<p>I'm looking into JHU for the primary reason that it's a world renowned pre-med powerhouse, and I plan on being pre-med. However, I don't think I want to major in the natural sciences; I'll probably major something like philosophy or psychology.</p>
<p>How are the humanities departments at JHU? A strong philosophy department and a strong social sciences department are very important to me. Yes, medical school is the ultimate goal, but I want to be able to explore all that I can in my education--not just science.</p>
<p>If someone could tell me about the strength or lack thereof of JHU in these areas, it would be appreciated.</p>
<p>English and creative writing at JHU are strong from what I have gathered. From my visit to JHU, I have been told that roughly 1/3 are engineering, 1/3 are natural sciences, and 1/3 are social sciences. Really, you are not going to be alone in your love for the humanities any more than I am going to be alone in my love for engineering. You will definitely find people here who have similar passions and JHU undergrad is well regarded not for just having a good medical school placement rate but for having a strong humanities as well and being well-rounded overall.</p>
<p>I’m a current student at JHU majoring in Writing Sems and Philosophy. The short answer to your question: yes.
The longer answer: there are a lot of science-leaning and engineering students at Hopkins, but the humanities and social sciences definitely have their places as well. I’ve really enjoyed my time so far at JHU. The transition to college may not be the easiest at first (it wasn’t for me), but once the period of adjustment has occurred, you won’t feel out of place solely due to a humanities major.</p>
<p>I’m a recent Hopkins graduate who majored in a social science. The school does have the feeling of being very sciency, but there are a lot of humanities and social science students as well. There are lots of international studies majors.</p>
<p>Hopkins has a number of top humanities and social science programs. The philosophy department is excellent. While it was never my thing, the sociology department is really good. I took a few of my favorite courses in the Near Eastern Studies department. A lot of the political science professors are really cool. The philosophy department is small, but it’s a very good department and the professors and grad students are fun and easy to talk to. And, as mentioned, the Writing Seminars department is excellent.</p>
<p>You can take pretty much any kind of class at Hopkins and there are very good ones in every area. You can take classes in literature, film, theater, or about all kinds of world cultures.</p>
<p>JHU definitely has its share of students who are science snobs who think that every other class is a waste of time (because obviously science students don’t need to know how to write <em>eye roll</em>), but the university has top departments in a lot of other fields, students who are really passionate about those subjects, and it gives you plenty of opportunity to explore whatever areas interest you both in class and outside of it.</p>
<p>When I was a freshman, I got a chance to argue about the existence of God with Christopher Hitchens while he took a smoke break after a talk he gave. Later on in college, I ran into J. Craig Venter (who decoded the human genome) in the bookstore bathroom and he invited me to a talk he was about to give, I attended some evening seminars where we discussed big topics in philosophy, and I went to a free day of acting lessons from one of the best acting teachers in the country. I definitely felt like I got a well rounded education and awesome exposure to people in all different fields. And that’s all aside from the dorm room conversations about every imaginable topic.</p>
<p>The sciences might dominate, and if you’re pre-med, you have to take it upon yourself to expand beyond them… but the opportunities are definitely there.</p>
<p>My nephew graduated 5 years ago with a major in creative writing from JHU. He is now a sports writer/broadcaster out west, writes a blog for a major basketball team, publishes occasionally in sports magazines. Not a science person at all, but did quite well on campus.</p>