Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH)
The Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) Division provides a wide range of courses and offers AUAF’s groundbreaking Dual Degree program with Bard College in Political Science and International Studies (POLIS).
SSH is a dynamic hub of intellectual exploration, critical inquiry, and cultural engagement. The Division is dedicated to fostering deep understandings of humanity and its societies, cultures, histories, and thinking, both in Afghanistan and beyond.
SSH provides many of the first-year experience courses and a diverse range of elective courses. In addition to coursework, students can participate in fieldwork, volunteerism, and cultural events that contribute to their learning and connect them with real-world issues and challenges.
SSH Electives
Our electives include courses in literature and literary studies, anthropology and sociology, history, fine arts and cultural studies, philosophy, and ethics, focusing on both Afghanistan and the wider world. These courses allow students to delve into areas of interest while completing their liberal arts distribution requirements.
SSH First-Year courses sampling
HUM 110 - Civic Engagement
Developed by Professor Jeffrey Goldfarb, this course addresses the classic question: “What is to be done (by us)?”. It examines various related themes: cultural freedom and how the arts and sciences are a key achievement of liberal democratic societies; politics as concerted action, reflecting how people can coalesce based on shared principles, communication, and activity, to develop capacities to act in concert and create political power as an alternative to violence and coercion; the role of media and autonomous publics, the notion of public life and free public space in supporting alternatives to autocracies; and the responsibilities of intellectuals in creating democratic public life, political power, and cultural freedom.
LTP 100 – the Language and Thinking (L&T) Program
L&T is a pre-semester course for all new AUAF students that provides an intensive introduction to studying in a liberal arts and sciences institution. It acts as a bridge between students’ previous learning experiences and those they will undertake with us. Students engage in stimulating scholarly inquiry and questioning, challenging assumptions through writing-to-learn activities and collaborations.
FYS 105/105 – the First-Year Seminar (FYS)
FYS is a yearlong course run over two semesters in conjunction with our yearlong English Composition program. FYS develops students' appreciation of liberal arts education, engaging them with challenging texts from literature, philosophy, science, and history which showcase ways in which different civilizations have contemplated and contributed to important, often universal questions relating to the human condition.
HIS 120 - History of Afghanistan
Developed by Professor Michael Barry, this course surveys the history of Afghanistan from 1747 to the present, examining centralization, modernization, and socioeconomic development as well as the spread of competing ideologies, ethnic conflict, and extremism.
Political Science and International Studies (POLIS)
The POLIS program is a dual degree program offered in collaboration with Bard College. It provides an interdisciplinary education in political science, public administration, international affairs, and global studies, as well as related fields, to prepare students for careers in diplomacy, international organizations, government, and academia, both locally and internationally.
The program, taught by experienced faculty members, offers a curriculum that allows students to gain a more holistic understanding of contemporary global issues and geopolitics, international and diplomatic relations, forms of governance, and local/global policy challenges.
POLIS emphasizes a global outlook, encouraging students to consider international issues from diverse cultural, historical, and geopolitical contexts. By doing so, they develop communication skills, intercultural and interdisciplinary competencies, and a more nuanced appreciation of the complexity of the modern world. Students also hone research, analysis, and writing skills through coursework, seminars, and independent research projects. The program provides networking, career advice, and professional development opportunities.
Upon successful completion of the program, students earn a dual degree: a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Political Science and International Studies from AUAF and Bard College.
POLIS Course Sampling
POL 210 – Introduction to International Relations
This course encourages an analytical approach to the study of world politics, exploring theories of how nations, regimes, institutions, and societies interact internally and globally. Students gain a broad understanding of current trends and debates in international relations theory, as well as the tools necessary to utilize this knowledge in analyzing world events.
PAD 210 – Public Policy Making
This course examines analytical approaches to framing and understanding public policy problems. Students develop an understanding of public policy and decision-making, consider implications associated with policy decision-making for various groups and individuals, foster critical thinking about public policy and policy alternatives, and improve writing, research, oral presentation, and teamwork skills.
POL 311 – Peace and Conflict Resolution
This course provides the necessary tools to apply critical reasoning to analyze different types of real-world conflicts and practically find durable solutions to the most pressing violent situations of the 21st century. It draws on theoretical knowledge, introduction of concepts and case studies to identify and deconstruct unjust, violent and oppressive environments.
PAD 410 – Project Management for Public and Non-profit Organizations
This course provides the necessary tools to apply critical reasoning to analyze different types of real-world conflicts and practically find durable solutions to the most pressing violent situations of the 21st century. It draws on theoretical knowledge, introduction of concepts and case studies to identify and deconstruct unjust, violent and oppressive environments.
POL 420 – Democratization
This course surveys factors that foster democratization processes in the global era, comparing different national experiences with the Afghan context. The course encourages students to relate the characteristics and historical developments of Afghanistan to various theories of democratization.