Most courses are offered within the three main areas of concentration:

• Aesthetic Studies, which concentrates on the visual and performing arts, creative writing, etc.

• History of Ideas, which concentrates on history, philosophy, etc.

• Studies in Literature, which concentrates on literature, linguistics, etc.

Students seeking the M.A. or Ph.D. degrees in Humanities must take courses in all three areas. The fourth area and other courses, including core courses required of all students, are offered under the rubric Humanities.

M.A. and M.F.A. degrees in Arts & Technology are now offered with specific emphasis on the interplay of visual art, music, video, and narrative with the new media that have emerged from the convergence of computing and media technologies.

To be a full time student, 9 hours of courses is required. 3 hours is required to be enrolled in the program.
 
The program is designed to provide students a flexible, interdisciplinary context in which to pursue a program of study, built on connections among specific courses and the areas of concentration. Offerings in each area include not only seminars stressing the interpretation and criticism of specific works and issues but also ensembles, studios, and workshops in which the activity of creation and/or performance becomes the primary means of learning.

The approach to graduate education in the School of Arts and Humanities is flexible. Within the specific degree requirements listed below, each student plans a program of studies in consultation with an assigned faculty advisor.

Courses meeting degree requirements are normally chosen from the core courses and the areas of concentration within the School of Arts and Humanities. To have courses taken outside the school applied to one of its degrees, students must seek prior approval from the associate dean for graduate studies. They may also petition to have appropriate transfer courses applied to reduce the required number of hours for a degree here.

The associate dean may require students with background deficiencies in interdisciplinary work to take additional courses at the undergraduate or graduate level to remedy those deficiencies.

Active involvement in the process of artistic creation and performance is basic to the design of the Aesthetic Studies area of concentration. Therefore, students working at the M.A. level with an emphasis on Aesthetic Studies are required to take at least one ensemble/workshop (HUAS 6390), and those working toward a Ph.D. with an emphasis on this area are required to take at least one additional ensemble/workshop.