Arts & Humanities (A&H)
This requirement ensures that undergraduate students have the opportunity to engage with the arts and humanities at the UW.
A&H-designated courses may be rooted in a range of fields and disciplines and may have diverse learning outcomes, but overall, courses meeting this requirement must meet at least one of two criteria:
- A central focus of the course asks students to interpret cultural expressions. It engages students with primary sources or original works, fosters critical inquiry, and addresses fundamental humanistic questions about meaning, values, ethics, and human experience.
- A central focus of the course is to have students engage in artistic practice and/or creation.
Additional A&H guidance regarding cultural studies courses:
Courses that bring humanistic approaches to the analysis of human cultural expression not necessarily deemed “artistic” (such as popular culture or social media) may be designated as A&H courses so long as a central focus of the course has students engage in interpretive practices (such as close reading).
Additional A&H guidance regarding language instruction:
While language instruction will inherently include some cultural analysis, first-year language courses dedicated to language acquisition that are solely focused on building vocabulary and basic linguistic skills will not be awarded an A&H designation.
For a language course to be awarded A&H, there must be concrete evidence – in learning outcomes, texts, and assignments – that critical analysis of cultural, literary, historical, or other humanistic components are present.
Examples of course content that would be awarded A&H credit include assignments that include reflections on cultural perspectives and practices or reflections on concepts in linguistics and the study of language.