Undergraduate Programs | Brown University

American Studies

A.B.

The concentration in American Studies seeks to understand American society and cultures as emerging from historical and contemporary processes at work in local, national, and global contexts.

Department of American Studies

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Archaeology and the Ancient World

A.B.

The concentration in Archaeology and the Ancient World provides an opportunity to explore the multi-faceted discipline of archaeology while examining the critical early civilizations of the so-called "Old World" that is, the complex societies of the Mediterranean, Egypt, and Ancient Western Asia.

Joukowsky Institute for Archaeology & the Ancient World

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Architecture

A.B.

The Architecture concentration allows students to develop a broad understanding of the concepts and methods for the planning and design of buildings, landscapes, and cities.

Department of History of Art and Architecture

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Classics

A.B.

The study of Classics focuses on the languages, literature, history, culture, and legacy of Greco-Roman antiquity.

Department of Classics

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Comparative Literature

A.B.

The concentration in Comparative Literature enables students to study an illustrative range of literary topics and to develop a focused critical understanding of how cultures differ from one another and what those differences mean.

Department of Comparative Literature

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Contemplative Studies

A.B.

The concentration in Contemplative Studies investigates the underlying philosophical, psychological, and scientific bases of human contemplative experience.

Contemplative Studies Initiative

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Early Modern World

A.B.

The Concentration in Early Modern World promotes interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary approaches to historical cultures around the world between the waning of feudalism and the arrival of global industrial capitalism, from the 1300s to the end of the 1800s.

Center for the Study of the Early Modern World

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East Asian Studies

A.B.

East Asian Studies is a multidisciplinary concentration designed for students wishing to attain reasonable fluency in Chinese, Japanese, or Korean with specialized exposure to selected East Asian subjects.

Department of East Asian Studies

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Egyptology and Assyriology

A.B.

The concentration in Egyptology and Assyriology offers students a choice of two tracks: Assyriology or Egyptology.

Department of Egyptology and Assyriology

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English

A.B.

The English Department fosters the study of British, American, and Anglophone literature—old and new—in ways that are both intensive and open.

Department of English

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Ethnic Studies

A.B.

Ethnic Studies is an interdisciplinary, comparative concentration that examines the construction of race and ethnicity in social, cultural, historical, political, and economic contexts.

Department of American Studies

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French and Francophone Studies

A.B.

The concentration in French and Francophone Studies is committed to the pursuit of an interdisciplinary, linguistically rigorous, and textually informed understanding of French and Francophone literatures and cultures.

Department of French Studies

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German Studies

A.B.

German Studies exposes students to the language, literature, and culture of the German speaking areas of Central Europe.

Department of German Studies

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Hispanic Literatures and Cultures

A.B.

Spanish is the second most widely spoken language in the world and the second language of the United States. In our society, knowing Spanish is not just an asset; it is increasingly a necessity.

Department of Hispanic Studies

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History of Art and Architecture

A.B.

The concentration in History of Art and Architecture introduces students to the history of art, architecture, and visual culture.

Department of the History of Art and Architecture

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Independent Concentration

A.B. Sc.B.

The Independent Concentration program is for students interested in actively constructing an interdisciplinary concentration, representing a coherent field of study that Brown does not offer.

Independent Concentrations

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Italian Studies

A.B.

Inherently interdisciplinary, the Italian Studies concentration allows students to strengthen their language skills in Italian and deepen their knowledge of Italian literature, history, art, and culture.

Department of Italian Studies

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Judaic Studies

A.B.

Jews have lived and flourished over thousands of years in a variety of social contexts, stretching from the Land of Israel and the eastern Mediterranean to Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas. Concentrators will have the opportunity to study Jews in these contexts, getting to know their social structures, and what they have created.

Program in Judaic Studies

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Literary Arts

A.B.

Brown's Program in Literary Arts provides a home for innovative writers of fiction, poetry, playwriting, screenwriting, literary translation, electronic writing and mixed media.

Program in Literary Arts

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Medieval Cultures

A.B.

The program in Medieval Studies offers a concentration in Medieval Cultures with two tracks with distinct foci: one in Medieval Cultures and the other in Late Antique Cultures.

Program in Medieval Studies

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Modern Culture and Media

A.B.

Modern Culture and Media (MCM) is an interdisciplinary concentration that explores the ties between media and broader cultural and social formations.

Department of Modern Culture and Media

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Music

A.B.

The concentration in Music integrates theory, history, ethnomusicology, technology, composition, and performance.

Department of Music

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Philosophy

A.B.

The Philosophy concentration offers courses covering subjects from the philosophy of religion to the philosophies of science and literature.

Department of Philosophy

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Physics and Philosophy

A.B.

The Physics and Philosophy concentration is for students with a deep interest in physics who do not need to acquire the laboratory and computational skills of a professional physicist.

Department of Physics

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Portuguese and Brazilian Studies

A.B.

Portuguese and Brazilian Studies examines the Portuguese-speaking world, a large and diverse geographical and cultural area spread over five continents.

Department of Portuguese and Brazilian Studies

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Religious Studies

A.B.

Religious Studies explores religious thought and practice in various historical, political, cultural, and social contexts in order to understand and interpret societies and cultures throughout the world.

Department of Religious Studies

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Slavic Studies

A.B.

Slavic Studies is concerned with the languages, literatures, and civilizations of the Slavic world.

Department of Slavic Studies

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Theatre Arts and Performance Studies

A.B.

The Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies (TAPS) is the intellectual and artistic center for the aesthetic, historical, literary, practical, and theoretical explorations of performance in global perspective — theatre, dance, speech, time-based art, and even performative "roles" in everyday life.

Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies

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Visual Art

A.B.

The Visual Art concentration engages in artistic practice across a wide range of media: painting, sculpture, printmaking, drawing, photography, and digital imaging.

Department of Visual Art

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