Because much of modern society is strongly influenced by the past, a minor in ancient civilization is ideal to combine with any major, especially for students focusing on majors in English/creative writing, religious studies, anthropology, history, political science, journalism and mass communication, and psychology, among others. Ancient civilization minors may work entirely in the English language, with their studies distributed in the areas of literature, history, religion, philosophy, art, and archaeology.
Learning Outcomes
Students are expected to demonstrate:
- knowledge of a variety of literary works and written sources from the ancient Mediterranean world in translation, acquired through coursework in history, culture, mythology, religion, or philosophy;
- familiarity with the physical world (both public and private) in which ancient Mediterranean people lived through the study of their art and archaeology; and
- understanding of the impact that the political, intellectual, and social environments of the people from the ancient Mediterranean have on modern cultures.
The undergraduate minor in ancient civilization requires a minimum of 15 s.h., including at least 9 s.h. in advanced courses taken at the University of Iowa. Students must maintain a grade-point average of at least 2.00 in all courses for the minor and in all UI courses for the minor. Coursework in the minor may not be taken pass/nonpass.
A maximum of 3 s.h. of work for another major, minor, or certificate in the Department of Classics and up to 3 s.h. of lower-level transfer credit may be counted toward the minor.
Department of Classics courses with the prefix CLSA, CLSG, and CLSL and courses cross-referenced with the prefix CLSA count toward the minor. Courses considered advanced for the minor are: Greek courses numbered CLSG:2001 Second-Year Greek I or above, Latin courses numbered CLSL:2001 World of Cicero or above, and classics courses numbered 3000 or above. Appropriate courses in art, religion, history, and philosophy may be counted toward the minor if approved by the undergraduate advisor. Students who have taken high school Greek or Latin should consult the advisor.