Bachelor of Liberal Arts – Global Studies Concentration
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Unique Offerings
You gain a solid grounding in ideologies, problems and solutions to transnational phenomena such as trade, debt,
outsourcing, environmental concerns, militarization, and global terror. You also explore ways to achieve true democracy
and global justice.
You can take courses in each of the
following six core subject areas:
- Global Economics
- Postcolonial and Diaspora Narratives
- Culture, Conflict and Communication
- Contemporary World Ideologies
- Translating Gender
- International Activism
General Requirements
The degree requirements for graduation are satisfied when you complete:
A total of 180 quarter credits (at least 45 credits taken at Antioch University), including:
- Up to 48 credits of prior learning
- At least 60 upper division credits
- Three required core courses:
- Liberal Studies Seminar; Diversity, Power & Privilege; Inquiry & Research
- An area of concentration (six required courses)
- Four quarters of study at Antioch University Seattle (or more)
- A portfolio of your work reflecting academic progress
- A Senior synthesis project and Symposium presentation.
Length of Program
Most students graduate from the B.A. completion program in two years or less. Completion of 180 quarter credits is required for graduation.
Tuition & Fees
- Tuition: $560 per credit
- Required fees: $145 per quarter
- $6,865 tuition and required fees per quarter, full time (12 credits)
- $27,460 typical annual tuition and fees
- Credits documented for Life Experience: $140 per credit
Annual tuition and fees based on 2013-14 rates for four quarters. Antioch University Seattle students typically attend classes all year.
Career Opportunities
Opportunities may include jobs in foreign language interpretation; public relations; advocacy work; English as a Second Language (ESL) instructor; international business, and/or public relations.
Program Summary
If you have an interest in contemporary world issues, the interdisciplinary Global Studies concentration is for you.
You gain a solid grounding in ideologies, problems, and solutions to transnational phenomena such as trade, debt, outsourcing, environmental concerns, militarization, and global terror. You also explore ways to achieve true democracy and global justice.
The focus is on the late 20th century and opening decade of the 21st century — that is, the “Age of Globalization” that emerged in the wake of imperialism, postcolonialism, and the Cold War.
Core Coursework
Globalization and Its Discontent
Taken as early as possible in a student’s program, courses in this category are the “grounding course” of this area of concentration, and touch upon such issues as free trade, national debt, the role of the World Bank and IMF in poor countries’ economies, multinational corporations, as well as local sustainability, grassroots activism, and international efforts to identify the positive aspects of globalization. An example of a class that would meet this core requirement is Globalization, Development, and Grassroots Movements.
Postcolonial Narratives
Courses in this area feature poetry, essays, novels, plays, and films by writers/directors from various newly independent countries as they address the socio-political turmoil experienced during and immediately after colonialism. A sample class that meets this core requirement is Postcolonial Literature.
Narratives of Displacement
With a special focus on the second half of the 20th century and opening years of the 21st century, courses in this area combine fiction, film, and nonfiction to express the various manifestations of displacement today: exile, diaspora, flight, economic migration, the brain drain, and more. There is focus on the circumstances of peoples displaced within their own historical homeland: the Indigenous peoples of the world, from Palestine to North America. Sample qualifying classes include Literature of Displacement or Border Crossings.
World Ideologies Today
This course looks at the construction of ideologies as manifest in some of the political driving forces in various parts of the world today, from neoconservatives and the Religious Right in the White House, to Wahhabis in the House of Saud, to Hindu fundamentalism, to Zionist Zealots. You also explore some of the movements arising in response to these dominant discourses, such as the Environmental Justice Movement, antiwar efforts, anti-imperialism and Indigenous Rights. This core requirement also can be met by taking two courses looking at two different, specific ideologies.
Translating Gender
If gender is a social construction, then gender issues are bound to differ from society to society. Courses in this area examine gender dynamics as they pertain to men and women on both the local and transnational levels. An example of a class that meets this requirement is Translating Gender: Perceptions, Misperceptions, and Receptions of the “Other.”
War and Peace, Terrorism, Democracy, and Nonviolence
Courses in this area address the escalating militarization of the contemporary world, from state or sectarian-sponsored terrorism, to pre-emptive military strikes for peace, along with an exploration of a variety of grassroots, community-based, and international efforts to envision, design, and begin to implement changes toward an environmentally sustainable world, greater economic justice, strengthened democracy, and peaceful solutions in conflict situations. Sample classes that satisfy this core requirement are Creating a Just, Sustainable, Peaceful Future, and Creating a Nonviolent World.
Sample Electives
Foreign language study and study abroad are strongly recommended as electives for the Global Studies concentration area. Elective classes can be taken from a number of disciplines, such as:
Literature
- Contemporary Women Writers
- U.S. - Vietnam in fiction
- Studying Cultures, Writing Ethnographies
Social Justice
- Palestine - Israel Conflict
- Wealth and Poverty
- International activism
History/World Ideologies
- Marxism
- War and Society in Modern Era
- History of The Holocaust
Spiritual Studies
- Ideas of Heaven
- Pilgrimage: Walking With Intention
- Mindfulness, East and West
Translating Gender
- Black Masculinity in the U.S.
- Women’s Health in the Global South
Sample Community/Field-based Learning Experiences
- Volunteer at an international festival at Seattle Center’s Festal
- Organize a speaker/lecture series on a global issue, hosted by Antioch University Seattle
- Train with an international NGO: Global Exchange, ISM, etc.
Sample Synthesis Projects
- Present a research, critical and/or advocacy paper on a panel that addresses a global issue
- Design and host a forum on a global issue
Aaron Dietz
BA Liberal Studies, 2007
Antioch has a good reputation, he says, for being able to educate self-learners and for keeping students involved in the learning process. He says he was able to create classes geared toward writing and publishing his own book, something he says would have been much harder to do at a state college.
Bob Hasegawa
B.A. Liberal Studies, 2003
Now Eleventh District Democratic Representative, he says his experience at Antioch surprised him by pushing him beyond his areas of concentration and stretching him in directions he'd never thought of going.
Carson Marshall
B.A. Liberal Studies, MA Whole Systems Design, 2001, 2003
He learned the program supports everyone's unique exploration. He said he realized he could create the way he wants to present himself to the world.
Cheryl Honey
BA Liberal Studies , 2004
It was serendipitous that she ended up going to Antioch. She says her advisers taught her she had special gifts to offer this world and she didn't have to ask for permission to make her unique contribution.
Chris Plyman
BA Liberal Studies, 2009
He happened to be walking along Sixth Avenue in Seattle's Belltown neighborhood when he came upon Antioch University. It looked like a place where he could do some exploring, so this retired Army warrant officer decided to give it a try.
Colleen Crotty
BA Liberal Studies, 2007
Antioch teaches you to look at things differently and to get involved in the community. She says she wouldn't trade her experience for anything.
Danielle Cameron
B.A. Liberal Studies, M.A. Psychology, Art Therapy with Mental Health Counseling, 2002
She says the more she learned about Antioch, the more she realized it was a school most likely to help her get where she wanted to go. She says it is the school for students who are independently motivated.
Debra Sund
BA Liberal Studies - Individualized Program: Holistic Early Childhood Education , 2008
She very much appreciates the freedom at Antioch and the smaller class size. She says it has a supportive and comfortable atmosphere for an adult learner
Dimitri Azadi
BA Liberal Studies - Individualized Program: Leadership and Diversity Studies, 2009
When many of his friends came to Antioch for their undergraduate studies, they told him it was a wonderful experience. He says he feels as though he is putting energy into his own well-being at Antioch.
Dollviola Eldred
B.A. Liberal Studies - Current student, M.A. Psychology - Mental Health Counseling, 2007
The only thing she needed to succeed was a good education and — thanks to Antioch — she has advanced in her career and predicts she will continue to climb.
Lance Wischler
BA Liberal Studies, 2007
He says the personal attention he experienced from his first phone call to the admissions department was a factor in coming to Antioch. The personal touch allowed him to feel like he mattered, and that he was not simply another number to be shuffled through the process.
Margie King Bloch
B.A. Liberal Studies, M.A. Whole Systems Design — Organization Systems Renewal, 1997
She chose Antioch because she wanted to learn more about the changing face of leadership, and she wanted to do it in an experiential educational setting
Maria Teresa Blankenship
BA Liberal Studies - Individualized Program: Psychology, Health Healing & Herbalism; MA Psychology, Mental Health Counseling, 2006
With a background in nursing and her interest in health healing, herbalism and psychology, she created a program for herself that she describes as an unforgettable journey.
Mary Sherhart
B.A. Liberal Studies, 1999
She says Antioch is an intense experience, a great place for self-motivated and well disciplined people with lots of meaty life experience under their belts.
Oliver Chadd
BA Liberal Studies, 2007
He was up for the unique method in which Antioch educates. He says he was always a quiet student and knew Antioch was set up in such a way he would be in situations where he could not just fade into the background.
Patricia Cavit
BA Liberal Studies, 2005
She says her independant study was an excellent experience. She was able to investigate exactly the areas she was interested in and receive mentoring from the advisers who were supervising.
Rachel Beals
BA Liberal Studies, Spiritual Studies concentration, 2009
Antioch's Spiritual Studies concentration, she says, is a one-of-a-kind undergraduate program. Her priority? She wants to reduce the isolation and despair so many people face today.
Richard Long
BA Liberal Studies, 2007
He chose Antioch because of its commitment to adult education and its social ideology. He says if the concept that a student, through study, research and relationships, obtains the basic philosophies of the institution they attend, then he is a better student, friend and person.
Stephanie McDonald
BA Liberal Studies - Individualized Program: Depth Psychology; MA Psychology, Mental Health Counseling, 2007 & 2011
Antioch is a transformational place where you can find your voice, build confidence and thrive, according to Stephanie McDonald. After completing her BA, her desire to continue learning was on fire and she entered Antioch University Seattle's graduate program in mental health counseling.
Tina Grant
BA Liberal Studies, 2007
Antioch is a place where you can find what it is you want to do with the rest of your life. She says it is not that the teachers will tell you, but that they create a space for you to explore, experiment and find what it is that fills you with passion.
Young-wha Coulter
B.A. Liberal Studies, 2007
Getting credit for life experience was validating for Coulter, who had been a para-educator working with elementary special education children in the Highline School District.
