WHAT CAN YOU DO WITH A DEGREE IN CLASSICS?

Inspired by dynamic and enthusiastic professors, Classics students at the College of Charleston discover new ways to understand the present by studying the ancient past. They follow Western language, literature and civilization to their roots, becoming true world citizens in the process. They also reap the benefits of a rigorous program that is widely recognized as excellent preparation for graduate and professional school. Traditionally, Classics majors score very well on graduate entrance exams, and the major has long been viewed as rigorous preparation for advanced study.

Some examples of institutions our recent graduates have attended include:

• University of the Pacific (McGeorge School of Law)
• Medical University of South Carolina (College of Pharmacy)
• University College, London, England (MA in ancient history)
• University of California, Berkeley (PhD in Classics)
• Smith College (master’s in education for the deaf)
• University of Melbourne, Australia (MA in editing and publishing)

Careers

National surveys consistently demonstrate that written and verbal communication skills are at the top of the list of qualities employers seek in candidates for virtually any job. A Classics education teaches you how to think and how to learn, and hones your communication skills, and therefore gives you a solid foundation for a career in many different fields.

There is a growing appreciation for the positive impact Latin can have on communication skills and test scores at the middle and secondary levels. So, in most areas of the country, the job market for Latin teachers is excellent. A bachelor’s degree in Classics can qualify you to teach at many private schools while our certification program for secondary school teaching candidates qualifies you to teach in public schools.

Active Learning Opportunities

Göksu Archaeological Project (GAP). Offers students the chance to engage in archaeological fieldwork in southern Turkey, working on surface reconnaissance, the processing of artifacts and data entry. Participants also learn firsthand about archaeological methods, GIS, GPS and other applications.

Summer Study in Greece. During this month-long travel program, students tour the principal archaeological sites of Athens and its environs, the Peloponnesus, central Greece and the islands of Crete and Santorini. Participants enroll in and earn credit for two courses: Classical Greece and Bronze Age Greece.

Study Abroad.The College offers a wide range of international study programs that focus on the ancient Greco-Roman world.

Student research. All students have the chance to engage in independent research through tutorials, practica and the required Research Seminar in Classics. The College awards funding for selected student research on a competitive basis. Some examples of recent student independent projects include:

• Archaeological Illustration
• Water Quality in Ancient Rome
• Teaching Latin in Elementary and Middle Schools
• Ancient Greek Interactions with History and Myth
• The Use of GIS-Based Probabilistic Sampling in Archaeological Survey (funded by an undergraduate research grant)

Annual Classics lecture. Each year, a prominent scholar is invited to campus to deliver a public lecture on a classical topic. Students have the opportunity to meet with the visiting scholars.

Archaeological Institute of America (AIA) – South Carolina Society. Each year the college hosts a lecture series sponsored by the AIA, the oldest and largest professional society for archaeologists in North America. Classics majors are encouraged to attend the lectures and are invited to become active members of the AIA’s South Carolina Society. Recent lecture topics included:

• Inventing an Imperial Dynasty: Family, State, and the Augustan Building Program in Rome
• Akrotiri, Thera: Exploring the “Pompeii” of the Aegean
• The Phoenicians and the Maccabees: Excavations at tel Kadesh, Israel
• The Villa of the Mysteries in Pompeii: Contexts and Meanings

Latin Forum. The Classics program sponsors an annual competition for South Carolina middle and high school students. They compete in academic, athletic and performance events such as orations, costumes, skits and projects. Classics students assist faculty with all aspects of the forum.

Classics Club. Offers all interested students the opportunity to interact with others who share an interest in the Greco-Roman world. Eta Sigma Phi. Qualified students are invited to join our chapter of this national Classics honors society.

Learning Resources

• Students have access to the Classics Resource Room with computer equipment dedicated to Classics and archaeology. We subscribe to the Classics online bibliography, a very important research tool for student
  projects.
• Many of our classes are taught in a room that has been used as a classroom at the College since the 1820s. It is now fully modernized as a “smart” classroom, a high-tech interactive teaching/learning
  environment.
• In Randolph Hall there is a museum and a collection of antiquities and replicas donated to the department. Included are full-scale plaster reproductions of sections of the Parthenon frieze.

College of Charleston Advantages

• One of the largest undergraduate Classics programs in the Southeast, and one of the nation’s only growing Classics programs.
• Two majors are offered. An AB degree for those with an interest in the Greek and Latin languages, and a BA degree for students with a primary interest in Greek and Roman culture and civilization.
• Minor programs in Latin, Ancient Greek and Classics combine well with and strengthen the value of majors in other fields.
• An option for earning teaching certification at the secondary level expands the career options available to Classics majors.
• All majors complete a capstone research project as part of their coursework.
• All faculty members are active teacher-scholars who have traveled extensively and engaged in research and study trips abroad.
• Students have the opportunity to learn archaeological techniques at Dixie Plantation, an 800-acre preserve.

“I decided to be a Classics major because of the excellent teachers and interesting courses. The department offers special topics culture classes ranging from the Archeology of Death to Roman Letters to Women in Classical Antiquity. The professors are wonderful and are always willing to give students extra help if they need it. I’ve found that the linguistic skills that I’ve developed through my Greek and Latin studies have helped me in many of my other classes. The program has also done a great job of preparing me for graduate school.”

Deana Zeigler ’06