The flexible and tantalizing, new-last-year Integrated Humanities major at University of St. Thomas – Houston is ideal for students who aren’t sure what they want to do after college and for students who know exactly what they want to do.

Since the IH major can be earned through the completion of three minors, students can uniquely “tailor” their education, selecting one minor from Humanities, a second from STEM/Professional/Social & Behavioral Science, and a third minor of choice. UST advisors are on hand to offer possibilities on this path to highly desirable “hard” and “soft” skills.

Director of Integrated Humanities, Thomas Behr, J.D., Ph.D, said, “We’re in a position to recommend ‘packages’ of minors that complement each other with an eye towards this or that niche in the wonderfully dynamic environment of the Gulf Coast region generally, and Houston in particular. In pre-law, for example, there could be Political Science, Philosophy, and English or History with many other combinations possible.”

Competitive Edge That Could Come with an Entrepreneurship Minor

According to Behr, the sky is the limit (practically) when it comes to arranging packages of minors.

“Interestingly, that “third” minor could come from a growing range of interdisciplinary areas like Entrepreneurship,” Behr added. “An IH major with an entrepreneurship component could position holders of the degree as exceptionally marketable.”

Dr. Patrick Woock, director of the McNair Center for Entrepreneurship and Free Enterprise, admires how the innovative IH degree allows students to “create their own major and make their own future!”

Woock explained, “This flexibility is specifically important in Houston’s creative economy where the city has experienced exponential job growth. As an example, IH allows students to mashup their Drama and Classical Studies with an Entrepreneurship IH package for a career in arts management, event curator or stage designer — the possibilities are endless. Or go in a different direction by matching an Entrepreneurship IH package with Accounting and Theology minors — ideal for going into non-profit or human services management.”

Preparing Students to Learn, Grow and Succeed

Behr stayed with the entrepreneurship element as he said, “With an Integrated Humanities degree, students can acquire career-specific knowledge and the liberal arts essentials of how to incorporate creativity, analyze whatever is before them, be guided by ethical principles and think critically. Should they choose, they can complement that skillset with the entrepreneurship component: an entrepreneurial mindset, an understanding of e-commerce and knowing how to manage their finances. Imagine the job marketability of students who acquire such skills.”

Employers these days are looking for the well-rounded foundation that comes with UST’s Integrated Humanities B.A. or B.S. program.

The new Integrated Humanities degree with an entrepreneurship component (or something else) is another BOLD way for UST students to learn, grow and succeed.