MA Distinctive Features and PhD Distinctive Features

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An agile, interdisciplinary program 

Human science is a way of examining the human experience from a cross-cultural perspective that honors the different ways of knowing and being that different peoples have developed over time. It lets you study the things that matter, in the way you think is most effective.  

Human science starts with the understanding that there is no one single privileged position on how people think, act, believe, or feel. There is no one “right answer.”  Every aspect of the human experience can be explored in a way that places the human experience first, not second to an academic discipline, perspective, or theory.  

Understand cultural blind spots

Human science is interdisciplinary, with an appreciation for diverse perspectives.  Most practitioners seek to better understand and critique dominant cultures and have a strong interest in being change agents. 

Graduates have studied such diverse topics as: 

  • gender and violence
  • metaphysics and altered states of consciousness
  • alternative health 
  • popular media and culture
  • yechnology and society
  • hlobalism and decolonization
  • peace studies
  • architecture
  • the meaning of sports 
  • bioethics and race
  • justice and equality 
  • challenges of disability
  • religious values in relation to social change
  • spirituality and healthcare

The program grounds you firmly in the traditions of a humanistic education, while selecting your own corner of the world to study, engage, and support.