Nine ways to thrive in all 'Nine Ways of Knowing'

The beauty of the Nine Ways of Knowing is that you can complete them without trying too hard: Take random classes, and you will prosper. A liberal arts education encourages dabbling in different subject areas and picking courses just because they pique your interest. You’ll be surprised how many “ways” you’ll check off. That being said, keep track of which requirements you do finish to make sure they don’t bog down your senior year. Here are some more detailed tips on how to complete that degree audit with ease:

1. Complete your Laboratory Science and Quantitative Reasoning requirements early. These classes—especially the labs—tend to be time-consuming and the material is slightly denser. It’s better to get this out of the way before you start taking more advanced major requirements. If you’re not a fan of numbers, consider an introductory astronomy course for Quantitative Reasoning.
2. Select your Laboratory Science track carefully. You must take two courses in addition to labs—and in some cases, an intro course—in the same area, so make sure you don’t find yourself wanting to switch midstream. Psychology is very popular, though it can be difficult to get into the lab you want. Also, don’t forget to enter the lottery for psychology courses.
3. Physical education is technically not a “way of knowing,” but it’s a requirement at Barnard. Don’t feel daunted by the two-course requirement—it’s many students’ favorite! There are tons of cool classes from yoga to kickboxing and nearly everything in between. Lots of people take dance courses, which fulfill the requirement and are wonderful at Barnard whether you’re a beginner or very advanced. Keep in mind that one of your classes must be completed by the end of your first year and both must be done by the end of junior year.
4. Check with an adviser if you can test out of the language requirement. If you have a certain AP or SAT II score in a language, you may be able to take a more challenging course or check it off altogether. Otherwise, try to make it fun by planning to use your skills when you study abroad.
5. Visual and Performing Arts is one “way” you can get away with putting off. There are many fun elective courses that satisfy the requirement, such as Dance in New York City and Theater in New York. These courses bring you to shows across the city. Art history courses are also popular.
6. Cultures in Comparison provides you with a great excuse to dabble in anthropology or religion. For Reason and Value, try a course in political theory or philosophy.
7. History is self-explanatory: Any course in the history department, along with other historical courses strewn across various departments, goes toward completing this requirement. The options for this way of knowing are endless, and you’ll have no trouble finding a class that caters to your interests, be it the history of fashion, nautical history, or a science.
8. Also note that classes for your major can also count toward your Nine Ways of Knowing. That being said, shop around and try something new like economics or human rights. You just might be inspired to change your major or pick up a minor.
9. Use eBear! Click on the book icon to get a list of courses that fulfill each of the Nine Ways when planning your semester.