The small campus is one of the key reasons I chose Goshen. I appreciate the small class sizes and the benefits that come with them. You have a strong sense of belonging.
Bachelor of Arts
Deaf Studies
Major | Minor
A major built to serve 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 along with the study of Deaf culture and history. You’ll choose a concentration in social work or education, and you can add a secondary education double major to get licensed to teach ASL in schools.
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 guest student, immersed in sign language and Deaf culture. You won’t plan it alone; your advisor helps you choose your plan and Gallaudet courses 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 College’s Sign Language Interpreting major.
Is Deaf Studies Right for You?
Deaf Studies fits students who are empathetic, curious, and eager to connect with people whose experiences differ from their own. Many students choose the major because they know a Deaf person or have studied sign language in high school, but that’s not a prerequisite. Whether you’re starting from scratch or building on past experience, you will quickly dive into immersive language learning and cultural study. The program is also built with the best interests of the Deaf community at the center of all classroom and community experiences. The focus covers accessibility, inclusivity, cultural competence and employment opportunities.
What You’ll Study
Through the social work concentration, you’ll work directly with deaf individuals and their families. You’ll study Deaf culture, community and family dynamics, and learn to provide services that are culturally competent and relevant.
With an education concentration, you will prepare to work with deaf individuals in educational settings. Explore Deaf culture, foundations of education, special needs, and developmental psychology.
Want to teach ASL? You can double major with Secondary Education to earn a license to teach ASL in grades 5-12. The secondary education co-major adds 36 credits.
View the complete program requirements in our catalog.
Where a Deaf Studies Degree Can Take You
A Deaf Studies degree prepares you to work at the intersection of language, access and advocacy, wherever the Deaf community needs allies who can sign, understand the culture and navigate the systems around it.
Graduates with a social work concentration go on to work as case managers, disability services coordinators, and advocates in agencies that serve deaf and hard-of-hearing clients. Graduates with an education concentration support Deaf students in schools, day cares, after school programs or, with the secondary education co-major, earn a license to teach ASL in grades 5-12.
Many graduates continue directly into graduate study in social work, education or interpreting, using the Gallaudet semester as a running start on advanced coursework in a Deaf-centered environment.
View the complete program requirements in our catalog.
Ashley Valencia '24
Registered Nurse at Goshen Health
Paying for Goshen
Scholarships make up a large part of Goshen financial-aid packages, which average almost $26,000 per student. To see your own price after aid, run the net price calculator or explore your options at the financial aid and scholarships pages.
Common Questions About the 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, the only university for the Deaf, 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 Gallaudet that makes it seamless for you to transfer your Gallaudet courses back to GC.
Gallaudet University was the first school for the advanced education of the deaf and hard of hearing in the world and remains the only higher education institution in which all programs and services are specifically designed to accommodate deaf and hard of hearing students. Hearing students are admitted to the graduate school and a small number are also admitted as undergraduates each year.
Graduates work at the intersection of language, access, and advocacy, in roles such as deaf advocate, disability services coordinator, case manager, and ASL teacher. Many continue to graduate study in social work, interpreting or education. A double major with secondary education adds an ASL teaching license.
Scholarships are a large part of Goshen College aid packages, which average almost $26,000 per student. 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 you.
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.
Colleen Geier
Professor of ASL Interpreting
Diana Boussom
Assistant Professor of American Sign Language
