First Year Seminars

Entering DePauw students normally take four academically rigorous courses each semester. In one course, the First-Year Seminar, discussion in a small group, exploration of ideas, careful reading of texts, and critical thinking are especially emphasized.

First-Year Seminars count as a full academic credit. The seminar is one of 31 course credits every student earns toward graduation. Seminars are small (12-15 students) and provide an opportunity for class discussion, participation and interaction with the professor and other students. For most seminars, the instructor also serves as the students' academic advisor. A student mentor is assigned to each seminar group. The group will take part in orientation activities together and will meet outside of class to participate in programs and discussions about college life and campus issues.

Take some time to read through the descriptions of seminars. We hope that you will use your imagination in making your seminar choices. Our seminars are designed to open new areas of interest and to allow you to think in new ways. We hope you will include in your list of choices seminars that sound intriguing to you, no matter what subject you intend to major in and no matter what career you have in mind.

On your course request form, you will rank 10 seminars which are of interest to you. While we cannot guarantee that you will get your top choice, we will try to enroll you in a seminar that will interest you.

Click on the titles below for descriptions of the seminars. Use the reg number when completing the seminar requests form.

reg number	Seminar Title
127	Algorithmic Art
191	The Animal Mind
179	Aretha to Xena: An Introduction to Women's Studies
101	Art and Ethics
113	Athens in the Age of Perikles
139	Beauty
153	The Camera’s Eye: Intersections of Literature and Photography
113	Ancient War Memorials
119	Communication Evolution: From the Cave to the Chatroom
115	Conservative and Liberal Rhetoric in the Media, 1954-1973
110	The CSI Phenomenon
121	A Decade of Dissent: The Rhetoric of the 1960s
133	Deconstructing Difference Through Hollywood Teacher Films
149	(de)Constructing Race in the United States
152	Down and Out: Dickens and Orwell
200	East Meets West: Asian Religions in America
209	Economic and Social Issues: Women in the Third World
131	Economics and Social Issues: Women in the Third World
212	Ethics and Leadership in Film
161	The Examined Life
155	Exercise in Extreme Environments
122	Film, Communication, and Culture: The Case of James Bond
101	From Confucius to Kung-fu
145	Geology of the Colorado Plateau Region
109	Green Chemistry
161	The History of Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands
151	Holocaust and History
146	Holocaust Literature
116	Homer and the Trojan War
107	Human Biology
129	Intelligence, Mind, and Computers
125	Technology and the Internet
104	Japanese Youth Cultures
171	Jerusalem: The Holy City
206	Heroines, Heros, Justice and Adventure
164	Love, Sex, Marriage and the Family in Europe, 500-1800
103	The Making of Modern Japan
143	Representing Race: Race and Identity in Literature and Film
140	Misfits
167	Myth, Memory, History
153	Obesity in America
117	Performing Utopia
175	Perspectives on the American Dream
163	Philosophical Problems
143	Poetry of Song
218	Prisons and Race in America
173	Prisons and Race in America
179	Problems of Philosophy
157	Problem Solving
194	The Pursuit of Happiness
111	The Greeks on the Good Life: Pleasure or Virtue?
185	The Quantum Universe
141	Reading Las Vegas
125	Real and Radical: Gender Roles of the Modern Theatre in Performance
149	Recasting Narratives
169	Religion and the Meaning of Life
105	Science's Attack on Religion
167	The Science of Design: From Wooden Spoons to Web Sites
123	Seduced by a Machine?
197	Self, Society and the Sacred
224	Sex and Politics in an Age of Conflict
119	The Theatrical Experience
159	Dialogues with Utopia
137	War and Sex in Arthurian Legend
173	What is a Riddle? Paradoxes, Conundrums, and Riddles
215	Why We Read Poetry
135	Wild and Crazy Versions of Shakespeare