Cornerstone Scholar Certificate

Through UMass Cornerstone, you can earn the Cornerstone Scholar Certificate in one of four interdisciplinary focus areas:

  • Business and the Social World

  • Environment and the Social World

  • Science/Technology and the Social World

  • Global Studies and the Social World

This four-course certificate program offers a unique opportunity to explore connections between the liberal arts and your personal and professional goals. You will engage with transformative texts from diverse cultures and time periods, and participate in discussions about justice, human rights, politics, the environment, technology, corporate culture, and the arts. You’ll think creatively and critically about what it means to live “the good life” and explore the essence of being human.

The critical and creative thinking skills you develop as a Cornerstone Scholar will enhance your time at UMass and serve as a cornerstone for your future career and personal growth.

On completion of the certificate you will:

  • understand the value of broader perspectives to be gained from interdisciplinary lines of inquiry;

  • have developed a capacity to synthesize different forms of knowledge and information;

  • be equipped with narrative leadership skills developed through the critical and creative analysis of innovative influential texts;

  • have developed the confidence that their diverse life experiences – formed through racial, ethnic, class, and gendered identities or their intersections – are invaluable to discussion and decision-making, both in the classroom and future workplaces.

Certificate Requirements

To earn the Cornerstone Scholar Certificate, students must complete four courses: two mandatory Gateway courses and two elective courses from one of the four interdisciplinary Pathways.

Mandatory Gateway Courses: 

  • HMFNART 101 - Traversing Differences with Critical and Creative Thinking: Local Issues (AL DU)

  • HMFNART 102 - Traversing Differences with Critical and Creative Thinking: Global Issues (AL DG)

Pathway Courses:

  • two elective courses (100-300 level) selected from one of the following Pathways:

    • Business and the Social World

    • Environment and the Social World

    • Science/Technology and the Social World

    • Global Studies and the Social World

*CHC students may use HONORS 201H (Ideas that Change the World) as a substitute for HMFNART 101 or HMFNART 102.

Choose Your Pathway

  • Business and the Social World:

    • explore the intersection of business practices and social concerns, including corporate ethics, labor, and economic justice

  • Environment and the Social World:

    • investigate the connections between environmental sustainability, ethics, and societal impact

  • Science/Technology and the Social World:

    • engage with topics in science and technology, exploring their implications for society, ethics, and the future

  • Global Studies and the Social World:

    • examine global perspectives on issues such as migration, human rights, and cross-cultural interaction

  • PHIL 163 Business Ethics (AT)

    ECON 306 History of Economic Thought (HS) (*has prerequisites) 

    ECON 362 American Economic History (HS) (*has prerequisites) 

    HIST 220 Capitalism and Alternatives in Latin America (HS; DG)

    HIST 351 The Making of American Capitalism, 1492-2020 (HS; DU)

    LABOR 201 Women and Work (SB)

    RES-ECON 106 Economics is Everywhere (SB)

    SOCIOL 204 Labor and the Global Economy (SB)

    SUSTCOMM 333 Introduction to Community Economic Development (SB)

    ANTHRO 210 Economies and Cultures (SB; DG)

    ECON 121 International Economy (SB; DG)

    ECON 105 Introduction to Political Economy (SB; DU)

    PORTUG 357 Translating and Interpreting for Portuguese Speaking Communities (DU; SB)

    ARTS-EXT 391A Foundations in Arts Entrepreneurship

    COMP-LIT 397R Read Stories, Make Money

    WGSS 291C Gender, Race and Capitalism

  • ART-HIST 330 Nature and the Built Environment: Sustainable Trends in Architectural History 1800-present  

    ANTHRO 208 Human Ecology (BS)

    HIST 383 American Environmental History (HS)

    JUDAIC/MIDEAST 326 Sustainability in Comparative Religious Perspective (HS; DG)

    MIDEAST 245 Environmental History of the Middle East (HS; DG)

    SUSTCOMM 232 History of Sustainable Community Development (HS; DG)

    PHIL 166 Environmental Ethics (SB)

    RES-ECON 262 Environmental Econ (SB)

    GEOGRAPH 102 Diversity, Globalization, and Sustainability: Introduction to Human Geography (SB; DG)

    SUSTCOMM 125 Global Cities and Global Issues (SB; DG)

    SOC 316 The Environment and Society (SB;DU)

    WGSS 220 Gender, the Global Environment, and Sustainability (SB; DG)

    NRC 100 The Environment and Society (SI)

    FRENCHST 334 Food, Agriculture, and the Environment in France

    ITALIAN 394MI Italy and the Mediterranean

    WGSS 392J Feminisms and Environmental Justice

  • GERMAN 275 The Scientific Mind (AL; DG)

    ITALIAN 333 Women’s Bodies: Poetry, Politics, and Power, (AL;DG)

    PHIL 164 Medical Ethics (AT)

    ANTHRO 103 Human Origins and Variation (BS)

    BIOLOGY 105: Biology of Social Issues (BS)

    HISTORY 180 Western Science & Technology I (HS)

    HISTORY 181 Western Science & Technology II (HS)

    HISTORY 222 Data (HS)

    HISTORY 411 History of Science Activism (HS; DG)

    HISTORY 264 History of Health Care and Medicine (HS ;DU) 

    WGSS 286 The History of Sexuality and Race in the United States (HS; DU)

    COMP-LIT 236 Digital Culture (I)

    WGSS 187 Gender, Sexuality and Culture (I; DU)

    ANTHRO 101: Biology, Culture and the Human Experience (SB) 

    PHIL 175 Introduction to the Philosophy of Technology (SB)

    ANTHRO 212 Science, Technology, and Society (SB; DG)

    E&C-ENG 150 Making Better Decisions by Humans and AI (SB; DU)

    ANTHRO 103: Human Origins and Variations (SB)

    CICS 127: Introduction to Public Interest Technology (SI)

    WGSS 285 The Biology of Difference (SI; DU)

    ART-HIST 304 Biology and Art

    FRENCHST 397M French for the Medical Professions 

    FRENCHST 397N Medicine in France: From Intrigues to Ethics and Free Healthcare 

    SOCIOL 352 Media, Technology, and Society 

    WGSS 205 Feminist Health Politics

    WGSS 393Q/WGSS 693Q Our Biologies: Queer Feminist Research

  • CLASSICS 224 Greek Mythology (AL)

    FRENCHST 280 Love and Sex in French Culture (AL)

    COMP-LIT 144 War Stories (AL; DG)

    ENG 131 Society and Literature (AL; DG)

    ENG 132 Gender, Sexuality, Literature, and Culture (AL; DG)

    PORTUG 408 Brazil in Film and Fiction (AL; DG)

    AFROAM 151 Literature and Culture (AL; DU)

    CHINESE 136 Introduction to Chinese Cinema (AT)

    FRENCH 350 French Film (AT)

    FRENCHST 353 African Film (AT; DG)

    FRENCHST 284 The Undead Souths: Southern Gothic and Francophone Mythologies in Film & Television (AT; DU)  

    PHIL 343 Intro to Philosophy of Art (AT)

    CLASSICS 200 Greece in the Age of Democracy (HS)

    FRENCHST 289 Paris Through the Centuries (HS)

    PHIL 320 History of Ancient Philosophy (HS) 

    PHIL 321 History of Modern Philosophy (HS)

    POLISCI 272 Democracy & Citizenship (HS)

    POLISCI 277 Making a Global World (HS)

    HISTORY 110 World History to 1500 (HS; DG)

    HISTORY 111 World History since 1500 (HS; DG)

    HISTORY 155 Empires to Nations: The Making of the Atlantic World, 1400-1800 (HS; DG)

    AFROAM 236 History of the Civil Rights Movement (HS; DU)

    HISTORY 112 Introduction to World Religions (I; DG)

    COMM 208 Defending Democracy in a Digital World (SB)

    PHIL 371 Philosophical Perspectives on Gender (SB)

    POLISCI 255 United States Foreign Policy (SB)

    SOCIOL 244 Sociology of Immigration (SB)

    MIDEAST 151 Water, Oil and Blood: The Middle East in Global Policy (SB; DG)

    PHIL 180 Death and the Meaning of Life (SB; DG)

    POLISCI 252 Globalization, Governance, & World Order (SB; DG)

    SOCIOL 262 Globalization and Inequality (SB; DG)

    WGSS 290B (or WGSS 250) Introduction to Sexuality and Trans Studies: Movements for Justice in the Contemporary World (SB; DG)

    SOC 240 Sociology of the Asian American Experience (SB; DU) 

    CHINESE 394PI Chinese Popular Culture

    CHINESE 394W Women in Chinese Culture

    FRENCHST 397D French for Diplomacy and International Relations

    PHIL 370 Introduction to Social-Political Philosophy

    PORTUG 309 Brazilian Women

    PORTUG 316 Brazil

Meeting the Social World General Education Requirements

The courses you take for the Cornerstone Scholar Certificate also fulfill General Education requirements in the Social World category.

This means you’ll be progressing towards both your Certificate and the broader Social World requirements, which encompass:

  • Literature (AL): Exploring the arts and literature to interpret and explain life, focusing on the production, performance, and evaluation of various forms of art in relation to society.

  • The Arts (AT): Understanding the role of visual, aural, and verbal arts in relation to the societies that have and will produce them.

  • Historical Studies (HS): Learning from historical events and developments to better understand the present and future.

  • Social and Behavioral Sciences (SB): Examining human behavior and social structures, highlighting the dynamic nature of societies and the complex relationships within them.