Santa Barbara: Departments

Tutorial Program
Initiated in the fall of 1951, the Tutorial Program was an outgrowth of several years of discussions among faculty members on the Santa Barbara campus concerning the nature and goals of liberal arts education. The purpose of the program was, and is to provide gifted and interested undergraduates with a distinctive educational experience through an interdisciplinary major emphasizing the arts of critical reading, discussion, and writing.

As originally conceived, a major in tutorial could not begin until the sophomore year, with participation each semester in a colloquium, or formal discussion group, of 12 to 17 students, conducted by two instructors from different departments. While these colloquia were often repeated for two or three years, fresh ones were added periodically. Through the fall semester of 1965, a total of 13 colloquia had been offered.

In his two years as an upper division student a tutorial major elects a total of eight tutorials, which are newly designed each semester by the student and instructors after consultation with the Tutorial Committee. Typically, tutorials of from one to three students meet with an instructor once a week for discussion of reading and student papers. In 1962, a one-unit course for freshmen was initiated to acquaint prospective tutorial majors with the nature and methods of the program. By the spring of 1965, 50 freshmen were enrolled in four sections, each devoted to a different subject matter.

The Tutorial Program is administered by a six-member faculty committee appointed by the Executive Committee of the College of Letters and Science. Since 1961-62, budgetary support has taken the form of transfers of funds to departments which release faculty members from courses to serve as tutors.

In 1964-65, there were 13 students majoring in the Tutorial Program, three of whom were graduating seniors. source