Anthropology is the study of the human condition, past and present. Our anthropology program concentrates on three sub-areas within anthropology: cultural anthropology, which studies the ways of life of different groups and communities in the present; archaeology, which studies the human past through its physical remains; and biological anthropology, which focuses on the adaptations, variability, and evolution of humans and their living and fossil relatives.

History as a discipline interrogates the past recorded in human texts, material artefacts, media, oral traditions, and other evidence in order to render its complexity accessible to audiences in the present. More than the mere “study of past events,” whether local, national, or international, History is a public pursuit aimed at the preservation and dissemination of collective memory and the diversity of human experience across times, places, contexts, and communities.

The members of the Philosophy Department at Skidmore College condemn the killings by police and vigilantes of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, among many others. We also condemn structural racism and the entrenched systems of inequality of which these killings, perpetrated amid a pandemic that has disproportionally affected communities of color, are only the most recent and virulent symptoms. We support the social movements that highlight these injustices and work for change.

Chemistry is at the heart of modern scientific and technical inquiry — from the composition of distant stars, to geochemical transformations taking place deep within our own planet, to modern pharmaceuticals and high-performance materials, to our own bodies. Not surprisingly, chemistry is often dubbed the "central science," given it is key to advances in fields as diverse as geology, neuroscience, molecular biology, and materials science. The Chemistry program at Skidmore College is certified by the American Chemical Society (ACS). Students can major in Chemistry or Chemistry with a biochemistry concentration, and earn an ACS certified degree.

Many of humanity's most perplexing challenges, from poverty and inequality to environmental degradation and climate change, have economic roots. Through the examination of human behavior, institutions, markets, and government policies, the methods and models of economic theory provide crucial insights into how the global world works.

Classics, the study of ancient Greece, Rome, and the Mediterranean world at large, offers a rich interdisciplinary experience predicated on history, material culture, language, literature, philosophy, and much more. The Classics major and minor enable students to hone their analytical, creative, and literary abilities, and prepare them for a wide range of careers, including the dramatic arts, law, museum curating, medicine, publishing, editing, political science, teaching, and business. In short, Classics provides a solid foundation for life after Skidmore.

Hello and welcome to the Department of Psychology at Skidmore College! Our goal is to help students understand the exciting and quickly changing field of psychological science. We provide psychology majors a foundation in experimental methodology and scientific writing early in their curriculum to prepare them for the advanced-level courses and research experiences that are critical to understanding and conducting psychological science.

The Skidmore Music Department is rooted in the liberal arts tradition: we believe that music is an essential component of human experience and a unique vehicle for artistic, intellectual, and personal growth. By offering a range of opportunities, including classes, ensembles, lessons, and events, we strive to equip students of all backgrounds to experience, explore, and understand human culture and creativity through musical study.

Neuroscience is the scientific community's effort to understand the mechanisms that give rise to thoughts, motives, and behavior. The study of the nervous system can be pursued from biological, biochemical and psycho- logical perspectives; as such, neuroscience is a thoroughly interdisciplinary endeavor that blurs the traditional barriers between such specialties. Neuroscientists investigate the connections between events that occur at the subcellular level (molecular genetics and molecular biology), the cellular level (electrophysiology, cell histology), the systems level (developmental biology, neurophysiology, functional anatomy) and the behavior of the whole organism (animal behavior, cognitive psychology). Addressing the fundamental questions of neuroscience thus requires the collaboration of specialists in diverse fields.

Some say that “there is a sociology of everything,” and, indeed, sociology is perhaps the single most diverse discipline of them all. Sociology explores every intricacy of our social worlds, from the ways we interact in small groups to crime and deviance, from race and gender relations to love and divorce, from the role of religion in everyday life to environmental justice, and more. Sociology majors graduate with the ability to gather data independently about these phenomena, to analyze them statistically and qualitatively, and to apply theories to explain them. Perhaps most importantly, sociology deepens students’ awareness of the social forces affecting their lives and those of others, enabling them to address a host of social issues critically and constructively.

The mission of the Dance Department is to link critical thinking, historical perspective, and creative discovery with the distinct skills derived from physically-sound studio practice, performance, and research. Skidmore provides a rigorous four-year experience that enables students to pursue the major or minor in a way that effectively supports their personal goals and ambitions.

Gender studies is an interdisciplinary academic field that draws on feminist, gender, queer and intersectional theories and scholarship to analyze the experiences, perspectives, and contributions of women, men, and nonbinary people and systems of gender relations in various cultural settings and time periods.

The Asian Studies Program offers an interdisciplinary and global approach to examining the multiple facets of cultures, traditions, and contemporary realities of Asian countries and peoples. Asian Studies courses are taught by Skidmore faculty from various departments and programs with research expertise across Asia. The program offers an extraordinary breadth of classes from the social sciences, humanities, and visual and performing arts exploring topics such as political histories, development and economy, war and peace, language and literature, music, art history, philosophical and religious traditions, ecologies and environmentalism, and pop culture.

The Education Studies Department at Skidmore College offers a major in education studies that leads to initial teaching certification in New York State for elementary grades 1–6. Skidmore College is a member in good standing of the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP). The college is working toward accreditation of its educator preparation programs under the AAQEP standards with an anticipated Quality Assurance Review in fall 2022.

American Studies is an interdisciplinary major that focuses upon life and culture in the United States, past and present, using a variety of resources, techniques, and methodological approaches. The major examines the diversity of Americans, as well as their commonly shared experiences and incorporates race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, class, and ability as categories of analysis. The major is structured to allow students to take courses about the United States and related topics in different departments and to integrate that material into the courses that the American Studies faculty teach.