The Bachelor of Arts in Dance

The Dance majors are housed within the Dean College School of Dance and the Arts. The philosophy of the School is built on a long-standing tradition of teaching dance in its pure form. The mission of the Bachelor of Arts in Dance is to connect these aesthetic and cultural forms of dance to the overall interdisciplinary studies of sciences, humanities, social science, business, natural sciences, and dance studies.

Through the course of study in the Bachelor's Degree in Dance, students will be provided the opportunity to learn how to:

• understand and identify the content and terminology of ballet, modern dance, modern jazz, and tap dance techniques.
• improve in ability to demonstrate knowledge and performance of all techniques with the knowledge of pedagogy of ballet as the basic core of dance.
• discuss and formulate viewpoints of the history of dance from primal cultures to the present.
• choreograph dance forms with an understanding of spatial relationships, design, and thematic structure as they apply to solo, duet, and group formations.
• recognize the value of dance as a means of communication as demonstrated through choreographic content.
• understand basic anatomy as it pertains to dance.
• demonstrate knowledge of teaching dance movement.

In addition to their coursework, students also have the opportunity to audition for and be a part of many exciting on-campus productions, including the highly recognized Dean Dance Company. Students have an added option that is available to only a few select colleges: a nationally credited independent study at the world-renowned Alvin Ailey Dance Center in New York City.

The B.A. curriculum focuses on intense dance technical studies within a broader context of advanced dance academic studies and advanced liberal arts studies. The B.A. in Dance degree leads to preparation for careers in performing, teaching, dance history, choreography, directing, dance medicine, dance journalism, and arts and entertainment management.