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As part of Clark’s liberal arts education curriculum, all students will complete the Clark Core. Taken across diverse disciplines, these courses allow students to develop critical thinking skills, respect for other cultures and perspectives, and introduce students to new ways of seeing, thinking, and knowing humans and the natural world.
The breadth of Core courses allows students to make vital connections across subjects, and understand the world in diverse ways, so that they may be active, engaged global citizens. The curriculum begins with a First Year Intensive course, and is completed by satisfying nine requirements across five disciplines. Through Clark Core, students develop their current educational goals while simultaneously exploring new interests, acquiring new skills, and developing ways of thinking.
Please Note
Clark Core only applies to students enrolling at Clark on or after Fall 2024. Students who have already started their academic journey should refer to the Program of Liberal Studies.
Aesthetic Perspective (AP) courses focus on the relationship between form and content through the study of aesthetic form— whether through hands-on artistic practice or analysis—with the goal of enhancing students’ critical appreciation and understanding of the arts.
Scientific Perspective (SP) courses focus on exploring the world around us, emphasizing the experimental, analytical, theoretical, and computational techniques used to develop understanding in and across scientific disciplines. Courses introduce you to the experimental and problem-solving nature of scientific study.
Global Comparative Perspective (GP) courses focus on comparative analysis through the examination of diverse cultures, societies, political systems, and/or economic structures of different parts of the world. In examining their similarities and differences, these courses will help students develop a global context for understanding elements of human experience.
History Perspective (HP) courses focus on exploring aspects of culture, society, and environment, as well as intellectual, economic, and political arrangements in the past. Through this exploration, students will better understand how the past informs, shapes, and diverges from the present.
Language and Culture Perspective (LP) courses foster the study of a language or literature other than English to help students develop their understanding of the relationship of language to culture, to help them appreciate different cultures, and to prepare them to be global citizens.
Values Perspective (VP) courses focus on the moral, ethical and prescriptive frameworks that individuals and organizations use to view the world and make decisions. They explore the application of moral and prescriptive frameworks for critically assessing claims about value in a variety of contexts, including personal, professional, and social contexts.
Diversity and Inclusion (D and I) courses focus on marginalization, privilege, disadvantage, and oppression in multiple domains (e.g., race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, social class). Students will learn how to critically analyze concepts such as power, intersectionality, marginality, and identity.
Written Expression (WE) courses focus on writing clearly and persuasively, making a cogent argument, using textual evidence to support that argument, and thinking critically about texts, with the goal of enhancing students’ written communication skills.
Formal Analysis (FA) courses focus on formal symbolic systems for precisely representing quantitative aspects of the world and the applications of these systems in problem-solving contexts.
These featured courses are based on both past and present offerings. Students should consult with their adviser about the official Clark Core course offerings each semester.
Values Perspective
In Food Justice and Food Movements, you’ll explore the role of the industrial food system in the United States and beyond, and learn about its ecological, cultural, social, economic, and moral impacts. You’ll also work on the national student-led Real Food Challenge, through which Clark aims to serve 20 percent “real food” by 2020.
Values Perspective
In Food Justice and Food Movements, you’ll explore the role of the industrial food system in the United States and beyond, and learn about its ecological, cultural, social, economic, and moral impacts. You’ll also work on the national student-led Real Food Challenge, through which Clark aims to serve 20 percent “real food” by 2020.
Aesthetic Perspective
Some people say that jazz is America’s only original art form. How did jazz develop from Scott Joplin’s ragtime to the free-form repertoire of Charles Mingus? In Jazz History, you’ll study the evolution of jazz from its beginnings among African-Americans in 19th-century New Orleans to the jazz-rock fusion we hear today. You’ll come to understand, if not appreciate, the roots and progression of a wide range of jazz styles like Dixieland, swing, bop, progressive, cool, free-form, and third-stream.
Aesthetic Perspective
Some people say that jazz is America’s only original art form. How did jazz develop from Scott Joplin’s ragtime to the free-form repertoire of Charles Mingus? In Jazz History, you’ll study the evolution of jazz from its beginnings among African-Americans in 19th-century New Orleans to the jazz-rock fusion we hear today. You’ll come to understand, if not appreciate, the roots and progression of a wide range of jazz styles like Dixieland, swing, bop, progressive, cool, free-form, and third-stream.
Historical Perspective
Since Colonial times, Americans have looked to free public education as the means by which its citizens access economic opportunity, achieve equality, and develop political maturity. In Public Schools and Democracy, you’ll explore how free public education has evolved over four centuries, and assess the effectiveness of today’s schools in carrying out this mission.
Historical Perspective
Since Colonial times, Americans have looked to free public education as the means by which its citizens access economic opportunity, achieve equality, and develop political maturity. In Public Schools and Democracy, you’ll explore how free public education has evolved over four centuries, and assess the effectiveness of today’s schools in carrying out this mission.
Natural Scientific Perspective
How did life evolve into a wide range of species, from microorganisms to whales? How are other living things affected when species become extinct? How might we conserve and protect species? In Biodiversity, explore these questions and more. Even if you’re not a biology major, but are interested in evolution and extinction, this course is for you.
Natural Scientific Perspective
How did life evolve into a wide range of species, from microorganisms to whales? How are other living things affected when species become extinct? How might we conserve and protect species? In Biodiversity, explore these questions and more. Even if you’re not a biology major, but are interested in evolution and extinction, this course is for you.
Global Comparative Perspective
In most cultures, war traditionally has been perceived as a strictly male domain. But in fact, women have assumed both active and passive roles in violent conflict since the beginning of time: occasionally as combatants, more often as civilian supporters, and, all too frequently, as “collateral damage.” In Women and War, you’ll examine the impact of war on women as part of an attempt to gain a broader understanding of women’s role in society, both domestic and international.
Global Comparative Perspective
In most cultures, war traditionally has been perceived as a strictly male domain. But in fact, women have assumed both active and passive roles in violent conflict since the beginning of time: occasionally as combatants, more often as civilian supporters, and, all too frequently, as “collateral damage.” In Women and War, you’ll examine the impact of war on women as part of an attempt to gain a broader understanding of women’s role in society, both domestic and international.
Verbal Expression
Watching a movie is easy, but how do you critique a film and write for a particular audience? In Writing About Film: Methods of Film Analysis, watch weekly films with a professional filmmaker and writer, then learn how to apply major critical approaches. Practice writing everything from journalistic film criticism to analysis based on film theory.
Verbal Expression
Watching a movie is easy, but how do you critique a film and write for a particular audience? In Writing About Film: Methods of Film Analysis, watch weekly films with a professional filmmaker and writer, then learn how to apply major critical approaches. Practice writing everything from journalistic film criticism to analysis based on film theory.
Formal Analysis
Explore the art of finance and why it matters. What do you need to know to assess an organization’s financial health — or your own? Do you know how to calculate the return on your investments? The best way to maximize your cash flow? How a business can make a profit but run out of cash? In Financial Intelligence, you’ll learn how to answer these kinds of questions, and acquire the vocabulary and knowledge to better understand “what the numbers mean.”
Formal Analysis
Explore the art of finance and why it matters. What do you need to know to assess an organization’s financial health — or your own? Do you know how to calculate the return on your investments? The best way to maximize your cash flow? How a business can make a profit but run out of cash? In Financial Intelligence, you’ll learn how to answer these kinds of questions, and acquire the vocabulary and knowledge to better understand “what the numbers mean.”
Language and Culture Perspective
Exercise your French while exploring the multiple manifestations and transformations of French popular culture, from the 1940s to today, as disseminated in film, music, the media, cartoons, bande dessinée, and popular literature. In Popular Culture in France, you’ll examine aspects of French culture such as youth culture, slang, sports, food, and humor, and the common portrayal of topics like family, love, foreigners, and other social issues in the media.
Language and Culture Perspective
Exercise your French while exploring the multiple manifestations and transformations of French popular culture, from the 1940s to today, as disseminated in film, music, the media, cartoons, bande dessinée, and popular literature. In Popular Culture in France, you’ll examine aspects of French culture such as youth culture, slang, sports, food, and humor, and the common portrayal of topics like family, love, foreigners, and other social issues in the media.
