The Places a Liberal Arts Education Can Take You
For this College of Arts and Sciences alum, a trip to the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology sparked a career and life on the Oregon coast. The field trip was an immersive experience that brought together undergraduates and graduate students with faculty members — working elbow to elbow studying marine biology organisms.
“We couldn’t get enough,” said Annie Pollard, a CAS alum. “I knew instantly I wanted to do marine biology as a career.”
After graduating with a master's degree in marine biology from CAS, Pollard worked as a marine biologist on the Oregon coast and in Antarctica. But she pivoted her career to her other passion: brewing. Today, Pollard owns and operates 7 Devils Brewery in Coos Bay. Despite the career change, she still relies on her liberal arts education while running a successful small business.
“A lot of business owners have never been trained in data analysis,” Pollard said. “That was the number-one most-helpful skill I gained from my graduate work: a training in how to think analytically.”
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We Love Our Supporters
Gifts to the College of Arts and Sciences can help our students make the most of their college careers. To do this, CAS needs your support. Your contributions help us ensure that teaching, research, advising, mentoring, and support services are fully available to every student. Thank you!
What’s Happening in CAS?
The final issue of the 2025-26 CAS Connection is out now! For more than 100 years, people have tried to control malaria and the mosquito that transmits the disease among humans. History professor Melissa Graboyes and her team of undergraduate students have been digging through the history of malaria to see how scientists, policymakers and public health officials have tried and failed to stop malaria.
Also in the June CAS Connection issue, why mahjong is gaining popularity, why three CAS faculty members were awarded a teaching award, how a science degree helped an alum to be a marine biologist and a brewer — and more.
Undergraduate Studies
Wherever your academic goals eventually take you at the UO, all Ducks begin their journey with foundational courses in CAS. More than 60 percent of students go on to pursue a major in a CAS department or program. With more than 50 departments and programs, there’s an intellectual home for almost any interest, talent, or career aspiration.
Graduate Studies
The College of Arts and Sciences offers more than 30 master's programs and more than 20 doctoral programs across a diverse range of disciplines. Both as contributors to research teams and through their own scholarship and teaching, our CAS graduate students are indispensable to the vitality of the UO academic mission.
Student Support Services
We provide our students with a variety of resources to help you thrive inside and outside the classroom. Through Tykeson Advising, we provide comprehensive academic and career advising from the start of your journey at the University of Oregon. Learn about career preparation and get assistance in selecting the very best classes. Connect with labs, libraries, IT and tutoring. Find your community on campus.
World-Class Faculty
The College of Arts and Sciences faculty members are a driving force of the high-output, high-impact research activity that has earned the UO membership in the prestigious Association of American Universities (AAU). Our world-class faculty members are inspiring teachers.
Among them are five members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, four members of the National Academy of Sciences. They are committed to helping students discover their academic passion. Every day, they work to expand students’ intellectual horizons, preparing them for life after college with real-world knowledge and skills.
Meet our Dean
In the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS), we are committed to excellence in research and teaching, student success, and diversity, equity, and belonging.
A liberal arts education—one that offers a breadth of intellectual approaches and perspectives and depth in a major discipline—is the foundation to a purposeful life as a life-long learner, engaged citizen, and leader. The skills you will learn here—from written and verbal communication to analytical and quantitative reasoning, to compassion and understanding—are those that employers seek and will open the door to a wealth of opportunities.
You will find more than 50 majors and a multitude of minors within CAS, and seemingly endless opportunities for personal exploration and discovery. Whether you are an incoming first-year student, a grad student or a transfer student, you can map an exciting future and be part of a fun, warm, engaged liberal arts community here. Come join us. And go Ducks!
The College of Arts and Sciences includes:
Happening at CAS
9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Through the Oregon Cybersecurity Center of Excellence we are offering a FREE cyber camp for rising 9th-12th grade students. Students and parents can visit https://nwcybercamp.org/ to learn more and sign up.
No prior experience is required. The camp will include fun daily challenge activities, guest speakers, and opportunities to connect with others interested cybersecurity. Lunch is provided.
9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Through the Oregon Cybersecurity Center of Excellence we are offering a FREE cyber camp for rising 9th-12th grade students. Students and parents can visit https://nwcybercamp.org/ to learn more and sign up.
No prior experience is required. The camp will include fun daily challenge activities, guest speakers, and opportunities to connect with others interested cybersecurity. Lunch is provided.
9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Through the Oregon Cybersecurity Center of Excellence we are offering a FREE cyber camp for rising 9th-12th grade students. Students and parents can visit https://nwcybercamp.org/ to learn more and sign up.
No prior experience is required. The camp will include fun daily challenge activities, guest speakers, and opportunities to connect with others interested cybersecurity. Lunch is provided.
9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Through the Oregon Cybersecurity Center of Excellence we are offering a FREE cyber camp for rising 9th-12th grade students. Students and parents can visit https://nwcybercamp.org/ to learn more and sign up.
No prior experience is required. The camp will include fun daily challenge activities, guest speakers, and opportunities to connect with others interested cybersecurity. Lunch is provided.