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General Information

The Colleges of Arts and Sciences are comprised of four colleges that offer an integrated curriculum leading to baccalaureate and graduate degrees, certificates, and minors in their respective colleges. Each college includes an administrative unit and a number of academic departments and programs.

The four colleges are served by one administrative unit, the Academic Affairs and Student Academic Services office, which is a part of the Colleges of Arts and Sciences.

An excellent education is the primary mission of the University of Hawai'i at Manoa, and the Colleges of Arts and Sciences is at the heart of this mission, providing students with a comprehensive learning experience in a vibrant academic climate.

UH Manoa undergraduates take their first University courses in the Colleges of Arts and Sciences as they undertake the General Education Core curriculum that is part of all the bachelor degrees offered on the campus. This liberal arts curriculum stresses the integration of knowledge to enhance students' understanding of life, the human condition, and the world in which we live. The core curriculum also entails critical thinking, which enables students to evaluate arguments, ideas, and theories and to develop creative and meaningful applications of what they learn. The core gives students the tools of inquiry, enabling them first to identify important questions and then to seek, analyze, and interpret possible answers to issues of their lives, world, and universe. The curriculum also provides opportunities to develop students' artistic and creative imaginations and their oral and written communication skills so that they can effectively present their ideas, thoughts, and feelings. Since values guide human actions, the core curriculum allows students to examine their own values and learn about those of others in order to help the students understand themselves and others around the world.

Students who earn their degrees in one of the Colleges of Arts and Sciences will find that the programs of the colleges are designed with the conviction that, beyond the core curriculum, liberally educated persons should have an intensive knowledge of at least one field of the arts, the humanities, the languages, the natural sciences, or the social sciences. An ideal education, based in the liberal arts, prepares students for productive lives and careers, enlightened citizenship, and lifelong learning. The colleges strive to enhance excellent learning opportunities by promoting active student participation.

Accreditations and Affiliations

All academic programs are reviewed and evaluated regularly by campus and external faculty committees. Some academic programs, because of the nature of the discipline, are accredited also by national organizations. Check with individual academic departments and programs for their accreditation status or affiliation with national or international organizations.

Degrees and Certificates

For a listing of the degrees and certificates offered by the Colleges of Arts and Sciences, see the table at the beginning of this section of the Catalog.

Bachelor's Degrees: Bachelor of Arts (BA), Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA), Bachelor of Music (BMus), Bachelor of Science (BS)

Master's Degrees: Master of Arts (MA), Master of Fine Arts (MFA), Master of Library and Information Science (MLISc), Master of Music (MMus), Master of Public Administration (MPA), Master of Science (MS), Master of Urban and Regional Planning (MURP)

Doctoral Degrees: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees in various disciplines 

Certificate Programs

In addition to the major concentrations that are part of every bachelor's degree, students may choose to pursue a certificate in an area of personal interest. Certificates signify that a student has completed a defined body of work in a particular department or program. Certificates can be conferred as soon as the student completes the program's requirements. The right to confer certificates has been granted to certain programs and departments by the Board of Regents; some certificates are only for graduate students. Most certificates entail a minimum of 15 credit hours of non-introductory course work (including all upper division courses and those on the 200 level that have college-level course prerequisites), completed with a grade of C or better. Information on specific certificates can be obtained from the appropriate department or program office.

The Colleges of Arts and Sciences offer certificate programs in the following disciplines: Classics, clinical psychology, environmental studies, ethnic studies, French, German, Hawaiian, historic preservation, Indo-Pacific languages (Burmese, Filipino, Hindi, Ilokano, Indonesian, Samoan, Sanskrit, Tahitian, Thai, and Vietnamese), international cultural studies, interpretation, music, Pacific Islands studies, peace studies, planning studies, population studies, post-baccalaureate second major†,public administration, religion, Russian, Russian area studies, sophomore honors, Spanish, telecommunication and information resource management, translation, urban and regional planning, and women's studies.

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