Next month, the Class of 2029 will be picking classes at Duke for the first time. They will be the first to navigate Duke’s new curriculum for the Trinity College of Arts and Sciences. In addition to streamlining and simplifying the core requirements, the new core has broken the Arts, Literature and Performance (ALP) requirement into separate Creating and Engaging with Art (CE) and Humanistic Inquiry (HI) requirements and mandated that all Trinity first-year students not in a FOCUS cluster enroll in a constellation.

In the spirit of helping our newest arts-inclined and arts-interested students navigate the curriculum, the following is part three of Recess’ three-part guide to course selection

Constellations are “year-long, multidisciplinary first-year experiences designed to build communities among first-year students.” Students must take three courses in their constellation throughout their first year, one of which is a required writing course.

Constellations emphasize an interdisciplinary curriculum with small group learning and experiential education. More importantly, they are required for students in the Trinity College of Arts & Sciences not participating in a FOCUS cluster. In fall of 2025, students will have 16 constellations to choose from. 

To help incoming non-FOCUS first-years identify Constellations that emphasize arts and culture, Recess has dove into the list of this upcoming academic year’s Constellations. Here’s the eight that stuck out.

What drives us to innovate and create?

Humans have been inventing and innovating from the very beginning. This fundamental desire to create and do new things is behind everything from agriculture to art to the iphone. In this constellation, students will study what is responsible for this civilization-shaping desire. Along the way, they’ll work on their own innovation mindset and will think more about the ethics of innovation. After all, just because we can make something doesn’t mean we should.

The first semester of this constellation is admittedly pretty sparse on the arts and culture, aside from a creativity-focused I&E intro course. However, the second semester includes multiple arts-centric courses, including one focusing on culinary innovation and another focusing on how science fiction can demonstrate the power of ideas. This constellation is perfect for those interested in the intersection of innovation, creativity and the arts.

For millennia, historiography — the study of how we write and tell history — has been understood as separate from history. This constellation focuses on different ways of understanding the tumultuous history of the post-WW2 era. In it, students will use a variety of lenses, including social justice, race and civil rights, while discussing “the challenges and possibilities of resistance to injustice.” 

Each semester, students will have a handful of arts and culture courses to choose from, focusing on everything from museums to borders between countries. While lighter on the course offerings than other constellations on this list, this constellation is perfect for students interested in the humanities more broadly and ability of arts and culture to illuminate our world.

How do we understand life, death and the in-between?

Life and death have long been understood to be intertwined. However, different cultures and time periods have different beliefs on what it means to be alive, death or neither. By studying burial practices, modern science and differing approaches to illness, this constellation hopes to offer students an opportunity to reflect on human mortality and how our experience with it has changed and will continue to change.

Each semester offers an abundance of arts and culture courses, including explorations of deathcare, global perspectives on being sick and the boundaries of being human. This constellation is well-suited for students interested in how arts and culture help us understand the human experience and those interested in the intersection of arts and the medical field.

How do we see ourselves as political beings?

In “Politics,” Aristotle famously remarked that “man is by nature a political animal.” In this constellation, students will put this to the test, investigating how politics and political systems work in reality while also dreaming up alternatives. Along the way, they will also consider how politics shapes all aspects of human life.

Each semester includes several arts and culture offerings focusing on stories of dissent, political theater, the embodiment of possibilities and more. For those interested in how arts and culture intersect with politics, this constellation is the perfect opportunity to explore those questions in depth.

What is the Cosmos?

Space is infinitely bigger than the small blue and green marble we call home. Since the beginning of recorded history (and almost certainly before that), we have obsessed over the stars. They have informed our religions, our understanding of how the world works and so much more. In this constellation, students will dive deep into how our skies actually work and the specifics of how they have shaped the world around us.

While the first semester is light on arts and culture, the second semester is devoted entirely to them,  offering students a chance to study everything from how the stars have been represented in music to divine entities and the cosmos. This constellation (pun acknowledged) is perfect for those interested in the intersection of arts and science and how these disciplines inform and shape one another.

How does artificial intelligence impact human experiences?

It is no secret that artificial intelligence is poised to remake (or at least significantly alter) the world around us. Everything from work to art to science could be altered in ways we can not even begin to understand. This constellation is all about giving students an opportunity to study how AI will shape the world while also considering the immense opportunities and challenges AI poses.

Each semester, students will be offered both technical and arts and culture-centric offerings that give them a chance to understand how AI can shape the arts and how the arts can let us understand and shape AI. If you’re interested in using AI in the arts, or in finding ways to improve and shape the future of AI, this is the constellation for you.

How do sports shape society?

Sports are an integral part of American and global culture, but they are also so much more than that. This constellation will examine the strong and broad societal impact of sports on everything from business to race to politics to religion and ethics, with an eye towards both those engaged in sports and those shaped by them around the world.

Students will be able to choose from a variety of courses examining sports’ relationships with various parts of our culture, including religious beliefs. This course is perfect for those interested in sports, as well as those interested in the societal forces shaping sports.