University of Notre Dame

Not to be confused with the University of Notre Dame Australia

Academics

Faculty

According to the Bylaws and Academic Articles of the university, the university faculty are grouped into colleges, schools, institutes, and the library system.

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Colleges

Established as the university's first and only college in 1842, the College of Arts and Letters is the largest of the four faculty colleges. Housing eighteen departments in the fine arts, the humanities, and the social sciences, the college awards the Bachelor of Arts and the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in over fifty majors or concentrations. According to the university website, undergraduate studies in the college offer students "a contemporary version of the traditional liberal arts education." The college also offers graduate studies in most of its departments, typically leading to the PhD, as well as a professional Master of Divinity program.

Related Topics:
1842 - Bachelor of Arts - Bachelor of Fine Arts - Contemporary - Liberal arts - PhD - Master of Divinity

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The science faculty of the university serves as the College of Science. The university first awarded Bachelor of Science degrees in 1865. Today, the College of Science offers curricula leading to the Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, and PhD degrees in the departments of Biological Sciences, Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mathematics, and Physics. It also offers an undergraduate Pre-professional Studies program to prepare college students to study medicine.

Related Topics:
Bachelor of Science - 1865 - Master of Science - Medicine

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The College of Engineering was established as a distinct unit of the University in 1920, although a program in civil engineering was offered in 1873. The engineering faculty is now organized into the departments of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering and Geological Sciences, Computer Science and Engineering and Electrical Engineering, and has curricula leading to Bachelor, Master, and PhD degrees in all those disciplines and Environmental Sciences.

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Established in 1921, the Mendoza College of Business consists of the university's business faculty. It offers the Bachelor of Business Administration degree with concentrations in Accountancy, Finance and Business Economics, Management, Marketing, and Management of Information Systems. The college also offers professional studies leading to the Master of Business Administration and Master of Science in Accounting degrees and is ranked among the Top Tier MBA schools in the United States by US News and BusinessWeek 2004 rankings.

Related Topics:
Mendoza College of Business - Bachelor of Business Administration - Master of Business Administration - Master of Science in Accounting

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Schools

The Law School is the body of law scholars at the university. Notre Dame was the first Roman Catholic university in the United States to have a law program, which was started in 1869 and has consistently ranked among the top 30 law schools in the nation over the past decade according to US News and World Report. Its national program is designed to equip students to practice law in any US jurisdiction. The Law School grants the professional Juris Doctor degree as well as the graduate Master of Laws and Doctor of Juridical Science degrees.

Related Topics:
Law program - 1869 - Juris Doctor - Master of Laws - Doctor of Juridical Science

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The architecture faculty of the university is organized into the School of Architecture. Courses in architecture were taught at the university as early as 1869, with the School of Architecture offering formal instruction in architecture since 1898. Today, the school offers a five-year undergraduate program leading to the Bachelor of Architecture degree. The program is accredited by the National Architecture Accrediting Board and the curriculum conforms to NAAB requirements for the professional degree in architecture. The school also offers graduate studies leading to the Master of Architecture degree.

Related Topics:
1869 - National Architecture Accrediting Board - Master of Architecture

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Institutes

Many of the faculty of the university participate in one or more of the university's 84 interdisciplinary research institutes and centers. Notable institutes are the Medieval Institute and the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies. The complete list of institutes, centers, and laboratories can be found here.

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University libraries

The library faculty of the university are divided into two groups: the University Library system and the Kresge Law Library. The University Library system is the major group of libraries on campus. Its main building is the fourteen-story Theodore M. Hesburgh Library, but it also includes branch libraries for Architecture, Chemistry & Physics, Engineering, the Life Sciences, and Mathematics. The library system holds 2 million volumes and 2.5 million microform units and subscribes to 22,600 serial publications. The Kresge Law Library, which is the library of the Law School, currently holds 324,000 volumes and 294,000 microform units and subscribes 6,200 serial publications.

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Students

According to the university's academic code, students are classified as either undergraduate students, graduate students, or two kinds of professional students: law students or graduate business students. Each group has its own seperate student government organization. The administration of the college or school in which a student has their primary course of study serves as his or her academic administrators. There are two exceptions to this rule: first year undergraduate students, whose administration is the First Year of Studies program, and graduate students, whose administration is the Graduate School.

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The First Year of Studies program was established in 1962 and is the program to which all incoming first-year students are admitted. Students do not declare a major during this time. Through the structure of the curriculum, the First Year of Studies responds to the uncertainty regarding the choice of college and major that many first-year students experience. The first-year curriculum also accommodates the academic needs of students who have already committed to a specific academic program. The program includes academic advising and a Learning Resource Center, which provides time management, collaborative learning, and learning strategy tutorials as well as subject tutoring.

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Founded in 1918, the Graduate School is a body of administrators who coordinate master and doctoral studies in the colleges of the university and the School of Architecture. They approve the graduate programs proposed by the academic departments of the colleges and ultimately admit graduate students to studies and confer graduate degrees. The academic departments, though, provide academic and research advising for the students, do most of the admission decision making, and ultimately certify to the Graduate School the readiness of the student for the granting of graduate degrees.

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