Getting Started in the Major
All ancient studies majors are required to complete the two-quarter series of elementary Ancient Greek (GREE 1 and 2) or Latin (LATN 1 and 2). GREE 1 and LATN 1 are only offered in the fall and GREE 2 and LATN 2 are only offered in the winter. Students admitted to UCSC as frosh should complete their elementary language courses no later than the beginning of their second year. Transfer students should complete these courses during their first two quarter of enollment at UCSC.
Students with prior knowledge of Ancient Greek or Latin language should consult with the Ancient Studies Undergraduate Director to determine if they have satisfied any of the elementary language courses.
Jump to:
Major Requirements
In addition to the two lower division language courses described above, the ancient studies major requires the following:
Introductory Survey (1 course)
One lower division introductory survey course:
- HIS 5C, Introduction to the Bible
- HIS 50, Pyramids and Papyrus: the History of Ancient Egypt
- HIS 51, Pyramids of Earth: Religion and Symbol in the Ancient World
- HIS 59, The History of the English Language (online course)
- HIS 60, Medical and Scientific Terminology (online course)
- HIS 61, Classical Mythology
- HIS 62A, Classical World: Greece
- HIS 62B, Classical World: Rome
- HAVC 50, Ancient Mediterranean Visual Cultures
- HAVC 51, Greek Eyes: Visual Culture and Power in the Ancient Greek World
- HAVC 55, Unclothed: The Naked Body from Antiquity to the Present
- LIT 61M, Approaches to Classical Myth
- LIT 61S, Sacred Texts
- LIT 61X, Tragedy: Learning Through Suffering
- LIT 80T, Literature and Magic
- LIT 80W, Captive Minds: The Literature of Pre-Modern Slavery
- LIT 81A, Homer’s Odyssey
- LIT 81D, The Prophet and the Qur’an
- THEA 61A, Ancient and Medieval Drama
Major Planning Tools
Add a customizable Ancient Studies Major Planning Worksheet and sample quarter-by-quarter plans to your UCSC Google Drive.
***Your Ancient Studies Major Planning Worksheet is the first/default sheet. Look for the sheets tabs, located at the bottom of your browser window, for the 4 Year, 3 Year, and 2 Year sample ancient studies major plans.*
Students with catalog rights from before 2025-26 can find a copy of the Classical Studies Major Planning Worksheet and sample quarter-by-quarter course plans here.
Ancient Greek or Latin Literature (3 courses)
Three upper division courses in Ancient Greek and/or Latin literature:
Greek Literature
Reading proficiency in Ancient Greek required (GREE 1 and 2)
- LIT 184A, Introduction to Greek Literature
- Recommended in the spring quarter following GREE 2
- LIT 184B, Greek Drama
- LIT 184C, Greek Poetry
- LIT 184D, Prose Authors
- LIT 184E, Special Topics in Greek Literature
Latin Literature
Reading proficiency in Latin required (LATN 1 and 2)
- LIT 186A, Introduction to Latin Literature
- Recommended in the spring quarter following LATN 2
- LIT 186B, Roman Poetry
- LIT 186C, Prose Authors
- LIT 186D, Special Topics in Latin Literature
Courses in the LIT 184 and LIT 186 series have rotating topics, e.g., LIT 186B, Roman Poetry: Georgics, and LIT 186B, Roman Poetry: Lucretius. LIT 184 and LIT 186 courses may be repeated for credit, meaning you may enroll in and earn credit for the same course multiple times.
The Disciplinary Communication (DC) General Education Requirement
All UCSC students must complete the Disciplinary Communication (DC) General Education Requirement in their major. Classical studies majors satisfy the DC general education requirement by completing two of the following upper division courses in Greek and/or Latin literature: LIT 184B, 184C, 184D, 184E, 186B, 186C, and 186D.
The introductory Greek and Latin literature courses, LIT 184A and LIT 186A, do not satisfy the DC requirement in classical studies.
Upper Division Electives (6 courses)
Six additional ancient studies upper-division courses, which may include additional courses in upper division Greek or Latin Literature. See the UCSC General Catalog for a list of courses that satisfy this requirement.
Senior Comprehensive Exam and CLST 197F
Ancient studies majors are required to pass a senior comprehensive examination. Each student shall identify a minimum of two classical studies faculty members to serve on the examination committee, one of which shall be designated as the committee chair. Students must complete all components of the examination no later than the 8th week of the quarter in which they intend to graduate.
Enrollment in a 2-credit comprehensive examination preparatory course, ANCS 197F, Senior Comprehensive Examination Preparation, is required in the same quarter that the senior comprehensive examination will be given. The preparatory course will be taken with the chair of the student’s examination committee.
Major Declaration
Ancient studies has no major qualification. Students are permitted to declare this major at any time, but are encouraged to do so only after they have successfully completed the lower-division sequence in elementary ancient Greek or Latin language (or equivalent). Students who are unable to successfully complete ancient Greek (GREE) 1 and 2 or Latin (LATN) 1 and 2 may not advance to the upper-division ancient Greek and/or Latin literature courses required for this major.
- Submit a Petition for Major/Minor via MyUCSC
- Log into MyUCSC (very important first step!) and submit a Petition for Major/Minor.
- This petition can also be accessed by navigating to the Student Homepage in MyUCSC and selecting the Undergraduate Student eForms tile > Petition for Major/Minor.
- Log into MyUCSC (very important first step!) and submit a Petition for Major/Minor.
- Create a Ancient Studies Major Plan of Study
- If you don’t already have one, copy a Ancient Studies Major Planning Worksheet to your UCSC Google Drive.
- Add your completed, in-progress, and planned classical studies courses to your major planning worksheet. Use the Annual Ancient Studies Course list to identify classics courses you’d like to take in the Fall, Winter, and Spring quarters.
- Major requirements that you intend on completing after the current academic year may be left blank on your worksheet.
- Meet with the Ancient Studies Director
- Share your completed major planning worksheet with Ancient Studies Undergraduate Director Martin Devecka. Meet with Professor Devecka during their office hours to review and discuss your proposed plan of study. You may be advised to modify your plan to achieve greater breadth or concentration. Obtain Professor Devecka’s digital signature on your Ancient Studies Major Planning Worksheet.
- Submit Your Ancient Studies Major Plan
- Share your approved Ancient Studies Major Planning Worksheet with the History Undergraduate Program Coordinator. Make sure the “Notify people” box is checked!
You are now officially declared!
OPTIONAL: Double Major or Minor Declaration
To declare a double major or a minor, you must also complete a UCSC Academic Planning Form with both of your major/minor advisors. If you don’t already have one, the Ancient Studies Undergraduate Advisor will provide you with a signed UCSC Academic Planning Form.
To add ancient studies as a second declared major, your UCSC Academic Planning Form must be current and up to date: reviewed and approved by your first major advisor within the last academic quarter. You may need to update your UCSC Academic Planning Form with your first major advisor before petitioning to declare ancient studies as a second major.
Major Declaration Deadlines
Students who enter UCSC as frosh are required to declare a major before enrolling in their third year (or equivalent). Upper division transfer students are required to declare a major before the end of their second term at UCSC. Consult the UCSC Academic and Administrative Calendar for the quarterly “Declaration/Change of Major/Minor” deadline. Students who do not declare a major by the aforementioned deadlines will not be able to enroll in their classes for the following term.
Questions about declaring the classical studies major? Contact the History Undergraduate Program Coordinator.
Senior Comprehensive Examination
Ancient studies majors are required to pass a senior comprehensive examination. Each student shall identify two ancient studies faculty members to serve on the examination committee, one of whom shall be designated as the committee chair. It is the student’s responsibility to arrange the dates of the examination in consultation with their committee chair.
Preparations for your comprehensive exam should begin at least one quarter in advance. The Ancient Studies Comprehensive Exam Checklist will guide you through how to make arrangements and sign up for your exam.
Guidelines for the Comprehensive Examination
The ancient studies senior comprehensive examination has three components:
- A two-hour translation examination consisting of three representative passages taken from Greek and Latin texts. Students are encouraged to demonstrate proficiency in translating both Greek and Latin texts. At the discretion of the exam chair, students proficient in Greek or Latin alone may translate three passages in the language of their choice. Passages will be translated at sight, but, selected from a list of authors and texts with which the student has some prior familiarity. Vocabulary will be provided as appropriate.
- A two-hour written examination. This will consist of two one-hour essays on topics that students have chosen and researched prior to the exam in consultation with their exam committee. Each member of the faculty committee will pose up to three questions relating to one of the two topics. At the time of the examination, a student will select one question from each faculty member and write two separate essays. With the approval of one committee member, a student may substitute a Senior Essay for half of the written exam.
- The written exam will serve as the basis for a one-hour oral examination, during which students will discuss their chosen areas of specialization with their committee members.
Students will consult with exam committee members regarding potential examination topics, which should reflect student interest. Students should meet regularly with their committee members over the quarter preceding the exam to discuss the topics they have chosen, and should be prepared to research these topics under the direction of their committee. The following are examples of topics for the written exam:
- Single author: Homer, Virgil, Livy, Ovid, Sappho, Plato, Cicero, Catullus, etc.
- Genres: epic poetry; drama, historiography, the ancient novel
- Greek and Latin myth
- Special topics (examples): Greek democracy; Roman oratory; ancient visual culture; gender in antiquity; ancient drama in performance; literary and/or narrative theory; Platonic philosophy; Greece and its Others; Egyptian hieroglyphs; biblical narrative; Roman Empire and/or Republic; classical political theory; the practice of translation; varieties of ancient philosophy
All components of the examination must be completed by the 8th week of the quarter.
Evaluation
A committee chair may confer a Pass or Pass with Honors to mark a student’s completion of the exam. Honors will be awarded for exceptional performance on two out of three portions of the exam. The chair also writes the evaluation of a student’s comprehensive examination which describes the student’s areas of focus, evaluates their performance, and justifies any honors awarded.
Honors
Superior performance in the examination and in ancient studies course work may be recognized with the designation of Honors or Highest Honors in the Major, which appears on a student’s diploma and official UCSC transcript. The appropriate designation will be decided upon at the time of the oral exam, based on the committee’s appraisal of the student’s complete transcript.
Ancient Studies Comprehensive Exam Checklist
One Quarter Before Exam
- Select an exam committee of two ancient studies faculty, one of whom will be chair. In consultation with them, choose the topics for your exam.
- Complete a Ancient Studies Senior Check and Petition for Undergraduate Individual Studies with your exam committee chair. Obtain your chair’s signature on both forms.
- Submit your approved Senior Check and Petition for Undergraduate Individual Studies to the classical studies undergraduate program coordinator during drop-in advising hours. You will be issued an enrollment code for ANCS 197F, Senior Comprehensive Examination Preparation (2 units).
- Register for ANCS 197F. Be sure to select the grading option that you and your committee chair agreed upon for your exam.
Quarter of Your Exam
- Apply to graduate (if graduating in the same quarter) by the deadline published in the UCSC Academic and Administrative Calendar.
- Meet with your committee members to decide how you’ll prepare for your exam. In consultation with them, write out a preparation schedule for each of two exam topics which will be the bases for the written essays and the oral exam.
- Optional: Obtain approval from one committee member to substitute a Senior Essay for half of the written exam.
- In consultation with your committee members, set the dates, times, and locations for your translation, written, and oral examinations.
- Report the date of your oral examination to the Undergraduate Program Coordinator no later than the 6th week of the quarter.
- Complete your comprehensive exam by the end of the 8th week of the quarter.