Degree:
B.A.
Division:
Interdisciplinary
Program Options:
Special Concentration

Small class sizes and lots of personal interaction with faculty who are experts in the field are hallmarks of New College’s Medieval and Renaissance Studies AOC, which features a wide variety of courses. We focus on the critical period in Western history between the end of antiquity and the birth of modernity.

About the Medieval & Renaissance Area of Concentration

This interdisciplinary program is focused on the critical period in Western history between the end of antiquity and the birth of modernity (roughly, 400 to 1600 C.E.). The periods of the Middle Ages and Renaissance encompass vast and exciting transformations that saw the creation of many of the institutions and habits upon which our world and worldview rest. Study of the period will provide students with the valuable perspective on the contemporary scene that can only be acquired at a considerable distance.

In many cases, students will be best served by pursuing medieval and Renaissance interests in concentrations such as Literature or History. An interdisciplinary approach, however, recognizes that the modern division into academic disciplines does not adequately reflect pre-modern European culture, when theology might be argued in verse or in painting, and when history, literature, and religion were inextricably entwined.

The Biennial Conference on Medieval & Renaissance Studies

Every other year New College welcomes premodernists from across the US and internationally—about 300 people—to one of the largest regional conferences on medieval & Renaissance studies in the US. Students are welcome to attend all sessions and related events, and student employees help run the conference. Check out the conference website: Learn More

Recent courses

  • A Brief History of the Bible
  • The Global Middle Ages: Travel and Cultural Exchange Before the Age of Exploration
  • Medieval Cities
  • The Middle Ages and the Birth of the Modern World
  • Role-Playing Politics and Religion in the Renaissance
  • Saints and Sinners: Image, Gender and Spirituality in the Medieval and Early Modern Eras

Career Pathways

  • Law
  • Foreign Service
  • Public Policy
  • Intelligence
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Journalism
  • Library Sciences
  • Publishing

Contact Us

Dr. Carrie Beneš

Professor of History, Chart Your Course Director
Image of Dr. Carrie Beneš
Contact
Phone Number
Email Address
Location
Office
Ace 106
Mail
Social Science 102

Medieval & Renaissance Studies Faculty