Osita Achufusi: Environment & Sustainability
'I feel equipped to handle whatever uncertainties lie ahead'
A&S Communications
Let curiosity be your guide.
Live, study and grow at the nexus of discovery and impact.
A home for exploration and discovery
Our research activities and academic programs are remarkably broad, but they share one characteristic: all are curiosity-driven. Exploring the unknown is central to our mission to be the nexus of discovery and impact.
Explore research and discoveries
Comparative literature
Nabokov’s Judeo-Christian values informed his creative universe
A&S Communications
>2000
Courses offered in A&S of 4000 courses at Cornell.
Student experiences
Ask an ambassador: How my first-year writing seminar enriched my four years
A&S Student Ambassador
42
Majors to choose in A&S. Design your education.
Milstein Program
Ask an ambassador: Memories of the Milstein Program summer in NYC
A&S Student Ambassador
~4,600
Students in A&S, each with an extraordinary journey to tell.
>90K
A&S alumni in our network. Go Big Red!
Popular Destinations
Congratulations to the Class of 2030!
Welcome to the Big Red community.
Get ready to expand your life and experience beyond the classroom, and to let your curiosity drive your ambitions. The College of Arts & Sciences embodies Ezra Cornell’s founding vision where "any person can find instruction in any study."
Uncommon academic diversity abounds here
The innovative undergraduate curriculum at A&S has distribution requirements that range from global citizenship to physical sciences to ethics and the mind. Classes build upon each other and cross the boundaries of traditional academic fields. Extensive work occurs outside of your major and minors, and there are no required core courses. Work closely with inspiring faculty to develop the hallmark skills of a liberal arts and sciences education – the ability to read critically, write persuasively and think broadly.
Robert S. Harrison College Scholar Program
major
Overview
The Robert S. Harrison College Scholar Program represents the pinnacle of the liberal arts experience at Cornell. The program is focused on a small group of stellar students whose interests transcend disciplinary boundaries. These students have demonstrated exceptional promise and maturity to plan and carry out a well-designed individualized program of study and research. Students design their own interdisciplinary major, organized around a question or issue of interest, and pursue a course of study that cannot be found in an established major.
College Scholars explore subjects with a broader integration of related disciplines than most students would attempt. They pursue their subjects using advanced, often graduate-level, techniques. As a capstone to their studies, all Scholars undertake an independent senior project, usually culminating in an honors thesis. It is a unique opportunity within the College of Arts & Sciences for engagement and learning, in the classroom and beyond.
Details
Biology & Society
major
Overview
The Biology & Society major is an interdisciplinary major that allows students to combine the study of the biological sciences with courses that explore the social and ethical aspects of modern biology. In addition to gaining a foundation in biology, students in the major acquire background in the social dimensions of modern biology and in the biological dimensions of contemporary social issues. The major is open to students in two colleges: Arts & Sciences and Agriculture and Life Sciences. The major is suitable for students seeking careers in law, medicine, public health, public policy, business, research and academia.
Details
Caribbean Studies
minor
Overview
The interdisciplinary Caribbean Studies Minor (CSM) prepares students to understand the region as a site foundational to modernity that remains essential to understanding the present. Courses offered by this minor are designed to provide students with the analytical framework necessary to understand the sociocultural, economic, and political forces that shape the region as well as how those forces—indigenous dispossession, slavery, capitalism—resonate well beyond the geographical space of the Caribbean. Interdisciplinary by nature, the CSM provides a structured yet flexible array of coursework that cuts across history, culture, and the social sciences. Courses in the arts and humanities draw attention to the historical import of the region; how the Caribbean is constructed across various sites and discourses; and how this construction shapes policy realms and everyday life. Social science perspectives illuminate tools for analyzing cultural heterogeneity; the roles of the state, civil society, and ethnic networks; and the way that Caribbean residents and migrants navigate their transnational realities. Students will be introduced to multiple methodologies and will have the opportunity to pursue research in the Caribbean or Caribbean diasporic communities.
The minor is offered collaboratively with courses from across the university through the Department of History, administered by the Latin American and Caribbean Studies Program. For more information on the minor and a list of approved courses, please see the program site.
Details
Classics
major
minor
graduate
Overview
As a Classics major, you can immerse yourself in the cultures of ancient Greece and Rome through four different tracks (Classics, Greek, Latin, Classical Civilization) taking programs in ancient languages, literature, history, archaeology, history of art, science, linguistics and philosophy. Classics majors work closely with individual professors in their areas of expertise, often in small classes, and have many opportunities for independent research and travel. The rigorous analytical training characteristic of a Classics degree helps to develop skills that are valued in a wide variety of careers, as well as giving students a firm foundation for understanding the history of Western culture. With a minor in classics, you’ll conduct your own odyssey through the ancient Mediterranean world by taking any five coherent classics courses (above 1000-level) from one of four different tracks, acquiring proficiency in either Greek or Latin along the way: Classical literature Ancient history (with emphasis on either Greek or Roman) Ancient philosophy Classical art and archaeology
Details
Latina/o Studies
minor
graduate
Overview
With a Latina/o studies minor, you’ll be able to explore the rich histories and contemporary life of Latino communities in the United States. You will learn about Latina/o political and labor participation, creative expression and literature, and issues of immigration, education, language and health. Faculty members from history, sociology, anthropology, literature, language, government, performance studies and more, give you an opportunity to develop an interdisciplinary field of study of Latina/os in the U.S., with an emphasis on a transnational and comparative perspective.
Details
Chemistry
major
graduate
Overview
As a chemistry major, you’ll learn logical thinking and creative problem solving and can either dive deep following a traditional curriculum or pursue a flexible program that may be ideal for those with alternative career goals. The department’s research areas include inorganic, materials, organic, analytical and physical chemistry, as well as chemical biology.
Details
Information Science
major
minor
graduate
Overview
As an information science major, you’ll have a home in two colleges: Arts and Sciences (A&S) and the Cornell Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science.
The Information Science major is ideal for A&S students who wish to explore the human-centered aspects of computing and information, as well as technology’s real-world impact, adoption, and integration into everyday life. This includes the study of ethics, law, and policy, particularly related to artificial intelligence (AI), human-AI interaction and human-robot interaction, networks and markets, social computing, user experience and design, and related topics.
Details
English
major
minor
graduate
Overview
The Department of Literatures in English seeks to foster critical analysis and lucid writing. We also strive to teach students to think about the nature of language and to be alert to both the rigors and the pleasures of reading texts of diverse inspiration.
English majors engage with English, American, and Anglophone literature of an astounding historical span and global variety, and are trained to respond to what they read in a rich and complex variety of ways—from expository essays and scholarly inquiries to class discussions and creative writing of their own.
Students develop their own programs of study in consultation with their major advisors. Some focus on a particular historical period or literary genre, or combine sustained work in creative writing with the study of literature. Others pursue interests in such areas as women’s literature, regional literature, literature and the visual arts, or critical theory.
Details
South Asian Studies
minor
Overview
With a minor in Asian studies, you can focus on East Asia, South Asia or Southeast Asia. Your courses can include the study of language, literature, religion and culture in the Department of Asian Studies, as well as courses on Asian history, politics, anthropology, sociology and economics offered in other departments.
Details
Public History
minor
Overview
Public history is any form of historical engagement that moves beyond the traditional classroom and scholarly publication, including monuments, museums, oral history, historical preservation, walking tours, as well as historically-engaged performance and documentary film. The Public History minor provides students opportunities to think critically about diverse modes of historical learning and storytelling and the many ways historical knowledge circulates in public life: Whose histories are privileged and silenced? What strategies can we use to uncover and share knowledge of the past? How does history shape experiences of identity and community? And how can public and community-engaged history help us to better understand society and politics today? Courses in the Public History minor also emphasize applied forms of historical engagement—archival research, community-based oral history projects, and curation.
DetailsBeyond Majors & Minors
The pinnacle of the liberal arts experience
Robert S. Harrison College Scholar Program
Students design their own interdisciplinary major, organized around a question or issue of interest, and pursue a course of study that cannot be found in an established major. Harrison College Scholars explore subjects with a broader integration of related disciplines than most students would attempt.
A deep dive into the humanities
Humanities Scholars Program
This program offers a signature learning, research and collaboration opportunity for undergraduate students across the university who are interested in the humanities.
Shaping the future
Milstein Program
Students in the Milstein Program in Technology & Humanity combine Cornell’s renowned liberal arts and sciences classes in Ithaca with the 21st century tech curriculum at Cornell Tech in NYC.
Funding your summer experience
Summer Experience Grants
Summer opportunities are crucial to student career success, but these life-changing experiences frequently offer little to no funding. That’s a critical barrier for many of our students – and one that the College of Arts and Sciences feels is vital to overcome.
The Summer Experiences Grants (SEG) do just that. They support students with living expenses, transportation, and travel so that these essential experiences are available to all of our students, who may otherwise not be able to afford them.
Research, scholarship and creative works to understand humanity and the cosmos
Curiosity is the driver for research in A&S. From the dendrochronology lab where archaeologists analyze tree-ring growth to understand climate change to the linguistics department where students created a new language for a Captain Marvel movie, our students and faculty take full advantage of all that our world-class research university encompasses.
With opportunities spanning the natural sciences, social sciences and humanities, research here takes place in laboratories, museums, field sites, libraries, hospitals, greenhouses, performance spaces and archives.
Premier postdocs
Klarman Fellowships
This premier postdoctoral fellowship program offers opportunities for early-career scholars of outstanding talent, initiative and promise to devote themselves to frontline, innovative research without being tied to specific outcomes.
Undergraduate research opportunities
Nexus Scholars Program
The Nexus Scholars Program in the College of Arts & Sciences provides undergraduate students with summer opportunities to work side by side with faculty from all across the college (humanities, social sciences, and STEM) on their research projects.
Engaging our community and our world
Open your mind
Arts Unplugged series
The College of Arts & Sciences’ Arts Unplugged series brings research and creative works into the public sphere for discussion and inspiration. These outreach events invite a broad audience to explore the work of scholars and faculty from all disciplines, all backgrounds and all time periods and to celebrate the impact that work continues to have on our daily lives.
Engagement for an informed society
Distinguished Visiting Journalist Program
The College of Arts & Sciences' Distinguished Visiting Journalist Program brings accomplished journalists to Cornell for extended visits. The program aims to recognize excellence in journalism and to provide opportunities for select journalists and the university community to engage with each other.
Faculty Commentary on Current Events
History
Sending Afghan allies to Congo sets ‘terrible precedent," says Cornell expert
A&S Communications
Government
Israel–Lebanon talks reflect wider U.S. strategy to manage Iran fallout
A&S Communications
Government
Taiwan’s opposition leader visits Nanjing, but US and China call the shots
A&S Communications
Faculty in the news
BBC World Service
Related people
Sarah Kreps
Related Departments
Government
04/21/2026
The Economist
Related people
Barry Stuart Strauss
Related Departments
History, Classics
04/23/2026
Wall Street Journal
Related people
Lisa Kaltenegger
Related Departments
Astronomy, Carl Sagan Institute
04/23/2026
USA Today
Related people
Landon Schnabel
Related Departments
Sociology
04/19/2026
Upcoming A&S Events
-
Monday 04:30 PM
Sensory Ethnography
Location: Cornell Cinema
-
Monday 07:30 PM
Cornell Voice Program Senior Showcase: Swan Songs (CU Music)
Location: Barnes Hall
-
Tuesday 05:00 PM
The Costs of Magical Realism: Europe, NATO, and Ukraine Face the Trump Challenge
Location: Goldwin Smith Hall, G64
-
Tuesday 07:30 PM
Arthur Siyun Li, piano (CU Music)
Location: Barnes Hall