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.
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College/School
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.
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Restrictions:
1. No more than ten 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.
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Distribution:
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
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)
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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
*See Degree Requirements in each College for information on laboratory
science courses.
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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)
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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)
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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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