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General Education concentrations are among the most exciting features of the new General Education program at Bates. Each student takes two concentrations, a group of four linked courses. A concentration may focus on one topic or area of inquiry, with courses coming from different disciplines, or a concentration may focus on a topic within a single department, program, or major.

Anatomy of a General Education Concentration

Groups of faculty have worked together to develop concentrations, which often include courses from multiple disciplines around a theme or set of ideas. To design the concentration, Considering Africa, for example, professors developed a menu of interrelated courses drawn from African American studies, anthropology, art and visual culture, education, French, history, music, and politics. Study abroad in an African country for a semester, a museum project on African art and culture, or community service in Lewiston's African migrant community can also count toward the concentration. A student electing this concentration would therefore select four courses from among a list of sixteen courses, or complete three courses and one co-curricular experience.

Variety and Interdisciplinarity

The Bates faculty has designed over 60 concentrations on topics that span the curriculum. New concentrations are introduced each year. Among the concentrations offered in 2007-2008 are:

• The City in History
• Film and Media Studies
• The Geosphere
• Globalization
• The Human Body
• Identity, Race, and Ethnicity
• Latin American Studies
• Law and Society
• North Atlantic Studies
• Public Health
• Science Education

Minors and Second Majors as Concentrations

Because a concentration is designed to provide depth in a specific subject area, minors and second majors may also be counted as a student's concentrations.

6/2007