What are General Education Requirements?

General Education (Gen Ed) courses are part of every degree program at every college and university.  Gen Eds are intended to give you a little bit of knowledge in a lot of different subject areas (a.k.a., academic disciplines) so you can become a well-rounded, educated person.   

All courses that are designated as General Education courses are listed on the Gen Ed Course List.The course list is broken down into different academic disciplines including: Arts, Humanities, Communications, English, Interdisciplinary & Emerging Issues, Mathematics, Science, and Social & Behavioral Sciences.  

You will need courses from some or all of these different areas to satisfy your major’s requirements.  Some courses will be required and some you will get to choose (elect):

• Required Gen Eds are specific courses listed in BOLD print, such as EN101, which is the required Gen Ed English requirement in every Associate degree

• Elective Gen Eds are courses you get to choose and are listed in BOLD print with the academic discipline and (Gen Ed course list) printed beside it.  For example, for the Arts Elective (Gen Ed course list), you would select any of the courses listed under the Arts section of the Gen Ed Course List.

In choosing Gen Eds, remember to

1 - Check your major’s requirements using your My Planner    

2 –Sign up for any required Gen Eds (like EN101) that you need in your major    

3 –Use the General Education Course List to pick any elective Gen Ed courses in the subject area you need. 

If you are still uncertain about your Gen Ed requirements, contact your Advisor or ask the Email Advisor!