Ever heard of Yale’s famous “Happiness Class” - or the headlines about students fighting to grab a place in the class? Now, you don’t need to be a Bulldog to learn the answers to the questions philosophers have asked for thousands of years: how do we learn how to live a good and happy life? Science may have the answers! Inspired by the immensely popular Yale University course, The Science of Well-Being, this course synthesizes psychology, biology, health sciences, and philosophy to understand what happiness and well-being mean and how we can increase them in our lives. Based on the idea that happiness can be learned and we can improve our overall well-being, we will study the factors that impact happiness and well-being and learn how to increase them in our lives. We will also examine conceptions of happiness and well-being from different thinkers across time and place, investigating what it truly means to experience the ‘good life.’ Over the duration of this course, students will participate in collaborative discussions about how to live well and practice incorporating research-based methods to uplift well-being in their own lives.
The Science of Well-Being and Happiness: Psychology, Philosophy, & Your Own Life
Length: 14 weeks
Dates and times: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7:00 PM - 7:50 PM (EST)
First day of class: September 2, 2025
Last day of class: December 11, 2025
Ash DiCristofalo received her Bachelor's from Haverford College, where she majored in Biology and minored in Classical Culture and Society, and her Master's from the University of Pennsylvania. She attended the prestigious Iowa Young Writer's Studio, had her writing published in the encyclopedia American Myths, Legends, and Tall Tales: An Encyclopedia of American Folklore, and received 5s on the AP English Language and Composition and AP English Literature and Composition exams, all of which developed her deep appreciation of rhetoric and how writers, advertisers, and speakers persuade others - and therefore, how we must critically think about how we respond to persuasive texts in the age of the Internet and AI. She recently wrapped up her position working as the Director of Graduate Engineering Programs at Haverford College. Ash has successfully worked with My Ivy Education students for years, guiding them on application essays that get them accepted to the top colleges and private high schools in the country, all while incorporating her signature creative and analytical approach.
