{"id":584,"date":"2024-12-05T16:46:01","date_gmt":"2024-12-05T21:46:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.golive.clarku.edu\/?page_id=584"},"modified":"2025-03-16T18:32:23","modified_gmt":"2025-03-16T22:32:23","slug":"program-of-liberal-studies","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/academics\/undergraduate-curriculum\/program-of-liberal-studies\/","title":{"rendered":"Program of Liberal Studies"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns sidebar is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-28f84493 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:45rem\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/2023-ESG-Investing-029-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-587\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/2023-ESG-Investing-029-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/2023-ESG-Investing-029-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/2023-ESG-Investing-029-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/2023-ESG-Investing-029-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/2023-ESG-Investing-029.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"intro\">Through Clark\u2019s Program of Liberal Studies (PLS), you\u2019ll learn to understand the world in diverse ways and to make vital connections across subjects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Program of Liberal Studies courses fall into two broad categories: Critical Thinking courses and Perspective courses. You are required to take eight Program of Liberal Studies courses over four years \u2014 one course from each of the eight areas below \u2014 and your adviser will work with you to choose courses that match your interests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Critical Thinking Courses<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Critical Thinking courses<\/strong>&nbsp;are designed to help you cultivate the essential critical-thinking skills that you\u2019ll use in every course at Clark and throughout your life. You will take one course in each of the following areas:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Verbal Expression (VE) courses<\/strong>, placing special emphasis on the relationship between writing and critical thinking.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Formal Analysis (FA) courses<\/strong>, introducing you to formal, symbolic methods of analysis.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Perspectives Courses<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Perspectives courses<\/strong>&nbsp;introduce you to different ways of thinking, learning, and knowing in six disciplines. You will complete one course in each of the following areas, with each course taken in a different academic department:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Values Perspective (VP) courses<\/strong>, examining the moral dimensions of human life. Courses focus not only on the systematic formulation and analysis of moral and ethical claims, but also on how moral decisions affect both the individual and society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Aesthetic Perspective (AP) courses<\/strong>, emphasizing artistic expression and the perception, analysis, and evaluation of aesthetic form, with the goal of enhancing your appreciation and understanding of the arts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Global Comparative (GP) Perspective courses<\/strong>, introducing you to comparative analysis through the exploration of diverse cultures, political systems, or economic structures. You\u2019ll examine similarities and differences in a global context, gaining the tools to analyze the human experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Historical Perspective (HP) courses<\/strong>, developing your capacity to understand the present in relation to the past. All courses are broad in scope and introduce you to the diverse ways scholars think about the past, present, and future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Language and Culture Perspective (LP) courses<\/strong>, fostering the study of language as an expression of culture. You will take a course highlighting the relationship between language and culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Natural Scientific Perspective (SP) courses<\/strong>, teaching the principal methods and results of the natural sciences. Courses include laboratories or similar components to introduce you to methods for observing natural phenomena and the experimental nature of scientific study.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<aside class=\"wp-block-group boxout has-dark-warm-gray-background-color has-background is-content-justification-left is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-12dd3699 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\"><div style=\"color:var(--clarku-color-white)\" class=\"eyebrow  has-text-align-left\">Please Note<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5ea1c89dcfabc58ceaeb9a7cd6747430\">The Program of Liberal Studies only applies to students who have enrolled at Clark prior to fall 2024. Students who are just beginning their academic journey should refer to Clark Core.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"arrow-link has-white-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f484337be4ece545a4d866faf7fc0536\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/academics\/undergraduate-curriculum\/\">Clark Core<\/a><\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Through Clark\u2019s Program of Liberal Studies (PLS), you\u2019ll learn to understand the world in diverse ways and to make vital connections across subjects. Program of Liberal Studies courses fall into two broad categories: Critical Thinking courses and Perspective courses. You are required to take eight Program of Liberal Studies courses over four years \u2014 one [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"parent":105,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"academics","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-584","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.4 (Yoast SEO v27.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Program of Liberal Studies | Clark University<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/academics\/undergraduate-curriculum\/program-of-liberal-studies\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Program of Liberal Studies\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Through Clark\u2019s Program of Liberal Studies (PLS), you\u2019ll learn to understand the world in diverse ways and to make vital connections across subjects. Program of Liberal Studies courses fall into two broad categories: Critical Thinking courses and Perspective courses. 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