Overview

Overview

Central to the concept of the Ancient Studies program at Columbia University is its interdisciplinary approach, in which the student brings the perspectives and methodologies of at least three different disciplines to bear on his or her area of specialization.

Faculty participating in the program are scholars specializing in all aspects of ancient culture and civilization from the Departments of Anthropology; Art History and Archaeology; Classics; History; Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies; Philosophy; and Religion, ensuring that a wide variety of approaches are available.

Course offerings vary year to year. Students are required to discuss their program prior to or during registration. The culmination of the ancient studies major comes in the senior year, when students with different areas of specialization come together to share their ideas in the senior seminar and then to write a substantial piece of original research. Students should think about topics for their senior paper during the junior year and find a faculty adviser at the beginning of the fall term of their senior year, after consulting with the director of undergraduate studies.

In the senior year, students register for ANCS UN3995 during the fall, and ANCS UN3998 Directed Research In Ancient Studies is usually taken during the spring. Sections should be arranged directly with the academic departmental administrator after finding a faculty adviser.