Great Books, Great Books Honors (BA)
This program provides a unique and challenging interdisciplinary program of study for a limited number of students whose academic records indicate strong potential and motivation. Students encounter the deepest sources of Western civilization in biblical religion and Greek philosophy and then renew their engagement with these sources through the works of the philosophers, authors, and artists who have wrestled with the enduring themes of human life. The program cultivates students’ capacity for wisdom-seeking and prepares them to respond to recurrent change in a variety of vocations by anchoring them in an understanding of these permanent questions and deepest truths. The program partners well with numerous specialized disciplines and professional trajectories by strengthening the habits of mind and heart required for the ongoing need to integrate deep thoughtfulness with specialized learning.
Admission
Application materials and information about deadlines are available online at https://admissions.utexas.edu/apply.
First-year applicants and external transfer students submit an application for admission to the program’s honors concentration. Students wishing to pursue the program as a simultaneous major may apply to either the honors or non-honors concentration by internal transfer.
Total Hours Required: 120
Plan of Study
The Plan of Study is a suggested four-year course sequence to support academic planning and serves as a helpful guide. Currently enrolled students should meet with their academic advisor to tailor their course selections and timelines to their individual goals and circumstances.
| Year 1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Semester 1 | Hours | |
| G B 313C | Ancient Worlds I: Human and Divine | 3 |
| G B 110H | Honors Lab: Ancient Worlds I | 1 |
| First-Year Signature Course (090) | 3 | |
| Communication (010) | 3 | |
| CIV 303C | Foundations of American Civics | 3 |
| U.S. History (060) | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Semester 2 | ||
| G B 313D | Ancient Worlds II: Philosophy and the City | 3 |
| G B 111H | Honors Lab: Ancient Worlds II | 1 |
| American and Texas Government (070) | 3 | |
| Communication (010) | 3 | |
| Foreign Language other than English, Intermediate Proficiency | 6 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Year 2 | ||
| Semester 1 | ||
| G B 334C | Classical and Medieval Worlds | 3 |
| G B 130H | Honors Lab: Classical and Medieval Worlds | 1 |
| Mathematics (020) | 3 | |
| CIV 312P or GOV 312P |
Constitutional Principles: Core Texts or Constitutional Principles: Core Texts |
3 |
| Foreign Language other than English, Intermediate Proficiency | 6 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Semester 2 | ||
| G B 334D | Renaissance, Reformation, and the Age of Reason | 3 |
| G B 131H | Honors Lab: Renaissance, Reformation, and the Age of Reason | 1 |
| CIV 302C or CTI 302 |
Classics of Social and Political Thought or Classics of Social and Political Thought |
3 |
| Humanities (040) | 3 | |
| U.S. History (060) | 3 | |
| Free Elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Year 3 | ||
| Semester 1 | ||
| G B 140H | Honors Lab: Modern Soul | 1 |
| G B 345C | The Modern Soul | 3 |
| Free Elective | 3 | |
| Free Elective | 3 | |
| Social and Behavioral Sciences (080) | 3 | |
| Hours chosen from: Great books | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Semester 2 | ||
| G B 345D | Romanticism, Revolution, and Reaction | 3 |
| G B 141H | Honors Lab: Romanticism, Revolution, and Reaction | 1 |
| Hours chosen from: Great books | 3 | |
| Free Elective | 3 | |
| Natural Science and Technology, Part I (030) | 3 | |
| Visual and Performing Arts (050) | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Year 4 | ||
| Semester 1 | ||
| Hours chosen from: Great books | 3 | |
| Hours chosen from: Internship or capstone | 3 | |
| Internship in Great Books | ||
| Capstone in Great Books | ||
| Free Elective | 3 | |
| Natural Science and Technology, Part I (030) | 3 | |
| Hours | 12 | |
| Semester 2 | ||
| Hours chosen from: Great books | 3 | |
| Free Elective | 3 | |
| Natural Science and Technology, Part II (093) | 3 | |
| Free Elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 12 | |
| Total Hours | 120 | |
Requirements
All requirements are listed below, starting with the most specialized moving to the most general. Additional requirements may follow the table, so be sure to read the entire page. Some required courses listed below may also satisfy General Education requirements, including Core Curriculum.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Concentration | ||
| Honors Requirement | ||
| Foreign Language other than English, Intermediate Proficiency (Restricted to LAT, GK, FR, and GER) | 12 | |
| G B 110H | Honors Lab: Ancient Worlds I | 1 |
| G B 111H | Honors Lab: Ancient Worlds II | 1 |
| G B 130H | Honors Lab: Classical and Medieval Worlds | 1 |
| G B 131H | Honors Lab: Renaissance, Reformation, and the Age of Reason | 1 |
| G B 140H | Honors Lab: Modern Soul | 1 |
| G B 141H | Honors Lab: Romanticism, Revolution, and Reaction | 1 |
| Hours chosen from: | 6 | |
| American Letters: Colonial Times to 1877 | ||
| American Letters: 1877 through the 20th Century | ||
| Great Books in Leadership | ||
| Great Books in Law and Justice | ||
| Fertility, Birth, Fragility, Dying | ||
| Technology and the Human Experience | ||
| Classics of Mathematics and Scientific Thought: Antiquity | ||
| Classics of Mathematics and Scientific Thought: Modernity | ||
| Topics in Great Books (any topic) | ||
| Topics in Ancient and Medieval Great Books (any topic) | ||
| Topics in Renaissance and Modern Great Books (any topic) | ||
| Advanced Great Books (any topic) | ||
| Advanced Topics in Ancient and Medieval Great Books (any topic) | ||
| Advanced Topics in Renaissance and Modern Great Books (any topic) | ||
| Topics in Advanced Readings in Great Books (any topic) | ||
| Topics in Independent Research in Great Books (any topic) | ||
| Hours chosen from: | 3 | |
| Internship in Great Books | ||
| OR | ||
| Capstone in Great Books | ||
| OR | ||
| Great Books Honors Thesis I | ||
& | ||
| Great Books Honors Thesis II | ||
| Major | ||
| CIV 312P | Constitutional Principles: Core Texts | 3 |
| CIV 302C | Classics of Social and Political Thought | 3 |
| or CTI 302 | Classics of Social and Political Thought | |
| G B 313C | Ancient Worlds I: Human and Divine | 3 |
| G B 313D | Ancient Worlds II: Philosophy and the City | 3 |
| G B 334C | Classical and Medieval Worlds | 3 |
| G B 334D | Renaissance, Reformation, and the Age of Reason | 3 |
| G B 345C | The Modern Soul | 3 |
| G B 345D | Romanticism, Revolution, and Reaction | 3 |
| Hours chosen from: (See course list) | 6 | |
| Subtotal | 57 | |
| Degree (see details below) | ||
| Free electives: Additional coursework to reach total hours required. | 18 | |
| Subtotal | 18 | |
| General Education | ||
| Core Curriculum | 42 | |
| Foreign Language other than English, Beginning Proficiency | ||
| Subtotal | 42 | |
| College Requirements - Civic Leadership | ||
| CIV 303C | Foundations of American Civics | 3 |
| or CIV 303J | Origins of American Institutions | |
| General University Requirements | ||
| Total Hours | 120 | |
Course List
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Hours chosen from: | 6 | |
| American Letters: Colonial Times to 1877 | ||
| American Letters: 1877 through the 20th Century | ||
| Great Books in Leadership | ||
| Great Books in Law and Justice | ||
| Fertility, Birth, Fragility, Dying | ||
| Technology and the Human Experience | ||
| Classics of Mathematics and Scientific Thought: Antiquity | ||
| Classics of Mathematics and Scientific Thought: Modernity | ||
| Ethics and Leadership in Ancient Greek Drama | ||
| Ethics and Leadership in Shakespeare's Drama | ||
| Constitutionalism: Ancient and Modern | ||
| Politics and the Transcendent | ||
| The Classical Quest for Justice | ||
| The Theoretical Foundations of Modern Politics | ||
| Spinoza and Modernity | ||
| Critics of Modern Liberalism | ||
| Might and Right among Nations | ||
| Politics and Literature | ||
| Morality and Politics | ||
| Citizenship and Patriotism | ||
| Chinese Ethics and Political Philosophy | ||
| Liberty and Empire: Machiavelli | ||
| Thomas Paine, Liberalism, and the Enlightenment | ||
| Constitutional Interpretation | ||
| African American Social and Political Thought | ||
| Civil Liberties | ||
| Regime Perspectives on American Politics | ||
| Structure of Individual Liberties | ||
| Archaic Greece: Society and Culture | ||
| The History of Rome: The Republic | ||
| Roots of Democracy | ||
| Death and the Afterlife in Graeco-Roman Antiquity | ||
| The Ancient Historians | ||
| Machiavelli: Politics and Culture | ||
| The Political Thought of the Reformation | ||
| Origins of Liberalism | ||
| The Sacred and the Secular in Modern European Thought | ||
| Rousseau and His Legacy | ||
| History of Christian Philosophy | ||
| Hegel and the Formation of Modern European Identity | ||
| Marx and Marxist Theory | ||
| The Question of Relativism | ||
| The Pursuit of Happiness | ||
| The Meaning of Life | ||
| Ancient Epic | ||
| Moral Agency In Greek Tragedy | ||
| Love in the East and West | ||
| Epics and Heroes of India | ||
| Dante | ||
| War and Epic Literature | ||
| Italian Masterpieces | ||
| Leadership: King Arthur to Queen Elizabeth | ||
| The Major Works of Dostoevsky | ||
| The Russian Novel | ||
| War and Revolution in Russian Literature and Culture | ||
| Masterworks of World Drama | ||
| The Idea of the Beautiful | ||
| Early Italian Renaissance Art to 1470 | ||
| Abraham and Abrahamic Religions | ||
| The Five Books of Moses | ||
| The Book of Job | ||
| Law and Justice in the Bible | ||
| Biblical Prophecy | ||
| The Bible in the Colonial Americas | ||
| Law, Liberty, and Faith | ||
| The Age of Reformation | ||
| Origin of the Idea of Religious Liberty | ||
| Debating the Bible in the Twenty-First Century | ||
| Islamic Theology | ||
| The French Revolution and Napoleon | ||
| Classics of Social Scientific Thought | ||
| Einstein in the Age of Conflict | ||
| Darwin on Origin of Species | ||
| History of Mathematics | ||
| Newton's Principia | ||
| Science and Religion to Newton | ||
| Science and Religion from Newton to the Present | ||
| Darwin and the Politics of Evolution | ||
| Great Works In Medicine | ||
| Biology, Behavior, and Injustice | ||
| Topics in Core Texts and Ideas | ||
| Total Hours | 6 | |