Medieval and Renaissance Studies Program

Explore and analyze developments in the period’s arts and letters, technology, trade, science, and religion in Europe, the Mediterranean, the Americas, India, and elsewhere.

A thorough, interdisciplinary examination of the medieval, renaissance, and early modern periods enables students to discover local and regional connections across the cultures in the discipline.

Through a deep engagement with the department’s courses and programming, students develop an appreciation for and understanding of how the distant past shapes and informs who we are today.

Students will study with faculty from a wide array of disciplines, such as English, art, history, romance languages, religion, music, classics, Middle Eastern studies, political science, and astronomy and physics.

Learn about the program

Students visiting a castle
Antonio del Pollaiuolo - Profile Portrait of a Young Lady

We strongly encourage Medieval and Renaissance Studies students to expand their global perspective by studying off campus and abroad. Explore immersive study in medieval and Renaissance culture through off-campus study programs such as the Consortium for Medieval and Renaissance Studies program at Oxford’s Keble College, administered through Middlebury College.

Medieval and Renaissance Studies Events

Used with the kind permission of the Abbey of St. Hildegard, Eibingen
Oct 20 Arts & Humanities Colloquium -- Creation & the Cosmic Egg: Hildegard’s Scivias and Ordo Virtutum 4:15pm to 5:30pm

The resources available to students in Oxford are nearly unparalleled — it is possible to access nearly any academic work at a moment's notice through the Bodleian libraries.

Matthew Kato Class of 2019
Students visit Chethams Library in Manchester for an in-person viewing of original foundational manuscripts such as Sir Isaac Newton’s “Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica”
Course Offerings

Learn what courses are available to students participating in the medieval and renaissance studies program.

Professor Joscelyn Godwin gives students a close up look at a harpsichord as part of his Music History course.
Faculty and Staff

Meet the faculty and staff behind the program, and learn about their ongoing research and scholarship.