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Quick facts

With an enrollment of over 15,000 students, the College of Humanities and Sciences forms the heart of VCU’s Monroe Park Campus. Review our quick facts below to find out more about us and our commitment to providing excellence in both undergraduate and graduate programs.

Students, faculty and alumni

    Academic programs
  • 14,674 total students (nearly 50 percent of all VCU students)
  • 12,295 undergraduates (more than 56 percent of all VCU undergraduates)
  • Over 42,000 alumni (25 percent of all VCU alumni)
  • More than 400 total faculty members

Degrees conferred

  • 2,004 bachelor’s degrees
  • 347 master’s degrees
  • 32 doctorates
  • 85 certificates

Academic programs

  • Three schools and fifteen departments and programs make up the College of Humanities and Sciences:
    • L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs
    • School of Mass Communications
    • School of World Studies
    • Department of African American Studies
    • Department of Biology
    • Department of Chemistry
    • Department of English
    • Department of Forensic Science
    • Department of Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies
    • Department of History
    • Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics
    • Department of Military Science and Leadership
    • Department of Philosophy
    • Department of Physics
    • Department of Psychology
    • Department of Statistical Sciences and Operations Research
    • Liberal Studies for Early and Elementary Education
    • VCU Brandcenter
  • Innovative and signature programs:
    • Our Homeland security and emergency preparedness program was the first of its kind in the nation, and also offers a graduate degree.
    • Forensic science is one of three programs in the country to have both undergraduate and graduate programs accredited.
    • The VCU Brandcenter is ranked 1st in the nation by Creativity Magazine and “most innovative” by IHaveanIdea.com..
    • Our PsychologyDepartment is nationally ranked in scholarly productivity; No. 5 in clinical and No. 3 in counseling.
    • We offer an innovative Ph.D. program in Media, Art, and Text
    • Other innovative Ph.D. programs include Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Systems Modeling and Mathematical Analysis and Health Psychology
  • The top four undergraduate majors at VCU and eight of the top twelve are in the College, including:
    • Biology: 1,868 students
    • Psychology: 1,499 students
    • Mass Communications: 1,226 students
    • Liberal Studies for Early and Elementary Education: 554 students

Notable Research and Scholarship

  • Kathleen Graber, assistant professor of English was named a 2012 recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship, one of the top awards available to artists in the United States and Canada.
  • Samy El-Shall, Ph.D. of our Chemistry department was named a Jefferson Science Fellow by the U.S. Department of State. Puru Jena, Ph.D. from the Department of Physics and Nicholas Farrell, Ph.D., Chemistry professor were previous Jefferson Science Fellows.
  • The College is home to four academic journals, including Blackbird where a newly discovered Sylvia Plath poem, “Ennui,” was published.
  • R. Andrew Chestnut, Ph.D., Bishop Walter Sullivan Chair in Catholic Studies published "Devoted to Death, Santa Muerte, the Skeleton Saint" to wide acclaim.
  • Nobel laureate, John Fenn, Ph.D., Department of Chemistry.
  • More than $23 million in external funding for research and academic activities (FY 2011).

Select grants (1st quarter 2012)

  • Chemistry: Ashton T. Cropp, Ph. D.: $327,000, National Science Foundation
  • Psychology – Suzanne Mazzeo, Ph. D.: $495,000,, National Institutes of Health
  • Psychology – Michael Southan-Gerow, Ph.D.: $362,000, National Institute of Mental Health
  • Physics – Shiv N. Khanna, Ph.D.: $190,000 University of Utah
  • Statistical Science and Operations Research – Laura McLay, Ph.D.: $50,000, Department of the Army
  • Chemistry – Everett Carpenter, Ph.D.: $2,287,000, Department of Energy

The College in the community

  • More than $9 million in total grant support involving community engagement
  • Areas of focus
    • Neighborhoods and communities
    • K-12 education
    • Government and leadership
    • Family, individual and community well-being
    • Community and public safety
    • Nonprofits
    • Technology, media and humanities

The College in the World

  • The College maintains partnerships with the following Universities:
    • University of the West of England, Bristol England
    • Fudan University, Shanghai, China
    • University of Córdoba
    • University of Guadalajara, Guadalajara Mexico
    • University of Messina, Messina, Sicily
    • University of São Paulo, São Paulo Brazil
    • St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg Russia
    • Curtin University of Technology, Perth Australia
    • Beijing Foreign Studies University, Beijing, China
    • Moscow State University, Moscow Russia
    • University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa
  • Global initiatives:
    • Center for Integrative Mediterranean Studies
    • Women’s International Experiences Scholarship
    • Study abroad and international fellowships

Budget

  • Total budget: $75.1 million
    • State: $52.9 million
    • Non-state: $22.2 million (auxiliary, gift, grant and university funds)

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