Economics is the study of how society uses its scarce resources. The goal of the department is to promote an understanding of economic aspects of society and to develop each student's ability to reason about economic issues - that is, to provide a basis for intelligent, responsible participation in modern society. The major is comprised of eight, four credit Economics classes with accompanying course work in History and Mathematics. View more information about the major.
Anthropology is a holistic study of humankind that encompasses archaeology, socio-cultural anthropology, linguistic anthropology, and biological anthropology. It is highly interdisciplinary, drawing on the sciences, humanities, and social studies. Students have opportunities to conduct fieldwork in any of the subfields. For majors, this can comprise a senior thesis. Grinnell’s anthropology major prepares students for graduate school as well as careers domestically and internationally in such fields as museology, regional planning, journalism, business, social services, and more.
You can embrace all aspects of the dramatic arts here. Majors and nonmajors dance; act; direct; design; write; choreograph; stage-manage; and design and build sets, props, and costumes. You collaborate with experienced faculty, renowned choreographers, and multitalented fellow students in facilities that include Roberts Theatre, a recording studio, performance lab, dance studio, and costume studio.
The study of Spanish at Grinnell is an interdisciplinary immersion in Spanish-speaking cultures worldwide. You’ll live the language in class, at weekly tables and labs and special events, talk with visiting guests and scholars, and enjoy study-abroad and internship opportunities in Latin America and Spain.
Russia is culturally rich, diverse, enigmatic, vast.
Religious Studies helps you develop tools to understand the complex ways that people across history and around the world oppose oppression, justify violence, understand their bodies, and give meaning to their lives. Our curriculum is among the most international on campus and many majors study abroad, bringing their experiences to capstone seminars and mentored research projects.
Philosophical thinking is a foundation of education in the liberal arts. Philosophy enriches thought, imagination, understanding, and experience. By studying philosophy, you’ll confront questions and problems both theoretical and practical about yourself and your relation to the world. The department’s curriculum focuses on interdisciplinary and classical philosophical topics, European philosophy, and the history of philosophy.
German is more than a language — the curriculum studies German culture, history, philosophy, literature, arts, and film; German House and a weekly German Table allow you to live the language with fellow students, native speakers, and visiting guests. You can cap off your experience with study abroad, a senior seminar, or an independent research project.