2024/25 UM UMM Undergraduate Catalog
College of Liberal Arts & Sciences
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The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is dedicated to providing a sound education in the liberal arts and to imparting the specific knowledge and skills required for careers in one of its many representative disciplines. This education, both in its breadth and its approach to learning, leads students to an enlightened sense of themselves, their heritage, their world; prepares them for responsible and active citizenship; and prompts those habits of thought and expression crucial to a lifetime of active learning. A major goal of the college is to provide students with the ability to think independently, to analyze, and to solve problems creatively.
ACADEMIC PROGRAMS:
Bachelor of Arts in:
Anthropology
Art Education
Art History
Bachelor of University Studies, CLAS pathway
Chemistry
Communication
Computer Science
English
French
History
Human Dimensions of Climate Change
Human-Centered Technology Design
Interdisciplinary Studies in Multimodal Interaction
International Affairs
Journalism
Mathematics
Media Studies
Music
New Media
Philosophy
Physics
Political Science
Psychology
Romance Languages
Sociology
Spanish
Studio Art
Theatre
Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Bachelor of Fine Arts in:
Studio Art
Bachelor of Music in:
Music Education
Music Performance
Bachelor of Science in:
Chemistry
Computer Science
Human-Centered Technology Design
Mathematics
Physics
Minors:
Anthropology
Archaeology
Art History
Astronomy
Canadian Studies
Chemistry
Classical Studies
Computer Science
Criminal Justice
Creative Writing
Dance
English
Environmental Ethics
Ethics, and Political Philosophy
Film and Video Studies
Folklore and Traditional Arts
Franco American Studies
French
Geography
Graphic Design
History
Human-Computer Interaction
Human Dimensions of Climate Change
International Affairs
Jazz Studies
Journalism
Judaic Studies
Leadership Studies
Legal Studies
Maine Studies
Marxist and Socialist Studies
Mathematics
Media Studies
Medieval and Renaissance Studies
Mental Health and Rehabilitation
Music
Native American Studies
New Media
Philosophy
Physics
Political Science
Political Theory
Professional Languages
Professional Skills for the Liberal Arts Major
Professional Writing
Psychology
Religious Studies
Sociology
Spanish
Sports Communication
Statistics
Studio Art
The Constitution and American Law
Theatre
Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Institutional Credit Requirements:
All majors in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences require a minimum of 15 institutional credits in the major, and all minors require a minimum of 9. For purposes of this requirement, institutional credit is defined as all University of Maine (Orono) courses regardless of delivery method (face-to-face, online, ITV, etc).
Please note that some CLAS majors and minors may have more restrictive institutional credit requirements. Students wishing to pursue a particular CLAS major or minor should review the catalog information pertaining to the specific major or minor of interest.
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Graduation Requirements:
In order to graduate from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the following must be satisfied:
1. Completion of all university-wide General Education requirements.
2. Completion of all requirements for a specific academic major within the college. Double majors and double degrees in closely related disciplines are not permitted. Questions regarding double majors and/or degrees should be addressed to the associate dean of the college.
3. To complete their degree, students must earn a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or better in the courses in the major field that are credited toward completion of the major in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Students graduating with a minor in a CLAS field must likewise earn a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or better in the courses in the minor field that are credited toward completion of the minor.
4. A minimum total of 120 credits. (Please note that some majors require more than 120 credits).
5. For Bachelor of Arts students only, satisfactory completion of the B.A. Distribution Requirements (see text below).
Bachelor of Arts Distribution Requirements:
In order to ensure depth as well as breadth of study, the following rules apply to students seeking a Bachelor of Arts degree in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences:
1. All students pursuing a B.A. degree must complete a minimum of 60 credits outside of the academic major.
2. All students pursuing a B.A degree are subject to the following credit limitations:
a. Students may count a maximum of 15 credits in military science (MSL) or naval science (NAV) toward the required 120. To count, credits must be at the upper (300-400) level, or if lower (100-200) level must be on the University’s official list of approved general education courses. In no case may the combination of lower and upper level credits used toward the required 120 exceed the maximum allowance of 15.
b. A maximum of 2 physical education (KPE) skills credits may be used toward the 120 required for the B.A. degree. Examples of skills credits include golf, tennis, racquetball, etc.
3. Students matriculating effective Fall 2011 must complete an academic minor or a second academic major.
4. Students in a CLAS major who complete the preparatory courses necessary to enter the 5-year MBA program (ACC 201 ; ACC 202 ; ECO 120; ECO 121; either MKT 270 , MGT 325 , or FIN 350 ; and a statistics course approved by CLAS), totaling at least 18 credit hours, will be considered to have met the minor requirement in 3A, although no minor will be listed on their transcript.
COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES NOTES:
Academic Advising:
The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is committed to fostering and maintaining a positive relationship between students and faculty. To help achieve this goal, all new students will be assigned to a faculty academic advisor in the discipline in which they intend to major. Undeclared students will be assigned to an advisor in the college’s Advising and Academic Services Center. Contact information for advisors may be found on the student’s Maine Street home page. The college urges students to make appointments to see their advisors (or an Assoc. Dean of the College) whenever they have academic concerns.
Advising and Academic Services Center:
The Advising and Academic Services Center (AASC) was established with the goal of increasing student access, connection, satisfaction, and retention in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. The AASC works to achieve this goal though a holistic advising approach, providing support for all students as well as directing them to additional academic resources on campus. The Explorations Program, which serves students undecided about an academic program and students who were not accepted into their first academic program of choice, is also part of the AASC. Academic Advisors and Success Instructors serve Explorations Program students during their first year at UMaine while assisting them with choosing a major and being academically successful.
Declaring the Academic Major:
Students in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences are encouraged to explore a wide variety of academic options before declaring a major. Students must declare an academic major when they have accumulated 54 degree credits but may declare a major at any time prior to that.
Matriculated CLAS students who have completed at least one semester at UMaine and have accrued 54 (or more) degree credits without declaring a major will automatically be placed into the Bachelor of University Studies, CLAS Pathway program. Students will receive notification of this change and will meet with the CLAS BUS advisor to discuss their program of study and determine if they wish to remain in the BUS pathway or declare another major for which they are eligible.
Changing Colleges:
The College normally accepts all current University of Maine students from other baccalaureate programs who have a 2.0 cumulative grade point average and are in good academic standing on the effective date of change.
In unusual circumstances, students who have less than a 2.0 cumulative grade point average may be allowed to change colleges. Students in this situation should discuss their request for change with the college associate dean.
Foreign Language Requirements:
Some majors have special language requirements for BA degree students, as follows: NOTE: Intermediate level proficiency, here, means the equivalent of two semesters of an intermediate level language course; e.g. SPA 203, 204.
- ART: 6 credits in one foreign language is required for students who major in Art History.
- COMMUNICATION: 3-6 credits from French, German, Spanish, American Sign Language or other language.
- ENGLISH: By the time of graduation, a student must complete an additional field requirement. Students may complete the additional field requirement with coursework in a language other than English: as a minor, a second major, or intermediate proficiency in a language other than English (to the 204 level in college courses, or the equivalent by examination).
- INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS: Rating of “intermediate” on Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI). See International Affairs catalog copy for details.
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MASS COMMUNICATION: 3-6 credits from French, German, Spanish, American Sign Language or other language.
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MUSIC: One year of a foreign language.
Language Competency and Placement Exams in Modern Languages:
Finding the appropriate level at which to take a language course is essential for success. To assist in this determination, the Department of Modern Languages and Classics offers both competency and placement examinations in French and Spanish. Students with three or more years of study in high school may opt to attempt credit by examination (competency exam).
The Department of Modern Languages and Classics does not give automatic credit if a student does not continue in the language at UMaine. Credit will be awarded for intermediate language only if a student is enrolled for at least one additional course and passes it with a grade of B- or higher. For example: if a student has tested out of FRE 202 or SPA 204, the student must successfully complete FRE 305 or SPA 305 or an equivalent course in order to receive credit for one course at the intermediate level. Upon completion of a second course with a grade of B- or higher, a student will be awarded credit for the second semester of the intermediate course sequence.
The Modern Languages and Classics Department accepts Advanced Placement Examinations in Foreign Languages and Literature, as well as the Seal of Biliteracy, for degree credit. See the Advanced Placement Credit Table or the Seal of Biliteracy Credit Table in the Undergraduate Catalog for more information.
For further information, contact the Department of Modern Languages and Classics (207-581-2072), 5472 Williams Hall, Room 201, The University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469-5742.
Critical Languages Program:
The Department of Modern Languages and Classics offers beginning and some intermediate courses in a number of other languages in addition to French and Spanish, including American Sign Language, German, Hebrew, Latin, and Mandarin Chinese. In addition, Arabic, Irish Gaelic, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Ukrainian, and Urdu classes are available through the Critical Languages Program.
The program follows a modified version of the self-instructional pedagogy advocated by NASILP (National Association of Self-Instructional Language Programs), a method loosely based on the one used by the Foreign Service Institute. It is effective because it requires active, committed learning by students through the study of appropriate materials, frequent practice, and the availability of accurate linguistic models provided by the native-speaker tutor-instructor. The program also includes three hours of drills/practice a week in small tutorials of 3 to 8 students. For more information, contact the coordinator of the Critical Languages Program at (207) 581-2093.
Dwell:
Launched in 2018, dwell is an undergraduate journal published and edited collaboratively by students with an interest in philosophy. It is released annually in print form.
The Open Field:
The Open Field, an undergraduate literary annual, is edited and published by students in the Department of English.
Program Contacts
Anthropology
Samuel Hanes
228 South Stevens Hall
207.581.1885
samuel.hanes@maine.edu
Art
Justin Wolff
Lord Hall
207.581.3259
justin.wolff@maine.edu
Canadian-American Center
Frédéric Rondeau, Director
207.581.4228
Chemistry
Alice Bruce
271 Aubert Hall
207.581.1182
abruce@maine.edu
Communication and Journalism
Judith Rosenbaum, Chair
414 Dunn Hall
207.581.1934
School of Computing and Information Science
Penny Rheingans
348A Boardman Hall
207.581.2188
penny.rheingans@maine.edu
English
Steven Evans
304A Neville Hall
207. 581.3822
english.chair@maine.edu
Franco-American Studies
Susan Pinette, Director
207.581.3791
spinette@maine.edu
History
Stephen Miller
255 Stevens Hall
207.581.1905
stephen.miller@maine.edu
International Affairs
Kristin Vekasi
Director, School of Policy & International Affairs
207.581.1871
Judaic Studies
Derek Michaud
The Maples
207.581.3890
derek.a.michaud@maine.edu
Maine Studies/Maine Folklife Center
Stephen Miller
112B South Stevens Hall
207.581.1840
Mathematics and Statistics
Nigel Pitt
333 Neville Hall
207.581.3901
nigel.pitt@maine.edu
McGillicuddy Humanities Center
Beth Wiemann, Director
110 South Stevens Hall
207.581.1848
Modern Languages and Classics
Carlos Villacorta Gonzales
214 Williams Hall
207.581.2095
Native American Studies
Darren Ranco, Chair of Native American Programs
207.581.9485
New Media
Penny Rheingans
348A Boardman Hall
207.581.2188
penny.rheingans@maine.edu
Philosophy
Kirsten Jacobson
The Maples
Physics and Astronomy
John Thompson
223 Bennett Hall
207.581.1016
umphysicschair@maine.edu
Psychology
Michael Robbins, Interim Chair
301A Williams Hall
207.581.2030
umainepsych@maine.edu
Religious Studies
Derek Michaud
The Maples
207.581.3890
derek.a.michaud@maine.edu
School of Performing Arts
Philip Edelman
207.581.1257
philip.edelman@maine.edu
School of Policy and International Affairs
James Settele
Director, School of Policy & International Affairs
207.581.1835
spia@maine.edu
Sociology
Karyn Sporer
Fernald Hall
207.581.2380
sociology@maine.edu
VEMI Lab
Richard Corey, Director
Carnegie Hall
207.581.2151
Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies
Elizabeth Neiman
Director of the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program
207.581.3439
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