UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science

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University of California, Berkeley College of Letters and Science
TypePublic
Established1915
DeanJanet Broughton, Executive Dean[1]
Academic staff
~800[2]
Undergraduates~19,000[3]
Postgraduates2,763[4]
Location
Berkeley
,
California
,
U.S.
AffiliationsUniversity of California, Berkeley
Websitels.berkeley.edu

The College of Letters and Science (L&S) is the largest of the 14 colleges at the University of California, Berkeley and encompasses the liberal arts. The college was established in its present state in 1915 with the merger of the College of Letters, the College of Social Science, and the College of Natural Science. As of the 2013–14 academic year, there were about 19,000 undergraduates and 2,763 graduate students enrolled in the college.[4][3] The College of Letters and Science awards only Bachelor of Arts degrees at the undergraduate level, in contrast to the other schools and colleges of UC Berkeley which award only Bachelor of Science degrees at the undergraduate level.

Faculty and students[]

L&S is organized into five divisions: Arts and Humanities, Biological Science, Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Social Sciences, and the Undergraduate Division.[5] Of the graduate divisions, Social Sciences is the most popular, followed by Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Arts and Humanities, and Biological Science.[4] The Undergraduate Division serves the 19,000 undergraduate students in L&S. Each division has its own administration, including a dean, associate dean, and assistant deans. Carla Hesse, dean of the Division of Social Sciences, serves as the College's executive dean.[1] L&S has about 800 faculty members, including 13 Nobel laureates, 3 Pulitzer Prize winners, and 12 MacArthur Fellows.[2]

The majority of undergraduates at the University are enrolled in the College of Letters and Science. Although freshman applicants indicate an area of interest on their applications, all freshmen in L&S enter as undeclared majors. This contrasts with other undergraduate colleges at UC Berkeley, such as the College of Engineering, where applicants indicate their major on the application and enter as declared majors.[6] L&S undergraduates must declare a major before they begin their junior year.[7] "Capped majors" (e.g. Economics, Public Health, Psychology) are impacted and have more stringent declaration policies.[8] All undergraduates in L&S must complete classes in reading & composition, quantitative reasoning, foreign language, and a seven-course breadth requirement.[9]

L&S offers a wide variety of graduate programs, including master's and doctorate programs. Many of these programs are ranked within the top five in their field by U.S. News and World Report.[10] Two programs, Jewish Studies and Near Eastern Religions, are joint programs with the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. One program, Medical Anthropology, is a joint program with UCSF.[11] The L&S graduate division serves 87 master's/first professional students and 2,676 doctoral students as of Fall 2013.[4]

Departments[]

Arts & Humanities[]

Biological Science[]

  • Integrative Biology
  • Molecular and Cell Biology
    • Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology
    • Cell and Developmental Biology
    • Genetics, Genomics, and Development
    • Immunology and Pathogenesis
    • Neurobiology
  • Physical Education Program

Mathematical & Physical Sciences[]

Social Sciences[]

Additional majors administered by the Division of Undergraduate Studies[]

  • American Studies
  • Asian Studies
  • Cognitive Science
  • Creative Writing
  • Data Science (program managed by the Division of Computing, Data Science, & Society)
  • Development Studies
  • Disability Studies
  • Interdisciplinary Studies
  • Latin American Studies
  • Media Studies
  • Religious Studies
  • Middle Eastern Studies
  • Peace and Conflict Studies
  • Political Economy

Additional majors administered by other colleges[]

  • Chemistry (B.A.) (College of Chemistry)
  • Computer Science (B.A.) (College of Engineering)
  • Environmental Economics and Policy (College of Natural Resources)
  • Legal Studies (School of Law)
  • Operations Research and Management Science (College of Engineering)
  • Public Health (School of Public Health)
  • Social Welfare (School of Social Welfare)

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science. "College Leadership". University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved August 26, 2015.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science. "Our Faculty". University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science. "Undergraduate Division". University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c d UC Berkeley Graduate Division. "Berkeley Graduate Profile". University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  5. ^ UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science. "Welcome to L&S!". University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  6. ^ UC Berkeley College of Engineering. "Admissions". University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  7. ^ UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science. "Declaring a Major". University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  8. ^ UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science. "List of Majors". University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  9. ^ UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science. "Summary of Degree Requirements". University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  10. ^ UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science. "Graduate Program Rankings". University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  11. ^ UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science. "Graduate Programs". University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved December 26, 2013.

External links[]

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