PhD in Humanities

Ancient sculpture of AthenaUniversity of Louisville’s Humanities Ph.D. is an innovative, interdisciplinary program that blends the almost centennial tradition of humanistic study at the University of Louisville with a globally oriented and cross-disciplinary curriculum aimed at preparing students to translate the values, methods, and contents of a humanities education into a variety of career pathways. It offers what only a handful of the best funded universities in the nation can offer but at the tuition of a public university and in a city that is known for its arts and humanities heart and hospitality, and with a campus community that is collaborative and supportive.

What makes the Humanities Ph.D. distinctive:

  • Global vision
  • Rigorous interdisciplinarity (rotating teams teaching the core courses)
  • Supervised professionalization (internships and externships)
  • Career diversity inbuilt in its professionalization
  • Creative dissertation projects

Our History: Changing the Humanities from Within

Established in 2003 as a divisional program focused primarily on the study of the western humanities tradition, the Ph.D. in Humanities has grown into the largest interdisciplinary program in the College of Arts and Sciences and has re-invented itself to respond to the needs of students in a changing world and to provide a model of humanities education that engages with the intellectual and epochal shifts in the region and in the world.

Our graduates are employed in a variety of careers, not merely academic, but also in the non-profit sector, public policy, government, libraries, cultural administration, the law, publishing, and institutional education and research. To learn more, visit our Graduate Careers and Job Placements page.

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Humanities PhD Information Sheet