The College of Liberal Arts (CLA), the largest school within Mount St. Mary’s, enables you to make connections through freely exploring human achievement. We critically examine the past and discover ways to build upon it. Through CLA courses, we better understand ourselves and our diverse world in order to transform it. We gain a fuller understanding of the pursuit of knowledge, culture and leadership.
With majors, minors and special programs in all areas of the humanities, we develop a greater ability to synthesize, articulate and create. Employers, including intelligence agencies, public relations firms, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations, recognize this quality in CLA graduates across all programs, from criminal justice to theology and from German to philosophy, politics and economics (PPE).
The programs in the Mount’s College of Liberal Arts will inspire and challenge you. Small classes, caring professors, knowledgeable students and abundant leadership opportunities create a transformative environment that will move you toward a better version of yourself who interacts productively with the world.
I can give others a love greater than my own. I can strive to give others the love of God. I can try to love my student-athletes, my staff, my colleagues in the way that God loves them.
Within the College of Liberal Arts, there are nine departments designed to give students extra focus in their specific areas of study:
Within the College of Liberal Arts, you will develop skills, both in the classroom and beyond, that employers are looking for—analytical thinking, effective oral and written communication, insightful interpretation, and innovative problem solving.
These resources at the Mount are here to support your education and development of such skills:
You have a wide range of student opportunities programs that will keep you inspired and engaged, from lecture series and experiential writing opportunities to performance based learning and honor societies. You're sure to find something that keeps you inspired and engaged.
Study Abroad Programs of varying lengths allow you to explore foreign cultures and expand your educational reach.
The Writing Center assists students in developing their skills in writing, both analytically and critically.
Our World Languages & Cultures Learning Center is equipped with resources to help guide you through mastering a new language. Students can gather for one-on-one or group conversations in in a specific language or work independently reading language specific periodicals or completing programs through computer aided resources.
The Mount Community Advancement Resources in Training Assessment and Service (CARiTAS) program seeks to respond to that need through our efforts to mobilize all in our community to serve, especially through our relationship with community partners.
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The Master of Arts in Philosophical Studies (MAPS) This graduate program provides liberal arts students with the unique opportunity for advanced study of philosophy, emphasizing both the history of philosophy and major topical areas, with attention to how these inform and are informed by the Catholic intellectual tradition. The MAPS program is designed to be compatible with the philosophical education included in the two-year pre-theology program of the Mount's Seminary, but the program is not limited to seminary students.
From being published on topics such as Shakespeare, Ranked Choice Voting, Medieval England, and Roman Catholicism in the Digital Age, to presenting at institutions such as Oxford University and Villanova University, to winning prestigious awards, College of Liberal Arts faculty have been making news. Come see all they've been involved with.