University Catalogue: 2009-10
General Education Requirements
Experience and learning have always communicated the interdependencies and interrelationships that exist between persons and things—and today, because of the increasingly powerful technologies of information gathering, communication, and transportation, it is even more vital for students to see that specialized knowledge alone is not sufficient to meet the challenges of reasonable and responsible living in a complex world. Specialties enable persons to be successful as professionals. General Education must enable them to be successful as human beings.
The General Education program is provided to help each student attain the basic competencies, breadth of knowledge, and critical judgment which characterize a mature and responsible individual in the modern world. More specifically, the program is designed to: (1) stimulate and direct learning throughout life; (2) provide exposure to typical modes of inquiry within the disciplines; (3) promote active learning and a critical response to what is read, heard, and seen; and (4) broaden individual perspectives and emphasize relationships with other fields of study, other cultures, or other times.
The General Education Program seeks to develop further the abilities and skills of students by fostering: (1) extensive communication and analysis; (2) an elevated social conscience and commitment to a life of involvement and public service; and (3) opportunities to study and to develop a system of values.
College Requirements. Any College of the University may establish additional or more specific General Education requirements for any or all of its degree programs. Such modifications are published in the appropriate College section of this catalogue.
University Requirements. The five categories of the program offer a wide range of choice and ensure a basic understanding of representative disciplines. From these options the student, in consultation with an adviser, can plan a program which permits exploration of areas outside the major/minor concentration, in directions suited to individual needs and interests. Each candidate for a baccalaureate degree must earn a minimum of 39 credits in courses applicable to General Education requirements, distributed among the five categories as indicated below.
Courses taken to satisfy requirements for a major or minor program may be counted toward the satisfaction of General Education requirements, within the restrictions noted below. Appropriate credits earned by examination may also be applied to the General Education program. Six College Level Examination Program (CLEP) general credits may be counted as satisfying the requirements of one subcategory in each of the second, third, and fourth categories (Natural Sciences, Social Sciences, and Humanities), for a maximum of 18 credits representing three subcategories.
1. No more than 10 credits from any one course prefix may be counted toward General Education requirements. (Cross-listed courses with prefixes such as AIS and Wmns are credited to the GE category and subcategory of the corresponding home department courses.)
2. Departments may designate certain specialized or professional courses as inapplicable to General Education requirements. These courses are identified in catalogue descriptions as “Not for GE” (in the College of Arts and Sciences only). Applicable courses are identified as “GE-IA, GE-IB,” etc.
CATEGORY I. Communications.
Language skills afford a powerful means of discovering both ourselves and our world, allowing us to preserve and ponder our experience, to shape and reshape it. Enhanced language ability serves as a catalyst for intellectual and emotional growth. Analytical skills provide the foundation for expressing logical and mathematical relationships, giving us basic tools with which to solve the ordinary as well as the technical problems in life.
Requirements: A minimum of six credits, including at least one course from two of the three subcategories:
A. Language Skills
American Indian Studies 111 and 112
Communication/Journalism
English (language and composition courses, excluding Engl 110 and
112)
Foreign Languages (language and composition courses)
B. Analytical Skills
Computer Science
Mathematics
Philosophy (logic courses)
C. Interdisciplinary Studies—Communications (including Wmns 431)
CATEGORY II. Natural Sciences.
Science explores the phenomena of the natural world, illustrating the diversity and beauty of nature. Students of the natural and physical sciences will learn to analyze scientific data and search for informative patterns. In addition, they will be introduced to scientific theories and laws that will enable them to evaluate the many technological and scientific issues of modern society.
Requirements: Nine to 12 credits from at least two of the six subcategories. At least one course must be a laboratory science* course.
A. Biology
B. Chemistry
C. Geography (physical geography courses)
D. Geology
E. Physics
F. Interdisciplinary Studies—Natural Sciences (including Materials Science; Wmns 432)
*See Degree Requirements in each College for information on laboratory science courses.
CATEGORY III. Social Sciences.
Because the social sciences investigate the behavior of individuals, groups, and social institutions, study in these disciplines encourages the appreciation of the wide range of cultural diversity that exists among societies. In order to make wise and humane choices in a free society, we must come to understand the scope and direction of change in social, political, and economic institutions. Furthermore, we come to a fuller understanding of the ways social interaction and institutions shape our personal identity.
Requirements: Nine to 12 credits from at least two of the seven subcategories:
A. Anthropology
B. Economics
C. Geography (cultural geography courses)
D. Political Science
E. Psychology
F. Sociology
G. Interdisciplinary Studies—Social Sciences (including AIS 101;
Crmj; LAS; Wmns 310, 433, 440)
CATEGORY IV. Humanities.
The humanities provide a breadth of perspective on the richness of the human experience, past and contemporary. By studying the range of expression in literature and the arts, we become acquainted with the beauty, depth, and variety of human creativity. We improve our standards of judgment and appreciation as well as our personal powers of observation and reflection.
Requirements: Nine to 12 credits from at least two of the five subcategories:
A. Fine Arts—Art, Art History, Dance, Music, Music Therapy (including Mutx 116 and 218), Theatre Arts
B. Philosophy or Religious Studies (excluding logic courses)
C. History
D. Literature (English literature, Foreign Languages literature and
civilization courses)
E. Interdisciplinary Studies—Humanities (including AIS 102,
Humanities, Interdisciplinary Studies, International Studies, Latin
American Studies, Women’s Studies)
CATEGORY V. University Wide General Education.
The rich diversity of courses offered for General Education by the Colleges of Business, Education and Human Sciences, and Nursing and Health Sciences is a focus of Category V. General Education Courses from all Colleges that cross categories I-IV are a part of this category. Students may include up to six credits from this category in General Education.
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