<p>Hey, I have read up on some of the threads about Classics majors, but I'm wondering if someone could go indepth about a few questions I have. So far, my list of top schools is something like: Brown (well most ivies), swarthmore, bryn mawr, haverford, chicago, umich, maybe pomono, etc. I dont know if this is clear, but in my major, I want to find a school that focuses alot on the culture of the times, ie. history, philosophy, anthropology. While I know this is inherent in any classics program, are there any schools that you think are best suited for this? again, this probably makes no sense.</p>
<p>Chicago might fit your interests best. Although their ancient courses are spread out (Art History, Anthropology, Classics, and NELC), they have an Ancient Studies program that spans the disciplines quite nicely. Brown has a similar program, I think. RaboKarabekian is a Classics major at Brown, so send a PM. From what I understand, Brown's Egyptology department is undergoing major changes, so its course offerings should be even better than they are now. I'm vaguely familiar with Bryn Mawr's program, and it's exceptionally strong. Its traditional strength is in archaeology, and it has close ties with U Penn. Haverford has relatively little to offer on its own and relies primarily on Bryn Mawr. </p>
<p>Duke, although not particularly known for it, is an excellent place to study Classics. The faculty has been teaching for a considerable period of time, and they are experienced, up-to-date, and exceedingly helpful. I was in the "Athens in the Golden Age" FOCUS my first semester, and I loved it. The department is relatively small and the professors are awesome, so it's a great combination. The department is particularly strong in Classical languages/literature, economics, art, philosophy, and history (especially Roman). Duke recently lured Carla Antonaccio, a Princeton grad with considerable academic fame, away from Wesleyan, which was a great thing for Duke's Classics department. Under her leadership, Duke is putting together a Duke-UNC archaeology consortium, which will be awesome. UNC is only 25 minutes away (taking the Robertson bus), so taking courses at UNC is very easy. You're allowed to take one class per semester at UNC if a comparable course is not offered at Duke. UNC's Classics program is just as strong as Duke's, and the anthropology department and archaeology laboratories add to the excitement (Duke's anthropology department isn't that great, sadly). A section of the Archaeological Institute of America regularly meets at UNC (in addition to other talks), and it's really cool to be able to keep learning outside the classroom. I went to two talks, one by Carla Antonaccio and one by Gil Stein (director of the Oriental Institute of U Chicago), and it was fascinating. Duke or UNC would be a great place to study Classics. I'm taking the Aegean Bronze Age and Middle Egyptian (with access to Duke's papyrus archive!) next semester, and I absolutely can't wait.</p>
<p>Check into UC Berkeley, UCLA, and Stanford. I'm very sure the first two are very good (and have incredible supplimentary anthropology/archaelogy/history), and I think the same is true of Stanford.</p>
<p>The coursework for an Ancient Studies major incorporates archeology, literature, philosophy, art history, military history, architectural history, religious texts, and law. the following schools offer ancient studies majors:</p>
<p>bard
barnard
bates
clark
columbia
mt holyoke
richmond
texas
vassar
WUSTL</p>