Bachelor of Greek at University of California, Berkeley

Bachelor of Arts (BA)

The major in Greek provides training in ancient Greek from the ground up, enabling students to encounter texts such as Homer's Odyssey, Sophocles' Antigone, and the dialogues of Plato in their original form.  Students majoring in Greek contextualize these readings by taking classes in Ancient Greek and Roman Studies (AGRS), where they explore many different aspects of Greek culture and read a broad array of ancient texts in translation.

Declaring the Major

To declare the major,  meet with the Ancient Greek and Roman Studies undergraduate adviser, who can help you create a course plan and complete the declaration. You may also want to review the Letters & Science advising site for a guide to declaring a major. For a detailed list of requirements, please see the Major Requirements tab.

Honors Program

Students who are declared majors in Greek and who have a GPA (both general and departmental) of at least 3.6 are eligible for honors in Greek. The honors program consists of a two-semester course sequence " GREEK H195A and GREEK H195B, that is designed to support the writing of a thesis. This thesis, which will be evaluated by an honors committee of three members, may either build on work in a previous upper division course used in fulfillment of the Greek major or it may be a newly conceived project. It is due the Monday of the 13th week of the semester in which Greek H195B is taken.

Further details can be found online at AGRS Undergraduate Honors. Please consult with an AGRS undergraduate adviser to begin planning to participate in honors.

Minor Program

The Department of Ancient Greek and Roman Studies offers a minor in Greek Studies. The minor requires five upper division courses in Greek language and related courses. At least three courses must be in the Greek language; up to two courses may be courses with substantial content relevant to Greek literature, philosophy, culture, or history.  Courses or seminars taught by AGRS professors in other departments may also be accepted, in consultation with the Undergraduate Faculty Advisor. One of the five courses may be taken outside of the department on campus or abroad with the approval of the Undergraduate Faculty Advisor.

Other Majors and Minors offered by the Department of Ancient Greek and Roman Studies

Ancient Greek and Roman Studies (Major and Minor)
Greek and Latin (Major only)
Latin (Major and Minor)

Visit Department Website

The learning goals should be understood in the context of the mission statement of the Department of Ancient Greek and Roman Studies. The first two components of that statement are especially relevant to undergraduate teaching and are repeated here:

1. To give students across the University access to the literature, history, archaeology, mythology and philosophy of the ancient Greek and Roman world through an array of undergraduate courses on classical Ancient Greek and Roman culture in translation. These courses introduce students to texts, artifacts, and ideas that are worth studying both in their own right and as abidingly influential elements in the imagination and history of later cultures. Such study deepens students' understanding of present-day issues by inculcating a sense of historical perspective that takes into account both the differences and the continuities between contemporary and ancient cultures.
2. To enable undergraduates to immerse themselves in the language and culture of ancient Greece and Rome through its majors in Greek, Latin, and Classical Ancient Greek and Roman Civilizations. These majors equip students with knowledge and analytical skills that can be applied in many areas (e.g., law, politics, business, biosciences, computer science, and media) as well as providing essential preparation for graduate study in Classics, Comparative Literature, Philosophy, and other fields.

Learning Goals for the Major

1. Acquire a basic grounding in the vocabulary, morphology, and syntax of classical Greek.
2. Practice the skills needed to use dictionaries, grammars, and other resources to read intermediate texts accurately and to deal comfortably with at least some advanced texts in the original language(s).
3. Gain a critical awareness of continuities and differences between and within cultures and of ideologies of gender, group identity, social status, and political organization.
4. Demonstrate the ability to interpret texts and material culture and to understand the implications of interpretive methods.
5. Demonstrate the ability to synthesize a well-organized argument from textual or other evidence and to express it in formal English prose.