The study of Classics has been conceived in unusually broad terms; it is intended to encompass everything that can be known about the ancient Mediterranean world. There is room in Classics for the study of fields as disparate as literature, science, sculpture, history, architecture, religion, philosophy, theater, economics, music -- in short, the entire panorama of human endeavor. It is no wonder that the study of Classics has always tended to attract some of the liveliest and most brilliant intellects; and it is equally unsurprising that students majoring in Classics find themselves extremely well-prepared for undertaking practically any type of career, whether that be in politics, law, medicine, teaching, publishing, research of all kinds, journalism, banking, or the corporate world. A degree in Classics marks the UM graduate as a person of superior analytical and critical skills, one who has proved able to cope with a rigorous academic curriculum, and who is exceptionally educated in the most fundamental aspects of what it means to be human. Thus, Classics is at the core of the humanities.

The educational objectives of the Department of Classics may be stated in a variety of ways, and on a number of levels. In terms of linguistic competency, students majoring (or minoring) in Classics are required to reach an appropriate level of fluency in reading ancient Greek or Latin, or both. In terms of cultural literacy, students of the Classics are educated within a rigorous curriculum exposing them to the great literary works and material cultures of ancient Greece and Rome. In terms of critical thinking, students of the Classics are trained to hone the skills of memory, analysis, and synthesis, skills that they will be able to apply for the rest of their lives in any realm of thought or action whatsoever.