Five-course minors now part of liberal arts offerings

This spring, RIT added a new facet to its educational offerings--minors in the liberal arts. The College of Liberal Arts has adjusted its general education requirements to encourage undergraduate students to pursue minors in selected liberal arts subjects. The five-course, structured minors will appear on student transcripts.

"A minor includes rigorous study in a liberal art or social science that demands research and critical-thinking skills--skills that we know are valued by industry," explains Diane Hope, former interim dean of the College of Liberal Arts. "Recognizing that today's students will be the leaders in an increasingly interconnected world, we are adding structured minors to our rigorous core courses in the humanities, social sciences and behavioral sciences.

For example: an environmental management student might add a minor in Spanish to take advantage of the growing demand for environmental professionals in Latin America, or a business major interested in corporate law might add a criminal justice minor.

Minors now available include: communication, criminal justice, economics, foreign language (French, German, Spanish), foreign language/culture (German, Spanish), philosophy, psychology, and sociology/anthropology. The college has plans to offer several other minors in the future.