Subject Details

The humanities encompass culture from every imaginable perspective. As a humanities student, you'll study languages, literature, art, history, music, philosophy, religion, and more. The skills you accrue discovering the wonders of the human experience give you a global understanding that spans time and cultural divides.

You will master the art of learning, think in novel ways, become a research savant, write with clarity and elegance, and plow through abstract problems.

Pursuing the humanities as your major revolves around finding the best match for your personality and interests. Your career choice should include the ability to absorb novel, fast-moving information about virtually any aspect of the human condition.

You need to be open-minded, flexible, and ready to take on unexpected challenges. Humanities graduates have the broad intellectual foundation that’s invaluable in the modern workplace.

The humanities are bursting with diverse disciplines, which can make narrowing down you career choices a welcome problem. Many humanities grads become policymakers, researchers, and marketing professionals.

You can study this subject area as part of course requirements for an award - degree, diploma or certificate - in another discipline. If you want to eventually earn a Bachelor’s degree in this subject, talk to a counselor or advisor early on and create a transfer plan.

The Humanities at Inver Hills

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What Are the Humanities?

“The term 'humanities' includes, but is not limited to, the study and interpretation of the following: language, both modern and classical; linguistics; literature; history; jurisprudence; philosophy; archaeology; comparative religion; ethics; the history, criticism and theory of the arts; those aspects of social sciences which have humanistic content and employ humanistic methods; and the study and application of the humanities to the human environment with particular attention to reflecting our diverse heritage, traditions, and history and to the relevance of the humanities to the current conditions of national life.”

— National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act, 1965, as amended

Popular Humanities Career Paths

Advertising
- Understanding the inner workings of human cultures and societies promotes exceptionally creative thinking.
Foreign service
- Focusing on a specific cultural realm opens doors to a career in the diplomatic corps working overseas.
Journalism
- Correspondents investigate, analyze, make reasoned decisions and communicate on point, all qualities of a humanities graduate.
Law
- Law schools appreciate humanities majors for their ability to think critically, view issues at the micro and macro levels, and find useful correlations between current affairs and past events.
Public administration
- Keeping society running smoothly for every citizen is the role of public servants, a role humanities majors understand from studying social orders of all kinds in places all around the planet.
Publishing
- Because they have read and critiqued the very best of world literature, humanities majors not only recognize top-quality writing, but are also equipped to handle the ever-changing landscape of the publishing industry.
Teaching
- Humanities grads are passionate about their focus of study. That passion translates as a talent for passing on their accumulated observations and wisdom to future generations.

Humanities-Related Occupations in Detail

Professional Organizations

American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS)
American Society for Bioethics + Humanities (ASBH)
Community College Humanities Association (CCHA)
National Humanities Alliance (NHA)
The Association for Computers and the Humanities (ACH)

Humanities at Inver Hills Adds Up

What you’ll accomplish as a student in our Humanities department:

Work directly with knowledgeable, student-focused humanities faculty
Benefit from small class sizes and collaborating with likeminded classmates
Develop a profound appreciation for the humanities
Acquire a full range of transferrable skills essential for creative endeavors across a full spectrum of fields
Discover how humanistic knowledge provides an exemplary foundation for exploring and interpreting the human experience
Save money and continue your academic and professional careers with less student debt

According to U.S. News & World Report, national student loan debt topped $1.7 trillion in the second quarter of 2021, or roughly $740 billion more than U.S. total credit card debt.

In Minnesota, 900,000 student loan borrowers owe an average $31,250 in federal and private student debt. That debt translates into an average monthly payment topping $250.

Tuition and fees for one year at Inver Hills costs a little less than $5,500. Compare that to $15,000 to $20,000 at a for-profit college, or $40,000 to $50,000+ at a private college or university. You can complete your first two years at Inver Hills getting a topflight, hands-on education from knowledgeable, caring and experienced faculty and then transfer to a four-year school as a junior all while saving thousands of dollars.

Additional Resources

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