Why Pitzer?
Like other nationally recognized liberal arts and sciences colleges, Pitzer offers an outstanding education; a substantial curriculum;
small classes; faculty who are both dedicated teachers and accomplished
researchers; a supportive campus environment; and a network of accomplished
and enthusiastic alumni.
But Pitzer offers something more … the intimacy and flexibility
of a small college combined with the resources of a major university
— through membership in The Claremont Colleges, a unique consortium
of five undergraduate colleges and two graduate schools. The curriculum
and campus life at Pitzer encourage a union of intellect with action,
providing opportunities to test theory, practice techniques, and
explore career options through campus governance, community internships,
classroom discussion, and study abroad.
Pitzer students are encouraged to tailor their education to meet
their specific educational needs and interests, to view issues from
many perspectives, and to ask how the knowledge gained here can
be used to make the world a better place. Pitzer strives to enhance
individual growth while at the same time building community. Students
create their own academic programs in close collaboration with their
faculty advisors through a unique set of educational objectives.
Educational Objectives
Interdisciplinary Perspective
By bringing together the perspectives of several disciplines, you
gain an understanding of each discipline and of the kind of contribution
each can make to an exploration of the significant issues. Interdisciplinary
fields, such as American Studies, include courses in anthropology,
art, economics, English, environmental studies, history, political
studies, and sociology.
Intercultural Understanding
By learning about your own culture and placing it in comparative
perspective, you come to appreciate other cultures and recognize
the ways your own thoughts and actions are influenced by the culture
in which you live.
A Harvard Business Review article states that: “more and
more corporate leaders are preoccupied with bridging the differences
in corporate and national cultures.” Today’s graduates
must be prepared to collaborate across cultures and across disciplines,
as physicists work side-by-side with virtual reality experts, and
biologists call on philosophers to tackle ethical issues.
Concern with Social Responsibility
and the Ethical Implications of Knowledge and Action
In the process of engaging with Pitzer’s Social Responsibility
Objective, you will learn to critically examine the ethical implications
of social, political, historical and scientific knowledge; and you
will learn to evaluate the impact of individual and collective actions
as they are manifested in social and political policy.
“Pitzer students and faculty go beyond traditional borders
of disciplines to create something new,” says sociology Professor
Peter Nardi. “We do this through action instead of just classroom
learning. Working in the community is often one of the components
of our classes.”
Breadth of Knowledge
By exploring the humanities and fine arts, natural sciences
and mathematics, and social and behavioral sciences, you develop
an understanding of the nature of human experience — its complexity,
its diversity of expression, its continuities and discontinuities
over space and time, and those conditions which limit and liberate
it.
We encourage independent study, experiential learning, and creative
scholarship. Grounded within the structure of The Claremont Colleges,
Pitzer’s flexible approach to education shows you how to examine
academic and community issues in new and creative ways.
Understanding in Depth
By studying a particular subject matter in depth, you experience
the kind of mastery which makes informed, independent judgment possible.
To obtain understanding in depth, you’ll declare your major
prior to your junior year. A substantial part of your junior and
senior years will then be devoted to studies in your major, which
must demonstrate sufficient coherence, depth, and rigor to meet
the goal of mastery of the topic. Strong intra- and extramural funding
has created opportunities for students to engage in intensive collaborative
research projects with faculty members in their concentration areas.
In recent years, many students have presented the results of these
projects at national and regional research conferences.
Critical Thinking, Formal Analysis,
and Effective Expression
By evaluating the ideas of others and participating in
various styles of research, you develop your capacity for critical
judgment. By exploring mathematical and other formal systems, you
acquire the ability to think in abstract, symbolic ways. By writing
and communicating orally, you acquire the ability to express your
ideas effectively.
The First-Year Seminar is your first introduction to critical thinking
and writing, analysis, group discussion, Pitzer faculty, and your
fellow students. Through such courses as Environmental Toxicology, Deeper Foundations of Social Justice, and Social and
Ethical Issues Arising from Emerging Technologies, you’ll
begin to develop your potential for becoming a more literate person
who thinks, reads, writes, and speaks effectively.
The Office of Admission is located in Pitzer Hall,
just south of the Gold Student Center.
Phone: 909-621-8129
Fax: 909-621-8770
email: admission@pitzer.edu
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