PLACEHOLDER — insert a quote from a current Deaf Studies student or graduate about what it’s like to learn ASL, the semester at Gallaudet, and finding their place in the Goshen community.
Bachelor of Arts
Deaf Studies
Major | Minor
A Major Built Around the Deaf Community
If you love American Sign Language and want to spend your life working with Deaf people, this is your starting place.
Deaf Studies at Goshen College is a major or minor that develops your American Sign Language skills alongside the study of Deaf culture and history. You’ll choose a concentration in social work or education, and you have the option of getting licensed to teach ASL in schools as a world language.
The program also takes you off campus for a semester. In fact, every Deaf Studies major spends a term at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. There, you study as a visiting student, immersed in sign language and Deaf culture. You won’t plan it alone; your advisor helps you map it out from your first year. This major is also for students who love ASL but don’t plan to become interpreters. If interpreting is your goal, see Goshen’s Sign Language Interpreting major.
Is Deaf Studies Right for You?
You don’t have to have it all figured out to belong here.
Deaf Studies fits students who are patient, curious, and drawn to people whose experience differs from their own. Goshen is also a small college. As a result, you’re known by name and part of the work from the start. It’s an inclusive environment, too, where you’re supported as your whole self. The program is also built around the best interests of the Deaf community. In fact, professional ethics show up in every class.
What You’ll Study
- Social Service Concentration: Work directly with Deaf individuals and their families. You’ll study Deaf culture, community, family dynamics, and mental health, and learn to provide services that are culturally competent and relevant.
- Education Concentration: Prepare to work with Deaf individuals in educational settings. Explore Deaf culture, foundations of education, Deaf literacy, child development, and developmental psychology.
Want to teach ASL? You can double major with Secondary Education to earn a license to teach ASL at the middle or high school level. View the complete program requirements in our catalog.
STUDENT NAME
Current Role or Plans
Paying for Goshen
It’s worth asking about early, and we’ll work with you to make sure your Goshen College education is affordable. Scholarships make up a large part of Goshen financial-aid packages, which average almost $26,000 per student (not including work-study or loans). To see your own price after aid, run the net price calculator and talk with a real person in the financial aid office. Advising, mentorship, and a close community are here to help you finish what you start, including the semester away at Gallaudet.
Common Questions About Deaf Studies Major
Yes. Deaf Studies is offered as both a major and a minor, so you can add it to another major to build ASL fluency and Deaf-culture understanding alongside your main field. To add the minor, declare it with your academic advisor; there is no separate application beyond admission to Goshen.
Every Deaf Studies major spends one semester as a visiting student at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., immersed in sign language and Deaf culture. It is part of the major. Your advisor helps you plan for it from your first year, and Goshen College has a partnership with Galludet that makes it seamless for you to transfer your Galludet courses back to GC.
Graduates work at the intersection of language, access, and advocacy, in roles such as Deaf advocate, disability services coordinator, case manager, ASL teacher, and life skills educator. Many continue to graduate study in social work, interpreting, education, or audiology. A double major with Secondary Education adds an ASL teaching license.
Scholarships are a large part of Goshen aid packages, which average almost $26,000 per student, not counting work-study or loans. Use the net price calculator on the financial aid page to see your real number, and talk with a financial aid counselor about a package built for your situation.
Start your application at the Goshen College apply page, or request information first if you’d like to talk through fit before committing. You can also schedule a visit to sit in on a class and meet faculty. The Deaf Studies major and minor are both open to admitted Goshen students.
Ready to get started?
Diana Boussom
Assistant Professor of American Sign Language
Cristobal Garza Gonzalez
Associate Professor of Spanish
Colleen Geier
Professor of ASL Interpreting
Terry Martin
Associate Professor of Spanish
