Who We Are
Whether we realize it or not, we ask ourselves philosophical questions all the time: What should I be doing with my life? What
is the ethical thing to do in this situation? Is it reasonable to believe in God? Studying philosophy helps you clearly formulate questions like these, examine assumptions logically, think critically, propose reasoned answers, and defend your position—a skillset that translates to many diverse professions for our graduates, including business, journalism, law, military intelligence, social work, and applied ethics in business, the environment, medicine, and more.
What You’ll Learn
Through discussion-based classes, reading and writing assignments, you’ll study and critique some of the greatest philosophers from Western and non-Western traditions. With UNC Asheville’s liberal arts focus, many philosophy majors pair their studies with other disciplines, including political science, psychology, literature, physics, classics, management, and economics. Many philosophy students actively participate in our student philosophy clubs and in our annual undergraduate philosophy conference, in addition to exciting undergraduate research projects.
Who We Are
At UNC Asheville’s Music Department, the classical co-exists with the contemporary. We explore the many connections and interactions between music and all facets of human life through instruction and performance. Students learn in cutting-edge classrooms at the only university where music pioneer Bob Moog – inventor of the Moog Synthesizer – ever taught. In addition to being dedicated teachers, our faculty are active musicians who enrich Asheville’s thriving music scene and the cultural life of our campus.
What You’ll Learn
Students wishing admittance to the B.F.A. in Jazz and Contemporary Music or B.S. in Music Technology degree programs must pass an instrumental or vocal audition. An audition is not required for admission to the B.A. in Music degree.
Our highly selective music technology program combines music, engineering, math, computer science, music business, and electronics to teach students how to professionally mix and record music, while our jazz and contemporary music performance program is ideal for those pursuing careers as singers, instrumentalists, composers, and arrangers. Our Bachelor of Arts degree merges music analytical training with history, anthropology, natural sciences, and philosophy to prepare students for a range of careers or graduate studies.
The University Singers, one of several student ensembles, have performed at the White House, while many graduates have found dream jobs working with top artists like R.E.M. and Alison Krauss.
Auditions for Prospective Music Majors
All prospective music majors are required to audition. Please visit our Auditions page for upcoming auditions and more information.
Art & Art History – Who We Are
With a 16-member faculty of acclaimed artists and scholars and a location in the thriving arts scene of Asheville, our small, supportive department of Art and Art History encourages imagination, experimentation, and freedom of thought.
What You’ll Learn
You’ll start by building a foundation of writing skills in art history. Through critiques, you’ll receive valuable feedback on your work from faculty and classmates, and in your senior year, you’ll produce a major research paper. Internships at local museums and galleries allow you to explore career options and acquire professional experience.
Learn More
Visit art.unca.edu for departmental news and updates.
Who We Are
Our world is more connected now than it’s ever been, and UNC Asheville’s Interdisciplinary Studies Program seeks to understand and explain the challenging issues and questions confronting us today in our globalized world. To understand the complex mix of cultural, economic, and political forces that shape our worldwide community, interdisciplinary studies majors can design their own curriculum with courses from political science, economics, mass communication, philosophy, and more.
What You’ll Learn
Through each major and minor concentration, interdisciplinary studies students learn how to solve problems facing contemporary societies on local and global levels, preparing them for careers in government, business, law, humanitarian organizations, journalism, the arts, teaching, and more. Hands-on learning is a highlight of our program, and students can delve into a topic they’re passionate about through undergraduate research and study abroad.
Interdisciplinary Studies has debuted a NEW 3-Year Degree Program
Earn your degree faster to save on tuition, expenses, and gain early access to the jobs marketplace, having set yourself apart as a specialist in International Studies with a focus on Asian Studies.
For those interested in pursuing an International Studies major with an Asian Studies minor, on an accelerated timeline: Click here to learn more, or contact us with your questions about our NEW 3-Year Degree Program.
Who We Are
Through the study of language, culture, and literature, students examine the human experience as an individual and in relation to their local and global community as they prepare for a career. The department encourages travel and study abroad, and faculty are either native speakers of the language they teach or have extensive experience abroad. Our small classes make it easy for students to connect with professors and receive personalized instruction.
What You’ll Learn
We offer major and minor concentrations in French, German and Spanish, as well as classes in Portuguese, Cherokee, and Hebrew. UNC Asheville already has exchange relationships and associations with universities and cultural institutions in several countries around the world — Colombia, Cuba, France, Germany, Spain, among others. We encourage our students to study abroad. Students also actively participate in our language clubs, service-learning internships, and undergraduate research.
Who We Are
At UNC Asheville, studying history is more than just learning about the past. To study history is to study change. Everything we do, use, and study is the product of a complex set of causes, ideas, and practices. The study of history is an enriching process
UNC Asheville’s liberal arts focus challenges history majors to investigate some of life’s biggest questions: What is the nature of humanity? What motivates us? How does the past influence our future? The Department of History’s faculty and students explore these concepts and more through research projects, presentations, and collaborative and creative work. Our experienced faculty members have diverse backgrounds and expertise, and thrive on mentoring each of their students.
What You’ll Learn
History majors learn research techniques, sharpen their writing skills, and apply them to the study of Appalachian history, African-American history, American history, the history of cultures around the world, and the history of ideas. Small classes featuring group discussions help students hone their communication skills, preparing them for careers in business, law, education, government, communications, politics, multimedia, and more. Beyond the classroom, many students present their research at professional conferences and participate in the History Student Association or Phi Alpha Theta, the history honor society.
UNC Asheville is founder and host of the African Americans in Western North Carolina & Southern Appalachia Conference, convened annually by Associate Professor of History Darin Waters. Scholars and community activists from around the region gather for presentations from a variety of disciplines—including sociology, history, anthropology, literature, and others. The goal of the conference is to provide an open forum for scholars to engage each other and our community on the vital issues facing Appalachian communities of color.
Who We Are
If you love language, history, philosophy, art, politics, law, mythology, psychology, and anything else that influences culture, you’re an Ancient Mediterranean Studies major in the making.
As the only full Ancient Mediterranean Studies department in Western North Carolina, UNC Asheville’s Ancient Mediterranean Studies faculty are actively engaged in all areas of the field, from literature to ethics, religion, and archaeology. Ancient Mediterranean Studies majors can participate in undergraduate research, local and international service learning, teaching internships, and co-curricular activities like The Ancient Gardens Club or Eta Sigma Phi, the National Classics Honor Society.
What You’ll Learn
Ancient Mediterranean Studies majors read some of the greatest literature ever written and study two cultures that are foundational to so much of our own: Latin and Greek. Since Latin and Greek provide the bases for about 80% of English, learning to read these ancient languages will train you to be an articulate communicator and a critical thinker. Because Ancient Mediterranean Studies is an interdisciplinary field, your classes will cover many subjects, and you’ll find career opportunities in education, the arts, government, law, communications, the nonprofit sector, and more.
Who We Are
UNC Asheville’s Political Science department comprises seven full-time faculty members who were trained at some of the nation’s top research universities and are deeply committed to undergraduate education. Political Science faculty members have interests and expertise across the political science discipline and also value interdisciplinarity. The Political Science department boasts a long and proud tradition of community engagement involving collaboration among faculty members, students, and community partners in the service of shared interests and values.
What You’ll Learn
At the foundation of the Political Science department is a rich and rigorous curriculum with a wide variety of courses in American politics, world politics, political theory, and law. In addition, Political Science majors enjoy a variety of unique active-learning opportunities through internships, service learning, community-engaged scholarship, and research assistantships. All Political Science majors complete and present original scholarship under the close mentorship of a political science faculty member, informed by a variety of different methods and approaches.
UNC Asheville’s Political Science department is particularly distinguished for its leadership in the field of human rights. The department spearheaded the creation of the new Human Rights minor as well as the student-led undergraduate human rights research journal, Dignity.
The Political Science department’s flexible curriculum allows students to pursue double majors, additional minors, and study abroad. Upon graduation, Political Science majors are prepared to live rich lives and embark on meaningful careers in public service, law, journalism, teaching, international relations, and other related areas.
Master's Degree Programs
The department also offers political science majors the exceptional option of pursuing a joint degree with the University of Essex to earn both a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from UNC Asheville and a Master of Arts (M.A.) or a Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree in Human Rights from the University of Essex in roughly 4.5 years. For more information, please contact the Political Science Department at political_science@unca.edu or 828.251.6634.
Why English
People have always told stories to explore what it means to be human. Our department is a supportive community of readers, writers, and scholars contributing to this ever-changing story. Through seminar-style discussion and project-based learning, English majors learn how to analyze texts, think critically, and communicate their knowledge and ideas. Our faculty are active in their fields, publishing their scholarship and creative work; our department brings noteworthy writers to campus for readings, workshops, and conversation. Many of our students take on internships, conduct independent and faculty-mentored research, publish in our university’s literary journal Headwaters, and are active in Asheville’s vibrant writing community.
What You’ll Learn
From antiquity to our contemporary moment, you will study Western and world literature to learn how novelists, poets, playwrights, and literary critics shaped, and were shaped by, our shared cultural and historical contexts. Creative writing students learn how to critique poetry, fiction, drama, and creative non-fiction in a workshop setting, and craft a longer manuscript of their own in their senior year. Our graduates enjoy meaningful careers as teachers, professional writers, journalists, entrepreneurs, and more.
Who We Are
How does the human mind work, and how does this shape the world we live in? As a psychology major at UNC Asheville, you’ll explore these compelling topics through the scientific study of the mind and behavior. Our exclusively undergraduate liberal arts program combines the rigor of pre-professional training for careers in psychology with the opportunity to explore other related disciplines. Unlike larger universities, we offer smaller classes taught by professors, not teaching assistants, and the opportunity to collaborate closely with faculty. Our department is a community of scholars dedicated to supporting each other as we work together to make the world a better place through the knowledge and best practices of the discipline.
What You’ll Learn
Psychology students learn the fundamentals of the discipline and develop open-minded skepticism through training in psychological theory, research, and application. Students can conduct original research through our nationally recognized undergraduate research program, and the neuroscience minor is popular among students who want to understand brain science from different disciplinary perspectives. Outside the classroom, students can join Psych Club or our active chapter of Psi Chi, the National Honor Society in Psychology. Our graduates find careers in a range of fields, including healthcare, research, business, and more, while others pursue professional programs in medicine, law, and education.
