Our Mission
The Liberal Arts and Sciences are the nexus of all education, providing us with the tools to understand the past, negotiate the present, and create the future. Without them we are lost; with them, we can reimagine anything.
Program Learning Outcomes:
Otis College's Liberal Arts and Science Program Learning Outcomes are action words describing our approach to learning, and what we commit to our students.
Liberal Arts and Sciences Students Will...
Liberal Arts and Sciences student work will demonstrate:
- Disciplinary Knowledge and Skills:
Ability, knowledge, and analytical skills to critically examine established beliefs and practices, formulate well-reasoned questions, propose alternative perspectives, and explore speculative possibilities - Cross-Disciplinary Awareness and Practice:
Forge interdisciplinary connections among the liberal arts and sciences, studio, and community - Audience-Focused Research, Historical Context, and Field-Specific Discourse:
Research skills to develop the capacity to conduct independent and original research, to acknowledge diverse points of view, and to contextualize their work within historical and contemporary frameworks
Liberal Arts and Sciences student work will demonstrate:
- Innovation
An exploration of unfamiliar intellectual and creative spaces and ideas - Experimentation and play
Discovery of their capacity to embrace and integrate academic skills and rigor to support their creative practice - Challenge to the status quo
How they challenge themselves to be flexible thinkers unbound by their own status quo beliefs
Liberal Arts and Sciences student work will demonstrate:
- Capacity to Communicate (Orally, Written, and/or Visually) About Their Practice:
Capacity to communicate self-awareness ethically and aesthetically through oral, written, and/or visual mediums - Capacity to Seek, Assemble, Evaluate, and Ethically Apply Information and Ideas from
Diverse Sources:
Capacity to seek, assemble, evaluate, and ethically apply information and ideas from diverse sources, including scholarly sources, personal interviews, and fieldwork
Liberal Arts and Sciences student work will demonstrate:
- Understanding of Themselves as Parts of a Larger Whole Made Up of Human and Non-Human
Beings:
An understanding of themselves as part of a large living ecosystem made up of human and non-human beings - Awareness of Positionality – In the World, Their Field, Their Communities:
How ideas, lived experiences, and intersectional identities challenge established frameworks in order to critically synthesize new possibilities - Ability to Work Well, Collaborate, and Build Relationships Across Differences in Identity,
Perspective, Aesthetics, and Disciplines:
Ability to collaborate effectively with others to analyze, evaluate, and apply academic and real-world problem-solving skills - Integration of Skills, Information, and Concepts:
Knowledge of the disciplines introduced in the Liberal Arts and Sciences and their relevance to the ideation and creative skills developed in their studio majors
- Ability to Define Aspirations, Future Goals, and Their Role Within the Creative Economy:
The value of integrating and applying their intellectual curiosity and critical thinking to enhance their studio practice - Compelling Presentation and Exhibition Skills, Through Annual Exhibition, Capstone,
and Portfolios:
The synthesis of their intellectual and creative arc in their Capstone senior research paper and project. - Career Readiness:
As evidenced by strong interpersonal and professional skills, including self-advocacy, initiative, adaptation, and a willingness to both receive and offer feedback
Degree Requirements
Liberal Arts and Sciences courses and credits for the Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree make up one-third of the credits required for graduation with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. The three credit courses are distributed among the following: Liberal Arts and Sciences course designations and abbreviated as follows:
- Art History (AHCS)
- English (ENGL)
- Liberal Studies (LIBS)
- Social Science Critical Studies (SSCI)
- Natural Sciences Critical Studies (NSCI)
- Mathematics (MATH)
- Creative Action Integrated Learning (CAIL)
Required Foundation Liberal Arts and Sciences Courses
Your studio major determines the overall number of LAS credits you need to complete. However, students in all majors are required to fulfill the courses listed below in their Foundation (first) year:
- Visual Culture 1: Gateways to Art and Culture AHCS122 - 3 credits
- Visual Culture 2: Unpacking Art, Power, and Modernity AHCS123 - 3 credits
- Writing as Discovery: Thought Lab 1 ENGL108 - 3 credits
- Exploration into Making: Thought Lab 2: Exploration into Making LIBS115 - 3 credits
Transfer students may be able to receive credit for these courses. If you have any questions about specific classes on your transcript, contact Academic Advising.
Based on the Writing Placement Assessment, students may be required to take the following prerequisites before enrolling in their English classes: ENGL020, ENGL050, ENGL 090, or the following co-requisite: ENGL 102 or ENGL103 Writing Labs.
AHCS224 Theories and Trends in Contemporary Art, Media and Culture (3)
AHCS228 Art History of Animation (3)
CAIL200 Creative Action Lecture (3)
LIBS214 Sophomore Elective (3)
LIBS314 Upper Division Elective (6)
MATH136 Math Elective (3)
NSCI307 Natural Science Elective (3)
SSCI210 Social Science Elective (3)
LIBS440 Capstone (3)
AHCS224 Theories and Trends in Contemporary Art, Media and Culture (3)
AHCS234 History of Costume (3)
CAIL200 Creative Action Lecture (3)
LIBS210 Contemporary Fashion Issues (3)
LIBS314 Upper Division Elective (3)
MATH136 Math Elective (3)
NSCI315 Textile Science (3)
SSCI210 Social Science Elective (3)
LIBS414 Business of Fashion (3)
LIBS440 Capstone (3)
AHCS226 Contemporary Art Survey (3)
AHCS237 Seminar I:DEI in Global Art and Culture (3)
CAIL200 Creative Action Lecture (3)
LIBS238 Seminar II: DEI in Global Art and Culture (3)
LIBS314 Upper Division Elective (6)
MATH136 Math Elective (3)
NSCI307 Natural Science Elective (3)
SSCI210 Social Science Elective (3)
LIBS440 Capstone (3)
AHCS224 Theories and Trends in Contemporary Art, Media and Culture (3)
AHCS228 Art History of Games (3)
CAIL200 Creative Action Lecture (3)
LIBS214 Sophomore Elective (3)
LIBS314 Upper Division Elective (6)
MATH247 Programming/Scripting for Games (3)
NSCI307 Natural Science Elective (3)
SSCI213 Cultural and Social Design for Games (3)
LIBS440 Capstone (3)
AHCS224 Theories and Trends in Contemporary Art, Media and Culture (3)
AHCS222 History of Graphic Design and Illustration (3)
CAIL200 Creative Action Lecture (3)
LIBS214 Sophomore Elective (3)
LIBS314 Upper Division Elective (6)
MATH136 Math Elective (3)
NSCI307 Natural Science Elective (3)
SSCI210 Social Science Elective (3)
LIBS440 Capstone (3)
AHCS224 Theories and Trends in Contemporary Art, Media and Culture (3)
AHCS222 History of Graphic Design and Illustration (3)
CAIL200 Creative Action Lecture (3)
LIBS214 Sophomore Elective (3)
LIBS314 Upper Division Elective (6)
MATH136 Math Elective (3)
NSCI307 Natural Science Elective (3)
SSCI210 Social Science Elective (3)
LIBS440 Capstone (3)
AHCS224 Theories and Trends in Contemporary Art, Media and Culture (3)
AHCS225 History and Future of Product Design (3)
CAIL200 Creative Action Lecture (3)
LIBS214 Sophomore Elective (3)
LIBS314 Upper Division Elective (6)
MATH136 Math Elective (3)
NSCI319 Human Factors in Product Design (3)
SSCI210 Social Science Elective (3)
LIBS440 Capstone (3)
AHCS224 Theories and Trends in Contemporary Art, Media and Culture (3)
AHCS236 History of Toys (3)
CAIL200 Creative Action Lecture (3)
31508 Methods and Materials (3)
LIBS314 Upper Division Elective (6)
MATH136 Math Elective (3)
NSCI308 Human Factors in Toy Design (3)
SSCI211 Child Psychology: Development and Play (3)
LIBS440 Capstone (3)
Liberal Arts and Sciences Course Offerings
All Liberal Arts and Sciences courses are 3 credits.
Students may take Natural Science, Social Science, and Math courses off campus, unless a specific course at Otis College is required by their major. Students must get their substitute courses approved through the Advising Department before they enroll at another institution.
Students may not take Art History, English, Creative Action Integrated Learning (CAIL) or Capstone courses off campus without the written permission of the Chair of the Liberal Arts and Sciences Department.
Liberal Arts and Sciences Electives