College of Arts + Sciences: Indiana University

Make way for the leaders, creatives, and groundbreakers of tomorrow

We prepare students for an ever-changing future by providing a foundational liberal arts and sciences education that is more relevant than ever. Here, breakthroughs are fueled by unfiltered imaginations and unconventional ideas. Whether in the classroom or in the lab, on stage or in the field, you’ll gain the skills and experience you need for what’s new, next, and not-yet-imagined.

Undergraduate experience

Learn about our degree programs, the admissions process, experiential learning, research opportunities, and career preparation.

Graduate experience

Find information about graduate degree programs, admissions, funding opportunities, research, and career preparation.

Chemist’s fluorescent innovation has potential to disrupt health care

Amar Flood never set out to create the world’s brightest fluorescent materials. Rather, it was plain curiosity and a desire to collaborate with a former colleague that led to the breakthrough of a lifetime that has the potential to advance human health and more.

Read about the discovery

Love grows

As Jeff and Jane got to know each other at Bear’s, they recognized in each other a kindred spirit with shared values. Jane became a regular partner on nature walks with Jeff or helping collect plant samples for Jeff’s thesis research in Spencer or Ellettsville. Once she graduated and moved back to her hometown, however, their paths diverged. Neither expected that fate would land them next door to each other.

Read about Jeff and Jane Doyle

Study reveals how a virus builds its protective shell

A research team led by Marc Morais, Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry in the College of Arts and Sciences at Indiana University Bloomington, have uncovered exciting new details about how a tiny virus builds its protective outer shell.

Read about the study

3 College faculty named 2024 AAAS Fellows

The American Association for the Advancement of Science, one of the world’s largest general scientific societies and publisher of the Science family of journals, has named seven Indiana University faculty members to its 2024 fellows’ class, a lifetime honor within the scientific community.

Read about the honorees

IU geoscientists find mountain formation drives biodiversity growth

A new study co-authored by researchers at IU sheds light on how the forces that shape mountain ranges also influence the evolution of species. In the study, “Direct effects of mountain uplift and topography on biodiversity,” published this month in Science, researchers have found that biodiversity increases as mountains rise, suggesting that geological processes play a direct role in the shaping of life on Earth.

Read about the study

IU professor helps pioneer groundbreaking light-driven method to create key drug compounds

Traditionally, chemists have relied on well-established but limiting methods to synthesize these molecules. The new research, co-authored by Kevin Brown, the James F. Jackson Professor of Chemistry in the College, and Professors Xiaotian Qi, Wang Wang, and Bodi Zhao of Wuhan University, presents a fundamentally different approach.

Read about Kevin Brown

A hub for curiosity + diverse thought

The College of Arts and Sciences values diversity, equity, and inclusion as core strengths and essential elements in the success of its educational mission. Our commitment is grounded in our aspiration to cultivate intellectual rigor and curiosity among our students and to prepare them to thrive in and contribute to a globally diverse, complex, and interconnected world.