COURSE CURRICULUM

The Bachelor of Arts in Dance is a 120-hour undergraduate program designed to give students a broad and practical understanding of the dance field through training in multiple genres such as ballet, jazz, hip-hop, modern, and contemporary dance, along with academic coursework in communication, history, sciences, mathematics, philosophy, and languages. Students progress through a structured four-year plan beginning with foundational technique classes like Jazz I, Ballet I, and Modern/Contemporary I alongside general education requirements such as English composition, government, social sciences, and US 1100 orientation, followed by continued technical training in intermediate and advanced levels such as Ballet II–IV, Jazz II–IV, and Modern/Contemporary II–IV. In the sophomore and junior years, students expand into dance composition, conditioning, somatic practices, and performance-based electives while also completing requirements in life sciences, humanities, and a modern language sequence (1410, 1420, 2310, 2320). The curriculum also includes a minor and additional electives to ensure academic breadth. Upper-level coursework emphasizes professional development, choreography, improvisation, internships, and specialized topics such as somatic principles, contact improvisation, and contemporary issues in dance, helping students connect performance skills with creative and industry-based knowledge. By senior year, students focus on advanced electives, capstone-style experiences like Dance Internship or Professional Development for Dancers, and continued academic requirements including literature and advanced electives outside the major. The program is designed not only to develop strong technical and artistic abilities but also to prepare graduates for careers in performance, choreography, teaching, arts administration, and related creative industries, ensuring both artistic versatility and academic completion of all 120 required credit hours.