Most people who read the major works of Greece and Rome feel astounded at the depth and sophistication of their thought, the beauty of their poetry, and their perennial relevance. Studying classics is the attempt to ground this astonishment in the knowledge of what those works meant in their own time and what significance they have today. The classics department at Princeton offers courses, both in English and in the original languages, that treat the whole range of ancient culture, from its mythology to its philosophy, from its law to its history.

The program at Princeton provides an excellent training for almost any vocation: our concentrators regularly go on to careers in medicine, law, finance, and publishing. Those who wish to go on to graduate studies in classics usually have their choice of fellowships in the top graduate programs, and many alums now hold distinguished professorships.

Two distinctive programs of study are offered within the Department of Classics. The first, the concentration in classics, uses a knowledge of Greek and/or Latin as its basis. The second, the concentration in classical studies allows for the study of different aspects of a specific period or facet of classical civilization, without prior language study.