s Core Curriculum
  • Majors in 33 subject areas
  • Departmental and interdisciplinary minor programs
  • Opportunities for advanced study in a student’s particular area of interest

All undergraduate students at the University explore the sciences and liberal arts through the University’s Core Curriculum that challenges them to develop open and critical thinking, to communicate effectively, to work with complex methods of inquiry, to understand diverse cultures and peoples, and to appreciate the demands of ethical decision making. Those who select majors or minors in the college have the opportunity to develop specialized knowledge and skills in areas of concentration that reflect their personal interests and talents. Students are encouraged to use elective courses to pursue particular interests beyond their chosen major. In addition to selecting individual courses, students have the opportunity to organize their electives around minors and emphases in many departmental and interdisciplinary programs throughout the college.

The College of Arts and Sciences offers a variety of student-faculty research opportunities and ongoing mentoring relationships in which students work closely with faculty members in the creation of knowledge or original artistic works. These opportunities include research assistantships throughout the college in the arts, humanities, and natural and social sciences.