College of Charleston - College of Charleston Today

College of Charleston Today

Although existing as a small, private liberal arts college for much of its early history, the College of Charleston is today a public university with a combined graduate/undergraduate enrollment of over 11,000. The College retains its liberal arts heritage through its core curriculum, which includes a heavy emphasis on languages, literature, history, sciences and the arts.

The College of Charleston consists of six academic schools, as well as the Honors College and the Graduate School.

• The School of the Arts hosts South Carolina’s flagship undergraduate arts program in music, studio art and theatre and also includes one of the few independent art history departments in North America, one of the nation’s only undergraduate arts management programs and a prominent undergraduate program combining historic preservation and community planning.
• The School of Business instructs undergraduate and graduate students in the essential critical-thinking, leadership and communication skills they will need to be responsible, ethical contributors to the global marketplace. The school offers five undergraduate majors (accounting, business administration, economics, hospitality and tourism management and international business), an accelerated master of business administration program, a master of science in accountancy and several minors and concentrations, including finance and entrepreneurship.
• The School of Education, Health, and Human Performance prepares students for careers in education and health professions, such as exercise science and athletic training, through academic coursework, field experience and clinical practice. The school partners with schools and businesses in the Charleston area to provide hands-on learning experiences for students.
• The School of Humanities and Social Sciences cultivates writing and critical-thinking skills in students and offers a number of disciplines traditionally associated with a liberal arts and sciences education, including anthropology, communication, English, history, philosophy, political science, religious studies and sociology.
• The School of Languages, Cultures, and World Affairs includes one of the most comprehensive language programs in the Southeast, in-depth majors in classical and modern languages, overseas study programs, specialized programs for future language professionals and offerings in several less-commonly taught languages, such as Arabic, Chinese, Hebrew and Hindi.
• The School of Sciences and Mathematics is home to the state’s flagship marine biology program and extremely well regarded departments such as biology, chemistry and biochemistry, computer science, geology, mathematics and physics. The school receives generous external research support each year, giving students opportunities for independent research in addition to significant involvement in inquiry-based learning in the classroom and teaching laboratory.
• The Honors College challenges intellectually talented students to customize and maximize their educations through team-taught Honors classes (with an interdisciplinary focus), research opportunities with top faculty members and an independent-study project that culminates in a bachelor’s essay.
• The Graduate School of the College of Charleston offers 19 master’s degree programs and seven certificate programs. Each is designed to take advantage of the unique opportunities provided by the people, institutions and environment of the South Carolina Lowcountry and imparts specialized knowledge and training to its students.