In particular, the program seeks to develop a critical awareness of how the classical past has been utilized as a symbol or an ideal by modern cultures, including American, and how Western culture has developed its own particular views about itself as being distinctly different from non-Western cultures.
The major is especially recommended for students who have a broad interest in the liberal arts either for their own sake or as preparation for business and the professions. The General Humanities program, coordinated by the Department of Classics and General Humanities, is unique both in respect to the breadth of disciplines (history, literature, philosophy, religious studies, art history, music history) in which students are required to take courses and in respect to the senior seminar, in which students write a senior thesis addressing the contemporary role of the humanities from an interdisciplinary perspective.

A minimum of 120 semester hours of coursework is required for the baccalaureate degree with a minimum 2.0 overall GPA, and a minimum 2.0 major GPA. However, more than 120 semester hours may be required depending upon the major field of study. In addition to the major requirement outlined below, all university students must fulfill the set of General Education requirements applicable to their degree.