Navigate Life’s Turning Points
Embrace your potential with practice-based learning that blends interpersonal skills with tools from theater.
Explore big ideas, together.
Join a community of eminent scholars and intellectually curious peers.
Start Your JourneyVideo Description
Woman walks down street on University of Chicago campus. Classroom discussion with four students and instructor. Graham School instructor leads virtual classroom discussion. Student writes down reflections in notebook. Student smiles during classroom discussion. Three Graham School students greet each other prior to an event. David Brooks and Anne Snyder converse with a Graham School student. Three Graham School students explore the UChicago Smart Museum. Three Graham School students and Anne Snyder converse. Dean Seth Green looks over UChicago campus while speaking with a student.
Featured Offerings
Our offerings are inspired by the belief that lifelong engagement with the liberal arts enriches lives and invigorates societies.
A Week of Civic Virtue
This August, spend a week on UChicago’s Hyde Park campus to explore big ideas and lively conversations with fellow Graham students.
Visit Revolutionary War Sites
Celebrate our nation’s 250th anniversary by visiting legendary Revolutionary War sites in New Jersey.
Learning Never Stops
Renew your love of learning with a unique program aimed at personal growth.
Grow as a Thinker and Leader
Elevate your critical thinking and leadership through advanced study in the liberal arts.
Immerse Yourself in the Great Books
Explore timeless works of literature, philosophy, history, and social thought.
Design a Future of Meaning and Impact
Join a community of accomplished leaders on a journey of self-discovery and meaningful action for society.
Choose Your Intellectual Adventure
Embrace lifelong discovery by taking curated courses that will intrigue, engage, and inspire you.
Take a Journey of Discovery
Join us on transformative visits to historical sites.
Why Lifelong Learners Love Graham
Browse Winter Courses
A Closer Look at the Torah II – Exodus and Leviticus
Stephen Hall
A First Experience with Finnegans Wake Part II
Kendall Sharp
Alumni Sequence: Asian Classical Traditions Year 2 Winter
Clare Pearson & Austin Walker
Alumni Sequence: The Modern Tradition Year 1 Winter
Jacqueline Victor, David Shiner & 2 more
American Ideas and Ideals, 1930-2020
Fred Beuttler
Another Look at Plato’s Republic
Clare Pearson
New to Graham
Are You New to the Graham School?
In the Graham School’s one-of-a-kind community, you’ll join intellectually curious peers to explore big ideas with our extraordinary faculty and instructors. Whether studying the classics or looking at contemporary issues, our students are motivated by fundamental questions like: “Who am I?” “Why am I here?” “What difference do I want to make?” We create a welcoming space of intellectual discovery and discernment for learners in mid-life and beyond.
Choose from our wide variety of offerings to learn in the modality and at the pace that makes sense for you.
Upcoming Events at Graham
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Jan
02
Reading Great Books Against Apocalypse
Online
This First Friday Lecture is supported by the Anastaplo Lecture Series Fund in memory of Basic Program Instructor George Anastaplo.
Jan
07
Re-Educated: Lucy Kellaway on Midlife Transition
Online
Join us for a conversation with Lucy Kellaway, former Financial Times columnist turned teacher, as she discusses the transformative power of starting over in midlife.
Jan
14
Meet the Director: Graduate Student-at-Large Bridge Programs
Online
Gain valuable insights about how you can leverage the GSAL program to explore fields of academic study and preview graduate and undergraduate level for-credit courses at UChicago.
Jan
20
Reader Bot: What Happens When AI Reads and Why It Matters – Virtual Book Launch
Online
What happens to human reading when AI bots can do it for us? And what are the consequences for our thinking, learning, and engagement with the world?
Jan
22
Graham Summer School Information Session
Online
Join us on January 22 for an info session exploring Graham Summer School, a week that blends seminars and special programming on UChicago’s Hyde Park campus with carefully curated excursions across Chicago.
Jan
26
MyLife Studio Information Session
Online
Join us on January 26 for an info session exploring MyLife Studio, a cohort-based, experiential learning program designed to support individuals navigating turning points at any time in their lives.
Feb
02
The Case for the Arts: A Conversation with Deborah Rutter
Gleacher Center
At a time when the arts face unprecedented pressure from shifting economics, cultural polarization, and changes in audience behavior, what is the case for the arts and how can arts practice thrive into the future?
Feb
10
An Evening with Michael Rossi: Capturing Kahanamoku
Gleacher Center
Join us for a compelling in-person discussion with Michael Rossi’s account on how surfing legend Duke Kahanamoku became the target of a eugenicist’s obsession in 1920s America.
Feb
11
Meet the Director: Graduate Student-at-Large Bridge Programs
Online
Gain valuable insights about how you can leverage the GSAL program to explore fields of academic study and preview graduate and undergraduate level for-credit courses at UChicago.
Feb
12
Capturing Kahanamoku: A Conversation with Michael Rossi
Online
Join us for a compelling virtual discussion with Michael Rossi’s account on how surfing legend Duke Kahanamoku became the target of a eugenicist’s obsession in 1920s America.
Graham School Stories
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Classic Texts, Contemporary World: What is Intelligence? A Conversation with Lin Atnip
In this conversation with Lin Atnip, tutor at St. John’s College and incoming Basic Program instructor at the Graham School, we explored one of today’s most pressing questions: what is intelligence in the age of AI? We examined the fundamental differences between human and machine thinking, focusing on concepts like embodiment, desire, and tacit knowledge……
How Do We Disagree? A Conversation with Pamela Narins
In this conversation with Pamela Narins, social scientist, former Bader Rutter executive, and instructor of the upcoming course, How Do We Disagree? Antigone and Twelve Angry Men, we explored why disagreement feels especially difficult today, amid rising polarization, the loss of shared experience, and the tendency to view disagreement as a social ill rather than a……
Thriving After a Career Break: A Conversation with Julianne Miles
In this conversation with Julianne Miles, co-founder of Career Returners, chartered psychologist, and author of Return Journey: How to Get Back to Work and Thrive After a Career Break, we explored what it really looks like to navigate the “return journey” after time away from paid work. We also examined why career breaks are still stigmatized……
GRAHAM SCHOOL COMMUNITY
We believe that the best learning happens in classrooms where people actively engage each other in the spirit of joint inquiry.
That’s why Graham School faculty focus on asking provocative questions and facilitating discussion rather than just imparting their expertise. Our courses invite learners to engage in meaningful dialogue across divergent perspectives.