Undergraduate

• Overview
• Seminar Format
• Curriculum
• Senior Emphasis
• Minors
• Simulations and Field Experiences
• Graduation Requirements
• More Info (tuition, off-campus options, etc.)

The purpose of the George Wythe University Bachelor Degree program is twofold: 1) to provide a broad, quality liberal arts education, and 2) to train students to be skilled, virtuous and effective leaders in families, communities, businesses and governments of the twenty-first century.

George Wythe University helps students accomplish these goals using the same methods George Wythe did. As one biographer put it:

Thomas Jefferson's studies with George Wythe were four "years of virtually uninterrupted reading, not only in the law but also in the ancient classics, English Literature, and general political philosophy. It wasn't so much an apprenticeship for law as it was an apprenticeship for greatness."

At George Wythe University we pursue this “apprenticeship for greatness” through a seminar format, simulations and field experiences.

Seminar Format

George Wythe University only offers one undergraduate degree, a BA in Statesmanship. On-campus students enroll in one seminar per semester. Each seminar is a group of classes taught as an interdisciplinary search for truth. These seminars include studies in the following areas:

History	Constitutional Law
Political Science	Philosophy
Political Economy	Public Policy
The Fine Arts	Mathematics
Biblical Studies	Protocol and Etiquette
International Relations	Literature
Negotiation and Diplomacy	Entrepreneurship
Current Events	Science
Statesmanship	Foreign Language

This is accomplished through extensive reading in the Great Books of the Western Tradition as well as through required writings and essays in all seminar courses and at each stage of the student's progress. George Wythe University students prepare for leadership the way Thomas Jefferson prepared. As another biographer wrote: 

"It was the greatest stroke of good fortune that Thomas Jefferson had the opportunity to be accepted by George Wythe as a protégé for the study of law....Wythe thought a well- trained lawyer should know just about everything and Thomas Jefferson had the appetite for it. He studied not only the law but also languages...mathematics, philosophy, [science], religion, politics, history, literature, rhetoric, and virtually every other subject imaginable....Jefferson called this 'a time in life when I was bold in the pursuit of knowledge, never fearing to follow the truth and reason to whatever results they led.'"

The entire liberal arts curriculum at George Wythe University is designed to provide this type of training for leadership through a proven curriculum and methodology of classics and mentors.

Note: In order to accommodate the unique scheduling and life circumstances of off-campus students, our Department of Off-Campus Studies offers the same curriculum in an individual course format, rather than the seminar format. For more information about our Off-Campus programs please click here.Emph

Emphasis

During the senior year, students complete two core curriculum courses during the Fall semester totaling six credits.  For the remainder of the Fall and the entire Winter semester they engage in a course of study taken from one of the areas of emphasis listed here, for a total of 24 credits in that area. Typically, the course load during the Senior year is 18 credits in the Fall and 12 credits in the Winter.

Minors

Though not required, we invite students to choose one of the following minors to increase their depth and breadth in a particular area of interest.

• Entrepreneurial Business Minor
  
• Education Minor
  
• Literature Minor
  
• Political Science Minor

Simulations and Field Experience

Simulations are a unique George Wythe University tradition which help students prepare for real-life leadership. Simulations consist of mock congresses, moot courts, business planning, model UN and various other fictional and real scenarios where students take on roles and work individually and in teams to identify and solve problems. 

Scenarios are developed from historical, current and possible future events. Simulations are held regularly*, with the interim used in research, negotiation and planning.

In addition to the skills of researching, writing, communicating and working in teams, simulations help future leaders to prepare for, manage and rally during actual events. All students benefit from hours of simulation experience.

Beyond Simulations, students are invited to participate in at least one internship or field experience. Field experiences extend lessons learned in the classroom and during simulations into the real world. Here they begin to apply their new found knowledge. Practica may include substantive jobs, internships, volunteer work, etc. The field-experience must be approved in advance by the a student's mentor.

Most field experiences range from two to four months.  After completion, students submit a comprehensive 10-30 page report detailing setbacks, accomplishments, principles applied, lessons learned, and how the experience gained will be applied in their continued studies. 

 

 

 "George Wythe University has challenged every area of my life. It has been the most difficult road I have ever traveled and without a doubt it has been the best."

-Lisa Holmes, Freshman

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More Information

• Tuition & Fees
• Off-campus\Online Options