The Muse program aims to get scholars out of the classroom and into the spaces where art is made and presented to the public. Please read below to learn about the many institutions, stages, museums and galleries the scholars have visited to experience the arts firsthand during evening performances or class outings.
Curriculum
Although Muses are free to major in any subject they choose, most Muse Scholars major or minor in one or more of the arts disciplines. Their scholar community is rooted in two required courses taken during freshman year: Explorations in the Arts (HUM 201) which is offered during the Fall semester, and the Muse Scholar Seminar (HUM 250), a continuation of HUM 201 that is offered during the Spring semester.
These two courses are meant to deepen scholars’ engagement with Hunter’s excellent arts resources and faculty while broadening their exposure to cultural institutions throughout New York City.
Working with dedicated advisors, the Muse Course of Study provides flexibility and a connection to a learning community, while assisting students with completion of Hunter’s General Education requirements in a timely manner.
Muse Scholars are expected to enroll in at least 15 credits per semester; research has found students who take at least 15 credits per semester have higher rates of timely graduation than students who take fewer classes. Please read below to learn more about the Muse Scholar Program course of study for the first year.
Freshman Year, Fall term
HUM 201: Explorations in the Arts (3 hrs, 3 credits)
In this course Muses receive an introduction to the diverse arts of New York City. In addition to meeting in the classroom to engage in academic study of the arts, students also attend theatre and dance workshops, work with teaching artists, hear talks by arts professionals, and attend cultural events throughout New York City. Muse Scholars have visited Broadway and Off-Broadway stages, Jazz at Lincoln Center, New York City Center, the Joyce Theater, Carnegie Hall, the Metropolitan Opera, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Guggenheim Museum, the Whitney Museum, Asia Society Museum, MOMA, and many other arts institutions.
Introductory Arts Course (3 hrs, 3 credits)
Muse Scholars are required to choose ONE of the following introductory arts courses at Hunter*:
- ARTLA 201: Art Foundations: Seeing, Thinking, Making
- ARTH 111: Introduction to History of Art
- FILM 101: Introduction to Cinema
- MEDIA 180: Introduction to Media Studies
- THEA 101: Introduction to Theatre
- DAN 101: Fundamentals of Contemporary Dance Technique *technique placement by ability
- DAN 105: Fundamentals of Ballet *technique placement by ability
- DAN 232: 20th Century Dance History
- MUSHL 101: One Thousand Years of Listening
*Pre-Med students take the Arts elective course in either Fall or Spring of their Sophomore year.
ENGL 120: Expository Writing (3 hrs + conf 3 credits)
Required of all students unless exempt, this course trains students to analyze, develop and evaluate ideas and to express themselves clearly and effectively in essays and a documented research paper. Pre-requisite: successful completion of developmental courses, if required.
Math
Based on placement and intended major in consultation with advisor
FYS 100: First Year Seminar (1 credit)
Taught by advisors.
GER/Major/Elective courses:
As advised
Freshman Year, Spring term
HUM 250.01: Muse Scholar Seminar (3 hours, 3 credits)
This course continues the Explorations of the Arts of New York begun during the fall semester. Students attend performances and exhibitions of the current cultural season, focusing on the visual and performing arts both on and off campus. The Muses meet practicing artists and professors teaching the arts at Hunter, thus broadening their exposure to and career opportunities in the arts. Students also have the chance to interact with working artists and arts professionals invited to the seminar to lead special discussions and workshops. Guests have included Broadway composer Jeanine Tesori, photographer Michael Vahrenwald, New York Times theatre critic Jesse Green, Playwrights Horizons production manager Jay Janicki, renowned jazz musician and Hunter Professor Ryan Keberle, among others.
ENGL 220: Writing About Literature (3 hrs, 3 credits)
With an emphasis on close reading, English 220 is intended to develop the analytical and interpretive skills necessary for both written and verbal critical response to literature that is firmly grounded in the text. It also establishes a common knowledge base in literature in English, and it equips students with the vocabulary and techniques for describing and analyzing literary works, with an emphasis on developing critical writing skills specific to literary analysis. In addition, the course develops an appreciation and understanding of the aesthetic qualities of literature, as well as an awareness that literature is part of a larger ongoing cultural, social, and historical dialogue that informs, influences, and inspires our experience. Pre-requisite: successful completion of ENGL 120 or appropriate AP credit
Please Note: Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of course information on this page. The Hunter College Catalog is the document of authority for curricular information.
Class Outings
While Muse Freshman Seminar classes take place primarily at Hunter, the scholars are often scheduled to meet off campus at New York’s many museums and art institutions.
Muses have visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Frick, MOMA, The Whitney Museum (pictured), the Guggenheim Museum, and the International Center for Photography, among others. Scholars have also visited various galleries in Chelsea.
Theatre
Thanks to Hunter’s partnerships with organizations including the Theatre Development Fund (TDF), Rattlestick Playwrights Theater and Playwrights Horizons, Muse Scholars regularly attend plays on and off Broadway as part of their year-long Freshman Muse Seminar. After freshman year, Muse Scholars also receive invitations to the theatre as tickets become available.
On Broadway, the Muse Scholars have seen Topdog/Underdog, Come from Away, Oklahoma!, The Band’s Visit, Fun Home, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, The Glass Menagerie, War Horse, and Violet.
Other productions have included Stereophonic, Heroes of the Fourth Turning, This Flat Earth and I was Most Alive with You at Playwrights Horizons. They also attended productions of My Broken Language, In the Blood, Incident at Vichy, and By the Way, Meet Vera Stark at Signature Theater; and 72 Miles to Go, Kingdom Come and Too Heavy For Your Pocket at Roundabout Underground (pictured).
Music
Muse Scholars have attended jazz, classical and new music concerts and performances at Carnegie Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Jazz Gallery, Le Poisson Rouge, 92NY and other venues.
Scholars heard Wynton Marsalis’s jazz oratorio, Blood on the Fields, performed at Jazz at Lincoln Center and the Roy Hargrove Big Band and the Catharsis jazz band play the Jazz Gallery.
At Carnegie Hall (pictured) the scholars have received tickets to performances by the San Francisco Symphony, the Mariinsky Orchestra of St. Petersburg and Orchestra of St. Luke’s.
At Le Poisson Rouge – a multimedia art cabaret space on the site of the historic Village Gate – Muses watched performances by the Gamelan Dharma Swara, Arto Lindsay, and the new music ensemble Metropolis.
Dance
Each year, Muse Scholars attend performances at New York City Center’s Fall for Dance Festival. Performers have hailed from around the world dancing in various dance genres.
The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater has hosted special Muse Scholar Program events and Lincoln Center has also hosted the Muses for dance performances by Paul Taylor Dance Co.and Shen Wei Dance Arts.
The Muses have attended dance performances at the Joyce Theater, including Twyla Tharp (pictured), Gibney Dance and Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE.
Art
Muses visit many museums and galleries throughout their first year. Recent visits have included to the MOMA, Whitney, The Frick Collection, Guggenheim Museum and Chelsea galleries.
Additionally, the Muses have taken a few field trips out of the city to the Woodstock School of Art for painting and print-making classes. They have also travelled Dia Beacon in Beacon, NY to view some of the most famous and influential art works created in the 1960s and 1970s.
Meet my Professor & Faculty Mentor
Dara Meyers-Kingsley has 20 years of experience as a contemporary art curator with an interdisciplinary curatorial practice. Her exhibitions, often including visual art, media, installation, and performance have been presented at LA MOCA, MCA Chicago, The New Museum, The Andy Warhol Museum, Miami MOCA, the Brooklyn Museum and the Mattress Factory in Pittsburgh. Previously, she was Director of the Film and Video Collections for the Andy Warhol Foundation and curator of Film and Video at the Brooklyn Museum. She serves as the Director of Hunter’s Office of the Arts and the Muse Scholar Program.
