Liberal Arts
The Liberal Arts minor provides NEC undergraduates the opportunity to gain breadth and depth of knowledge and understanding in a focused area of study in the Liberal Arts and Modern Languages, as well as a useful credential for pursuing further study and careers beyond NEC. The Liberal Arts minor consists of 14 credits: 12 in coursework and 2 for the Capstone Project.
Students may pursue a Liberal Arts minor in one of the following areas:
- Literature
- Cultural Studies, including Philosophy, Religion, and Modern Languages (French, German, Italian)
- History and Social Studies
- Creative Arts
- Science and Mathematics
Alternatively, students may design a personalized curriculum with a selected sequence of courses that coherently combines more than one area of study, such as Cultural Studies and History.
The Capstone Project for the Liberal Arts minor is a one-semester course of individual study with a member of the Liberal Arts faculty, in which a student can explore the focus of their minor through the completion of a scholarly research project, a creative project (e.g., a multidisciplinary display of visual art, sculpture, poetry, drama, and music), or some combination of scholarly and creative work. The Capstone Project takes place in either the fall or spring semester of the senior year.
All Capstone Projects will require a written component: projects that culminate in an essay will require a minimum 15-20 pages; the written portion of a project with creative/performance components will be adjusted accordingly. All students seeking the Liberal Arts minor will give a public presentation of their Capstone Project to the NEC community. The Capstone Project will be evaluated by a three-member committee comprising the minor advisor, the minor department chair, and a third faculty member (agreed to by both the minor advisor and the student).