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Learning Aims

I.  Intellectual Rigor

  • critical thinking—the ability to evaluate a claim, analyze a problem, and make sound judgments based on evidence
  • the ability to understand and employ the scientific method
  • the ability to use mathematical concepts and procedures competently and to evaluate claims made in numeric terms
  • a broad grounding in the liberal arts and sciences
  • excellence in a discipline or combination of disciplines

II.  A Sense of the Timeless and the Timely

  • an understanding of the interconnectedness of all knowledge
  • appreciation for intellectual endeavor and the life of the mind
  • the ability to connect the endeavors and events of the past with current events and future action

III.  Eloquentia Perfecta

  • the ability to use speech and writing effectively, logically, gracefully, persuasively, and responsibly
  • competence in a language other than one’s own

IV.  Aesthetics

  • an appreciation of beauty, both natural and man-made
  • a cultivated response to the arts, including the ability to express oneself about aesthetic experience

V.  Engagement

  • the use of knowledge to improve understanding and effect positive change
  • development of intellectual curiosity, honesty, humility, and persistence
  • life-long love of learning

VI.  Self-Reflection

  • a habit of reflecting on one’s intellectual and moral journey, the practice of discernment
  • the practice of reading and rereading
  • thoughtfulness and intentionality about the appropriate use of leisure time

VII.  Intellectual Independence

  • begin to establish ownership of one’s own advanced scholarship
  • begin to establish a personal library of books and readings to take through one’s life

VIII.  Intellectual Fellowship

  • formation of intellectual friendships with students and faculty
  • development of a four-year mentoring relationship with a faculty member

IX.  Jesuit Faith and Mission

  • an understanding of the mission of the Catholic university as an institution dedicated to exploring the intersection of faith and reason
  • an understanding of the history and mission of the Society of Jesus
  • a habit of reflection
  • an appreciation of and concern about the great moral issues of our time