Randolph College

Art History

Courses in art and art history provide a framework for the study of art through knowledge of its principles and history, through creative studio work and through hands-on learning experiences with the collection of American art at the Maier Museum of Art. The Department's courses develop critical and creative skills that prepare students for the demands of a changing marketplace.

Biblical Languages

The certificate requires Elementary Biblical Hebrew I and II together with Elementary Ancient Greek.

Biology (BA)

Emphasizing current trends in biology and laboratory investigation, the Biology curriculum for the major includes core courses in zoology, botany, physiology, and molecular biology; a wide variety of upper-level subjects; opportunities for independent study, experiential learning, and honors study; and a senior program focusing on topics in contemporary biology.

Biology (BS)

The Bachelor of Science in Biology adds required chemistry and quantitative coursework to the biology core. Pre-professional students and students interested in graduate study in the natural sciences are encouraged to also take two physics courses with lab.

Business

The business curriculum treats business and management as applied disciplines; it develops skills in solving practical problems. Coursework is offered in the core areas of accounting, finance, management, and marketing, and all business majors complete a one-session senior capstone project.

Chemical Physics

The major in Chemical Physics provides students with broad training in physical science, mathematics, and laboratory techniques. The core courses provide the conceptual foundation of the many interactions between matter and energy, and all students have hands-on experience with original research as part of the senior program.

Chemistry (BA)

Through lectures, laboratory work, research, and seminars, the program of the Department of Chemistry provides students with a basic knowledge and conceptual understanding of matter: its structure and properties and the nature, energetics, and dynamics of its transformations.

Chemistry (BS)

The Bachelor of Science in Chemistry extends the chemistry core with additional advanced coursework and a laboratory-research-based senior program. The Department maintains small lecture and laboratory sections to ensure extensive access to faculty, facilities and instrumentation.

Classics (Concentra in Civ or Lit)

Coaching and Sport Leadership

The coaching and sport leadership MA program is a one-year, 36-credit intensive program that focuses on introducing students to an established framework of knowledge surrounding sport, coaching, and leadership disciplines. The program is offered as either a fully online program or as an on-campus, residential option.

Cognitive Science

Cognitive Science includes the study of the mind, how knowledge is acquired, and how these principles are practically applied. Its interdisciplinary approach includes courses in psychology, philosophy, linguistics, and computer science, culminating in a research capstone project.

Communication Studies

Comparative Philosophy

Comparative Philosophy students grapple with their own habits of thought and those of others with the aim of critically analyzing assumptions, asking meaningful questions, and mapping landscapes of possible answers. Comparison in philosophy enlarges our vision and imagination and thus our capacity for negotiating difficult problems of self and society.

Computer Science (BA)

The study of computer science offers students the opportunity to develop problem-solving facility and skills that have broad utility in theory and application. The abstraction of real-world problems, the construction of algorithms to display and transform data, and the theory of computation are all central concerns.

Computer Science (BS)

The Bachelor of Science in Computer Science extends the computer science core with additional mathematics, data science or machine learning, and advanced computer science coursework.

Creative Writing

The Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing (MFA) is a two-year, low-residency, intensive degree in creative writing: poetry, fiction or nonfiction. Students complete four semesters of one-on-one mentorship and attend five ten-day residency sessions.

Criminology and Criminal Justice

The major introduces students to the fields of criminology and criminal justice, including the study of crime and its causes, how it is understood, and how criminal justice policy works. Coursework spans policing, courts, corrections, and the social contexts of crime, culminating in a senior seminar and capstone project.

Curricular Studies

Curriculum and Instruction

Cybersecurity (BA)

The Cybersecurity major combines computer programming, cryptography, cybersecurity policy, and discrete mathematics with advanced cybersecurity coursework and a senior seminar.

Cybersecurity (BS)

The Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity adds data structures and additional systems-oriented computer science coursework such as computer architecture, networks, operating systems, and software development.

Dance

Economics

The economics curriculum treats economics as a social science; it develops analytic thinking and prepares students for professional careers in for-profit, government, and nonprofit organizations as well as for graduate study. All economics majors complete a two-session senior program culminating in the writing and presentation of an independently authored research paper.

Education

The Master of Education (MEd) prepares candidates with master degree level skills in a variety of educational settings, and to assume leadership in curriculum and instruction. Candidates may focus on young learners, adolescents, or children with disabilities in an interactive flexible online experience; the MEd is a non-licensure program.

Elementary Education

The Educator Preparation Program offers a nationally accredited and state approved course of study that qualifies teachers for a Virginia License in elementary education (grades preK-6). The major is offered in both a licensure program and a non-licensure program.

Engineering Physics

Students elect the engineering physics major, taking a rigorous program of physics, chemistry, mathematics, and computer science courses at Randolph College for three years, then have the option to apply to an associated engineering school to complete the program in two more years. The 48 hours listed are the total Randolph College hours for the degree.

English (BA)

The major in English develops the student's sensitivity to language and literature and enriches knowledge of the artistic imagination. There is only one major in the Department: students may choose to emphasize either creative writing or literature.

English (BFA)

The Bachelor of Fine Arts in English with an Emphasis in Creative Writing extends the BA requirements with additional advanced creative writing coursework and an interdisciplinary base in the arts.

English (Concentra: Creative Writ)

English Language and Literature, General

Environmental Science

The Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science combines the environmental core with chemistry, mathematics, and physics coursework. Many academic opportunities are available, including the Marine Biological Laboratory in Environmental Science at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, summer and semester fieldwork, and off-campus and study-away options.

Environmental Studies

The Environmental Program provides a rigorous, interdisciplinary course of study, enriched with research and practical experiences, at the nexus of natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities. The degree programs provide the knowledge base and practical skills needed for graduate or professional school, private consulting, public advocacy or administration, and careers with government agencies and laboratories.

Film and Video

The Film and Video major prepares students to understand and harness the power of visual media to send messages, build communities, educate and advocate for change. Students engage in digital film and video production, writing, editing, and cinematography in both narrative fiction and documentary.

French

Global Studies

The global studies program prepares students for work in key areas of world affairs, including global political forces, the international economy, and issues on the global agenda. The program emphasizes a core knowledge base, choice in the student's area of interest, and essential skills including language proficiencies and intercultural communication.

Health Services

History

The history program focuses not only on historical events, individuals, and institutions, but also on methodology, analysis and interpretation, and the critical examination of sources. Majors are encouraged to develop a field within the Department, specializing in a geographic region, a period, or a thematic area.

Integrative Studies

The Integrative Studies program guides students as they intentionally integrate diverse subjects, methods, and experiences into a coherent educational pathway uniquely tailored to their interdisciplinary interests. Students declare the major by putting together courses from three focus areas.

Marine Science (BA)

Marine science is the interdisciplinary study of the world's oceans and marine life, including marine biology, marine and coastal ecosystems, oceanography, ocean-atmosphere dynamics, and climate change. The curriculum emphasizes technical skills and includes required fieldwork experiences.

Marine Science (BS)

The Bachelor of Science in Marine Science adds required chemistry and computational/quantitative coursework to the marine science core, along with required field experience and a senior program.

Mathematics (BA)

The Department of Mathematics endeavors to share the beauty and utility of mathematics, recognizing that each student has different reasons for studying mathematics. Some require mathematical training to support professional goals in related fields such as the sciences, the social sciences or engineering.

Mathematics (BS)

The Bachelor of Science in Mathematics adds computer programming and additional mathematics and physical science coursework to the mathematics core.

Mechanical Engineering

Engineering is the application of science to design and build machines, structures, and processes to improve the human experience. The engineering majors at Randolph College are designed to be ABET accredited, and culminate in a capstone design project.

Media and Culture

The Media and Culture major is an interdisciplinary program designed to help students explore the role that media plays in cultures around the world. It encourages students to become more thoughtful critics and practitioners of media and acquire an understanding of the cultural contexts in which media operate.

Multi-Disciplinary Special Major

Museum and Heritage Studies

The museum and heritage studies major is a distinctively interdisciplinary program that introduces students to a rich variety of approaches for presenting and studying visual and material culture. The program is based on Randolph College's Maier Museum of Art and the College's natural history and archaeology collections, with a strong commitment to hands-on, experiential learning.

Music

Music (Concentration: Performance)

Philosophy

Physics (BA)

Physics seeks to explain the behavior of the natural world with a comprehensive set of fundamental laws. The Bachelor of Arts degree is for the student interested in studying physics, but who is likely to pursue a career in a related field, or a field that requires an analytical mind.

Physics (BS)

The Bachelor of Science degree is for those planning a career in physics or engineering, and for those considering going on to graduate school. It adds chemistry, thermodynamics, linear algebra, advanced quantum mechanics, and computing coursework to the physics core.

Physics Education

The Physics Education major combines physics, biology, and chemistry coursework with statistics and senior research. Students must also complete the Professional Courses for Secondary Education.

Political Science

Political science is a wide-ranging discipline composed of many separate fields and specializations at the local, national, and international levels. The department addresses American government, comparative government, international relations, public law, and political theory.

Psychology

Psychological science is the study of behavior and mental processes. The Department offers study in a broad range of sub-fields including cognition, development, biological bases of behavior, psychopathology, personality, and social psychology, with a strong emphasis on research design and interpretation of data.

Religious Studies

Robotics and Mechatronics Engineering

Mechatronics is a multidisciplinary field at the intersection of mechanics, electronics, and computing used in the contemporary, advanced automated manufacturing industry. The major combines engineering, mathematics, physics, and computing coursework with a senior capstone design project.

Self-Designed Major: Asian Studies

Self-Designed Major: Education

Sociology

Sociology studies societies and cultures within a broadly comparative framework, illuminating the reciprocal relationship between human beings and their sociocultural environments. The Department emphasizes applied sociology, theoretical and methodological expertise, service, and experiential learning.

Spanish

The study of Spanish provides not just knowledge of the language itself, but also insight into the literary, cultural, social, and political institutions of the places where Spanish is spoken. The Spanish program helps prepare the student for work in international business and industry and for graduate study in areas such as language and literature, art, music, law, international relations, and teaching.

Special Education

Special Education: General Curriculum

The Special Education major prepares individuals to work with students with mild to moderate disabilities in educational settings. The major includes the study of learning theory, the science of reading, legal aspects related to IDEA, and inclusive educational practices; practica and student teaching prepare candidates for Virginia teaching licensure.

Sport and Exercise Studies

The Sport and Exercise Studies program focuses on introducing students to a framework of knowledge in areas supporting sport and exercise, with courses such as kinesiology, motor development, sport nutrition, sport management, and sport psychology. Students may choose an emphasis in either health and fitness or coaching and sport performance.

Sport and Exercise Studies w/Coaching and Sport Performance Concentration

Sport Coaching

The online-only Graduate Sport Coaching Certificate requires 12 credit hours of graduate coursework, including Coaching Theories and Principles and practicum experiences. It is open to students who have already completed a bachelor's degree.

Studio Art (BA)

The studio art major develops visual literacy and creative skills through hands-on studio work grounded in art history. Students may major in both Art History and Studio Art or major in one field and minor in the other.

Studio Art (BFA)

The Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art builds on the BA requirements with an interdisciplinary core and additional advanced studio art courses chosen in consultation with an advisor.

Teaching

The Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) prepares qualified elementary, secondary, and special education candidates to teach and lead in schools. Candidates may complete initial teacher licensure in elementary (preK-6), special education: general curriculum (K-12), or secondary education.

Theatre

The Master of Fine Arts in Theatre (MFA) is a two-year, low-residency, intensive degree in theatre designed for working theater artists, educators, and leaders. This terminal degree develops individual artistry and leadership through advanced, specialized training in acting, design, directing, and playwriting.

Theatre (BA)

The theatre program is directed toward developing an understanding and appreciation of the interrelationship of actor, script, performing space, and audience. Theatre majors are guided through the academic and production programs to hone their specialty area of emphasis while cultivating a generalist approach to theatre.

Theatre (BFA)

The Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre is offered with concentrations in Acting, Directing, and Theatre Design and Technology. Students who intend to enroll in the BFA must apply to the program; audition is required for the acting concentration and portfolio review for the design and technology or directing concentrations.