Academics
Undergraduate
Jewish Studies Major
UCSC is one of the very few campuses in California where undergraduates have the opportunity to major in Jewish Studies. Students in this interdisciplinary program achieve an extraordinary depth and breadth of learning about Jewish history and culture, especially its literature, art, and history, as well as its ethics, folk practices, and philosophy.
Undergraduate
Jewish Studies Minor
Students whose major area of interest is not Jewish studies may nonetheless find that a minor in Jewish studies makes an invaluable contribution to their studies. This introduction to Jewish studies is helpful for students who plan to do graduate work in Jewish studies, whether through traditional academic disciplines or in Jewish studies programs, and also for students who plan to attend rabbinical schools or to find work with Jewish communities. For others with an interest in Jewish topics, but without such plans, a minor in Jewish studies offers intellectual enrichment and a focus within the student’s chosen field.
News
Humanities graduates apply human-centered thinking in impactful careers
Across disciplines, they point to critical thinking, ethical reasoning, adaptability, and empathy as core strengths developed through humanities coursework.
A vision of freedom: the overlooked Black women activists who rallied for the vote in the Pacific Northwest
Long before women gained the right to vote nationwide in 1920, Black women in the Pacific Northwest were already working to shape political life—organizing clubs, building party networks, and mobilizing voters.
Assistant Professor of History Quin’Nita Cobbins-Modica’s research shines a light on these overlooked political strategists. Her scholarship has earned her the 2025 Judith Lee Ridge Award, which recognizes the best article in any field of history published by a member of the Western Association of Women Historians (WAWH).
New book chronicles the life of an enslaved man on the run in the 1700s
David George was born enslaved in Virginia in 1742, but he never gave up on his fight for freedom. Running by night, fording rivers and crossing borders, George embarked on a decades-long odyssey in and out of captivity that carried him thousands of miles. Those repeated getaway form the heart of The Escapes of David George: An Odyssey of Slavery, Freedom, and the American Revolution (St. Martin’s Press), a forthcoming book by History Professor Gregory O’Malley.