Faculty and Program Series Part Four: The Faculty of Humanities

BY FEONA GRANT, MACINSIDERS

"The Humanities lie at the heart of the university experience and for many centuries, studying at a university meant studying in the Humanities. Humanities disciplines focus on the human experience: on cultural achievements in literature, the visual arts and music; on systems of thought and language; and the results of human interaction in the past, which have shaped the present and will continue to shape the future."

The Faculty of Humanities has been at McMaster since it's establishment back in 1887. As such, the faculty has grown, changed and has become prominent in the university, boasting over 125 full and part-time faculty researching and teaching in nine departments which include:

The School of the Arts, Classics, Communication Studies & Multimedia, English & Cultural Studies, French, History, Linguistics & Languages, Philosophy and the Office of Interdisciplinary Studies: Comparative Literature, Peace Studies, and Women Studies.

There are over 3000 undergraduate, masters and PhD students in the Faculty of Humanities from across Canada and abroad which make up this unique interdisciplinary faculty. Students in the faculty will learn important skills that are sought out by employers such as the ability to reason and analyze, to present findings clearly, to think critically, to communicate effectively, to research and a topic and to make informed decisions.

Important Contacts
McMaster University: 905-525-9140

General Inquiries: x 27532 [email protected] a

Academic Advisors: [email protected] master.ca
Darlene Hayward x 24328
Jackie Osterman x 23122
Jennifer Richardson x 24326

Specific Departments: http://www.humanities.mcmast er.ca/contacts/index.html

Exciting Programs within the Faculty of Humanities
"As society changes, so our academic disciplines adapt to give students the tools to better understand the new realities of the world they live in. Exciting new developments in existing areas and innovative new programs have emerged as a result."

1. Linguistic Cognitive Science combines courses and concepts from Humanities and Science, exploring the way we think and give expression to our thoughts, offering a unique undergraduate preparation for those interested in Speech Language Pathology.

2. The interdisciplinary field of Peace Studies examines the crucial areas of conflict and conflict resolution.

3. Cultural Studies & Critical Theory investigates the relationship between culture and power.

4. Communication Studies helps us decipher the complex web of messages in our information-overloaded world.

Notable Professors
Anna Moro (Linguistics)
Helene Strauss, Jeffery Donaldson (CSCT/English)
Alexandre Sevigny (Multimedia/Linguistics)
Martin Horn (History)

Tips for Success:

• University is not a joke, and you're not a joke either. Take it seriously and do everything to the best of your ability with an open mind.
• Take amazing notes! It will save you time and time again in many different ways.
• Always attend class, especially tutorials.
• The professors and TA's are very approachable, so approach them when you need help!
• Have fun, but not too much fun. These years are most likely the beginning of a turning point in your life.

Social and Academic Opportunities:

Studying Abroad: The exchange program in the faculty of Humanities allows selected students to spend part or all of their third year studying at universities around the world, in countries such as the U.K., the Netherlands, Germany, France, Austria, Denmark, Australia, Singapore and Japan.

Applied Humanities & Independent Study Courses: Allows upper level students to gain real world experience through the practical application of classroom learning. Students may work as P.R. interns, production company research assistants, or art curators. They may complete a practicum teaching English as a second language, or be placed with a Speech Language Pathologist. Humanities Career Services offers help and organizes job shadowing and career networking events to all students.

The Future & Beyond: Career Opportunities with a Humanities Degree
Here are some of the many career paths one can take with a degree from the faculty of Humanities.

Advertising Designer, Animation and Digital Videographer, Playwright, ESL Teacher, Interpreter & Translator, Politician, Archivist/Librarian/Historian, Public Relations Official, Film and Video Producer, Landscape Architect, Set Designer, Lawyer, Speech-Language Pathologist, Creative Artist, Genealogist, Guidance Counsellor, Customs /Immigration Officer, Government Official, and Web Designer.
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One thing that I think is overlooked by people is the ability of Humanities students to think critically. The very nature of our degree(s) requires a lot of analysis and out-of-the-box thinking, which we must execute (most often) in essays which face subjective marking: so there is often no right or wrong answer, it comes down to how well you argue your point.

It may be easier to pass a Humanities class than others, however to do well (i.e. A/A+) is a completely other matter.

It is very hard to do well in Humanities for sure, you really have to put a lot of effort into thinking critically and being able to write eloquently and passionately. I know some students in faculties like Science who have a hard time doing well in their Humanities/Social Science electives because it's so different and it's a lot more subjective.

I especially love how varied Humanities is, in terms of course selection. I mean, I'm shadowing a program that combines Humanities & Science, and you don't see that too often in other faculties.

;__; I think one of the reasons why it's difficult is because of it's subjective nature. With science, for the most part, it's right or wrong. Although science material may be more difficult to learn (since it may not be as intuitive), as long as you study the material you can do well.

But if you're stuck with an awful TA in humanities ... :|

A person I knew played "devil's advocate" for one of her essays on border control. Her TA was very left-leaning and even though the essay was well written and well-argued she didn't get a very good mark because of the TA's personal bias.

Subjectivity can be a problem, but we Humanities students are an [FONT='Calibri','sans-serif']clever [/font]bunch and we quickly learn how to deal with TA's.
I kind reminder to all Humanities students: if you have beef with anything, and I literally mean anything, please contact one of your SRA members. You can find all of our contact info on www.msumcmaster.ca.
Also, well done mentioning Dr. Horn, we rocks my socks.

one of my favourite things about being in Humanities is developing critical thinking skills. I read somewhere when I first started university that law school are more apt to select a Humanities grad over another because of our thinking skills.

the down side is having to go to your tutorials. If you have a good TA, the tutorial is definitely worth your time, especially since you get participation and attendance marks. Free 10 - 20%? I'm in. But if your TA admits to you in the first class that they actually don't like History and want to switch programs (like one of mine did in first year), it's a brutal 50 minutes each week of your life that you're never going to get back.



and YES to Dr. Horn! Definitely one of my intellectual crushes.

Woo! Humanities!

True-say, Humanities gets a lot of crap talk from other faculties...don't let it get to you. It's not your program that defines you, it's what you do with it. (:

Originally Posted by lorend

1)The very nature of our degree(s) requires a lot of analysis and out-of-the-box thinking,

2)It may be easier to pass a Humanities class than others, however to do well (i.e. A/A+) is a completely other matter.

I agree completely. 1) What people overlook is that a university education need not necessarily be about the knowledge you learn. It's about your ability to research answers when the time comes that you need them.

2) I think a lot of people don't see the 2nd half of that statement.

Originally Posted by finklej

Subjectivity can be a problem, but we Humanities students are an [FONT='Calibri','sans-serif']clever [/font]

Forgive me, but I'm a little amused that the BBCode didn't work. lol It's like an oxymoron.

Originally Posted by Mowicz

Woo! Humanities!

True-say, Humanities gets a lot of crap talk from other faculties...don't let it get to you. It's not your program that defines you, it's what you do with it. (:


I agree completely. 1) What people overlook is that a university education need not necessarily be about the knowledge you learn. It's about your ability to research answers when the time comes that you need them.

2) I think a lot of people don't see the 2nd half of that statement.

Thanks Mike! And yes... I think people tend to avoid most of #2 also...

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I wrote an article for an online magazine that targets employers, and it talks about some of the biases I've dealt with as a Humanities student: http://talentegg.ca/hatch/2009/08/do...-career-fairs/

Thought you guys would maybe like to check it out too!

how did I not know why the Red Suits yelled "spatula" until reading that article? Here I thought it was just a random inanimate object and had no meaning. oops.

I'm going to be honest...I do think the spatula chant is hilarious, because I'm a big fan of subtle humour. I also randomly take shots at my Hummer friends (who are all graduated now and I miss them ): ) like randomly throwing in "...and the humanities students flip our burgers!" to see how 'mad' they would get... But that doesn't make it true. To be honest, if it was true, I wouldn't find it funny.

It'd be like chanting BED PANS! to all the nurses...and that's just lame.

I sometimes have an identity crisis where I think I should be in humanities (or soc. sciences) because a lot of the courses from those faculties reflect many of my interests. If I were any good.. my first choice would definitely be something in the SOTA or maybe English/languages. I still enjoy my course list at present and am intersted in a particular job that my program could lead to though.

Originally Posted by sinthusized

I sometimes have an identity crisis where I think I should be in humanities (or soc. sciences) because a lot of the courses from those faculties reflect many of my interests. If I were any good.. my first choice would definitely be something in the SOTA or maybe English/languages. I still enjoy my course list at present and am intersted in a particular job that my program could lead to though.

I know how you feel. :| I was in SocSci first year, thinking of going to Law school with a sociology degree but I was so unsure about it, since I wasn't sure if Law was really for me, even though I liked it a lot. Then when I fell in love with my Humanities electives, I had a really hard time deciding on whether or not to switch over because everyone I talked to gave me a bad rap about Humanities, and I was honestly offended.

But I talked to my parents finally, and they didn't care what I did, as long as I'm happy with what I'm doing and I know that I won't be a homeless person outside of Timmies one day. I love Humanities, and no one should let someone else dictate whether or not it's a good faculty for them.

"Remember your humanity, and forget the rest"- Bertrand Russell

you would know Russell quotes off by heart.

but excellent point.

Plus, for the social and advocacy side, you do have the McMaster Humanities Society! Every Humanities student pays a portion of their student fees into the MHS and the MHS is, in turn, responsible for Welcome Week, throwing events throughout the year and acting as the student voice for concerns that Humanities students have. We also provide excellent directions for people who are lost in the basement of the Arts Quad.

TSH B109/A, what what?!