First-Year Seminars

While not required, first-year seminars are an excellent introduction to academic life in the College and are highly recommended for first- or second-semester students. The primary goal of the first-year seminar program is to provide every first-year student with the opportunity for a direct personal encounter with a faculty member in a small class setting devoted to a significant intellectual endeavor. First-year seminars also fulfill one of the College General Education Requirements. Below is the list of the first-year seminars offered for Fall 2025. Previously offered first-year seminars can be found in the first-year seminar archive.

 

Course Title Instructor Fulfills (Sectors | Foundational Approaches)
AFRC 0016/RELS 1080: First Year Seminar - Black Spiritual Journeys: Modern African American Vaughn Booker Humanities & Social Science (AUHS) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
AFRC 0320/ENGL 0320/GSWS 0320: First Year Seminar: Black Queer Traditions Dagmawi Woubshet Arts & Letters (AUAL) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
ANTH 0085: Contemporary Native Identities: Traditions, Resistance, Resilience, Advocacy and Joy Tina Fragoso Humanities & Social Science (AUHS) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
ARCH 0110: Design, Race, and Climate Justice Rashida Ng Humanities & Social Science (AUHS) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
ARCH 0201: Land Practice Catherine Seavitt Humanities & Social Science (AUHS) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
CIMS 0101: The Difficult Legacy of Eadweard Muybridge Ian Fleishman  
CHEM 0250: Structural Biology Jeffery Saven Natural Science Across Disciplines (AUNM)
CLST 0017: First Year Seminar: Private Life in Ancient Rome Kimberly Bowes History & Tradition (AUHT) | Cross Cultural Analysis (AUCC)
CLST 0019: First Year Seminar: Town and Country in Ancient Greece Thomas Tartaron Arts & Letters (AUAL)
COML 0103: Doctors' Notes Carolyn Ureña Cross Cultural Analysis (AUCC) | Humanities & Social Science (AUHS)
EALC 1120: Oracle bones to the Chinese Classics: beginnings of writing in East Asia Adam Smith Arts & Letters (AUAL) | Cross Cultural Analysis (AUCC)
ECON 0055: Economics and Ideas: The Origins of Modernity Enrique Pallares Society (AUSO)
EDUC 1450: School Reform in America: History, Politics, and Policy Rand Quinn Humanities & Social Science (AUHS)
ENGL 0306: First Year Seminar: How and When to be Bored: Literature and Attention Staff Arts & Letters (AUAL)
ENGL 0372: First Year Seminar: Juvenilia Melissa Jensen Arts & Letters (AUAL)
ENGL 0392: First Year Seminar: The Economics of Literature and Film in the 21st Century James English Arts & Letters (AUAL)
ENGL 0402: First-Year Seminar: Kelly Writers House Julia Bloch Arts & Letters (AUAL) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
GRMN 0012/JWST 0012: Jews and China: Views from Two Perspectives Kathryn Hellerstein History & Tradition (AUHT) | Cross Cultural Analysis (AUCC)
GSWS 0500: Introduction to Disability Studies Staff Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
GSWS 0800/SOCI 0800: Men & Masculinities in America Joel Mittleman Humanities & Social Science (AUHS) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
HIST 0012: First-Year Seminar: Why College? Historical and Contemporary Perspectives Jonathan Zimmerman History & Tradition (AUHT)
HIST 0014: First-Year Seminar: A History of America's Children Hardeep Dhillon History & Tradition (AUHT) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
HIST 0061/MELC 0460: First-Year Seminar: Of Horses, Bows and Fermented Milk: The Silk Roads in 10 Objects Oscar Aguirre Mandujano History & Tradition (AUHT) | Cross Cultural Analysis (AUCC)
HIST 0065: Histories of Religion and Violence Daniel Cheely History & Tradition (AUHT)
HSOC 0361: Medical Missionaries and Partners Kent Bream Society (AUSO)
HSOC 0387/STSC 0387: Epidemics in History David Barnes Humanities & Social Science (AUHS)
ITAL 0085/CIMS 0085: Representations of Rome in Film and Literature (1848-present) - First Year Seminar Filippo Trentin Cross Cultural Analysis (AUCC)
LING 0054: Bilingualism in History Marlyse Baptista History & Tradition (AUHT)
MATH 0021: Freshman Seminar: Math and movies Jonathan Block  
MATH 0025: Geometry and Art Robin Pemantle Formal Reasoning & Analysis (AUFR) | Natural Science Across Disciplines (AUNM)
MELC 0600: The Middle East through Many Lenses Heather Sharkey Humanities & Social Science (AUHS) | Cross Cultural Analysis (AUCC)
MELC: 0905/ANTH 0905: Water in the Middle East Throughout History Emily Hammer Humanities & Social Science (AUHS) | Cross Cultural Analysis (AUCC)
MUSC 0181: On Belonging: Music, Displacement, and Well-Being (SNF Paideia Program Course) Carol Muller Arts & Letters (AUAL)
MUSC 0182: Music and the Exploration of Consciousness Staff Arts & Letters (AUAL)
MUSC 0180A/URBS 0180: Music in Urban Spaces Molly McGlone Humanities & Social Science (AUHS) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
NRSC 0045: A Neuroscience Perspective on Brain Aging Mary Ellen Kelly Natural Science Across Disciplines (AUNM)
NRSC 0050: Forensic Neuroscience Daniel Langleben The Living World (AULW)
PHIL 0430: Markets and Morality First-Year Seminar Douglas Paletta Society (AUSO)
PHIL 0640: Enhancing the Human Mind with Technology Gary Purpura Humanities & Social Science (AUHS)
PHIL 0991: Topics in Philosophy: Effective Altruism and Its Critics Carlos J Pereira Di Salvo Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD) | Society (AUSO)
PSCI 0010: First Year Seminar: Democracy and Disagreement Diana Mutz Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD) | Society (AUSO)
PSCI 0010: First Year Seminar: How To Disagree Better Matthew Levendusky  Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD) | Society (AUSO)
PSCI 0010: First Year Seminar: Dispossessions and Resistance in the Americas Tulia Falleti Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD) | Society (AUSO)
PSCI 0017: First-Year Seminar: Conservatism in Theory and Practice Damon Linker  
PSCI 0018: First Year Seminar: Poverty in the History of Political Thought Chris Chambers  
PSCI 0019: First Year Seminar: Democratic Erosion, Racial Threat and Studying the 2024 Presidential Election Andrew Thompson  
REES 0411: First-Year Seminar: Masterpieces of 19th-Century Russian Literature Brian Kim Arts & Letters (AUAL) | Cross Cultural Analysis (AUCC)
SAST 0057: Planning to be Off-shore Srilata Gangulee Cross Cultural Analysis (AUCC) | Society (AUSO) 
SAST 0060: Modern South Asia and the World Ketaki Umesh Jaywant  
SOCI 0004: The Law in our Lives: Governing Marginalized Populations Staff Society (AUSO) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
SOCI 0006: Anxious Times: A Sociology of the Environmental Crisis Hashim Bin Rashid Society (AUSO) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
SOCI 0007: The Future of Work - First Year Seminar Stephen Viscelli Society (AUSO) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
STSC 0283/HSOC 0283: Medicine, Magic and Miracles  Elly Truitt History & Tradition (AUHT)
STSC 0883/ HSOC 0883: Climate and Change Melissa Charenko Humanities & Social Science (AUHS) | Cross Cultural Analysis (AUCC)
THAR 0076: Theatre in Philadelphia Rosemary Malague Arts & Letters (AUAL)
URBS 0010/AFRC 0010/SOCI 2940: Homelessness & Urban Inequality  Dennis Culhane Society (AUSO) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)
URBS 0350: Du Bois’ Philadelphia Amy Hillier Humanities & Social Science (AUHS) | Cultural Diversity in US (AUCD)