In developing the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, we have kept constantly in mind the attributes and skills needed for leadership in a complex and fast-evolving world. The hallmarks of our graduates will include what we refer to as the four C’s and the three E’s: critical thinking, clear communication, creativity, commitment to service, entrepreneurial outlook, engagement with pluralism and ethical action.
Critical thinking
The critical thinker combines skill in quantitative reasoning; the ability to scrutinize ideas in the light of their social and historical context; and close attention to humans’ emotional needs and cognitive biases. Enduringly curious, they are lifelong learners who relish opportunities to add to their knowledge.
Clear Communication
Those who cannot effectively share the fruits of their critical thinking fail in one of the key tasks of leadership, which is to build understanding of vital goals and issues through persuasive communication. The ability to clearly communicate one’s ideas to multiple audiences – in writing, orally and visually – will be among the most important attributes of FAS graduates.
Creativity
Creativity helps us to take an idea developed for one purpose and adapt it to another, to see a problem from the perspective of different individuals, cultures and academic disciplines. It makes it possible to narrate another person’s story as they themselves might, and to understand the roots of a worldview we do not share.
Commitment to Service
True leaders think of their duty rather than their power. Good leaders view their position as a trust, they work for the good of others, for the service to others. Though many look up to them, they do not look down, but measure their own actions against their guiding principles to see if they are indeed worthy of emulation.
Entrepreneurial Outlook
What do we mean by an entrepreneurial outlook? Not one motivated by profit. Rather, the determination to tackle daunting challenges and do that which has never been done, whether in art, science or business. The confidence in one’s abilities and the recognition that great achievements require calculated risks.
Engagement with Pluralism
Pluralism enriches our lives by expanding our sense of what it means to be human. But it also presents serious challenges. We want graduates to understand the ways diversity can open the mind, as well as the discomfort and misunderstandings it can occasion. We want them to remain optimistic about the potential for reason and discussion to bring us closer together.
Ethical Action
Around the world, we see corruption eroding trust and compromising the effectiveness of institutions. Our graduates must be capable of rigorous ethical reasoning and committed to acting upon the conclusions they reach. They must have the independence of mind needed to swim against the tide and the honesty required to scrutinize their own conduct as closely as that of others.