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Undergraduate Catalog 2016-2017 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
General Education Requirements
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General education at Columbia College is an essential part of every student’s program of study. General education explores and promotes understanding of the interrelationship among the liberal arts and sciences including the arts, history, humanities, mathematics, and the natural, social and behavioral, and computer sciences. General education provides a foundation for students to pursue lifelong learning and involved citizenship in the human community.
These studies broaden and deepen understanding of the world through free and critical inquiry. A general education encourages creativity and the discovery, acquisition and application of knowledge in the pursuit of excellence.
At Columbia College teaching and learning come together to create diverse educational experiences, opportunities for responsible reflection, intellectual growth, intensive writing, critical thinking and cultural awareness. Taken together these attributes help define a Columbia College student.
Goals
General education courses:
- Explicitly include significant writing and speaking components;
- Encompass appropriate ways to embrace material from other disciplines;
- Foster and develop a sense of the power of diversity and cultural pluralism; and
- Stress the meaning, use and value of critical thinking skills.
Areas of Study
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Arts
The study of the arts examines the ways in which individuals have expressed themselves creatively. Critical appreciation for content and form enriches how one perceives and articulates experience.
Computer Science
The study of computer science exposes students to technology that is increasingly part of the human experience. The interconnectedness of the world necessitates informed consideration of computer use and an understanding of its capabilities and limitations.
History
The study of history provides knowledge about the past and enriches cultural understanding. Understanding people, places and events through time informs a sense of continuity and change.
Humanities
Through the humanities, students develop rigorous thinking about, understanding of and appreciation for significant forms of human communication and expression. English, communication, music, philosophy and religious studies expand students’ awareness of the world around them, past and present. The humanities offer students a basis for understanding the human condition and human experience of values, beliefs and intellectual endeavors.
Mathematics
The study of mathematics develops facility for critical thought, introduces a universal language that is the foundation for multiple disciplines and encourages clarity and succinctness of expression.
Natural Sciences
Natural sciences link experiment and observation with the practices of mathematics for the interpretation of natural phenomena. Through general introductions and laboratory experiences in astronomy, biology, chemistry, geology and physics, the achievements of these disciplines foster an awareness and understanding of the world and universe in which the individual lives.
Social and Behavioral Sciences
The study of the social and behavioral sciences includes the fields of anthropology, economics, geography, political science, psychology, and sociology. These disciplines present contemporary methodological and conceptual models for assessing, constructing, maintaining and altering individual and social processes.
Basic Studies
Basic studies courses serve the student by supplying critical thinking skills, knowledge and techniques that enhance and enrich subsequent coursework. They provide necessary preparation for success in whatever area of study the student chooses. All basic studies courses must be completed with a grade of C or higher.
Full-time Day Program students must:
- Complete all basic studies courses in the first 60 hours1; and
- Be continuously enrolled in an English composition or math course until ENGL 112 and MATH 150 or higher level math course have been successfully completed.
Total Semester Hours: 38-41
Introductory Studies
Introductory studies provide the student a varied and rich learning experience that is the essence of a liberal arts and sciences education. These courses provide a foundation for advanced studies regardless of major. Students who begin with Columbia College or who transfer to Columbia College with 36 or fewer hours from other institutions will complete the Classical program of study. Students who transfer to Columbia College with more than 36 hours at the time of initial transfer may elect to pursue either the Classical program of study or the Optional program of study. Students who complete the Preferred program will have this accomplishment noted on their transcripts when they graduate:
“In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree, this student completed a classical program of general education study.”
Classical Program of Study
Students must select two courses, with a minimum of six hours, from each of the following areas, except for the Natural Sciences and Mathematics area.
Natural Sciences and Mathematics
Students may elect to take two science lecture courses, or a mathematics course and a science lecture course, or a science lecture and associated lab course totaling not less than five hours, to satisfy the Natural Sciences and Mathematics portion of the requirement.
Social and Behavioral Sciences
Total Semester Hours: 23-26
Ethics
Every student who graduates from Columbia College must complete an ethics course, PHIL 330 or an approved departmental ethics course in the student’s major.
Optional Program of Study for Qualifying Transfer Students
Qualifying students are those who transfer more than 36 hours when they first enroll at Columbia College
Basic Studies
Basic studies courses serve the student by supplying critical thinking skills, knowledge and techniques that enhance and enrich subsequent coursework. They provide necessary preparation for success in whatever area of study the student chooses.
All basic studies courses must be completed with a grade of C or higher.
Full-time Day Program students must:
- Complete all basic studies courses in the first 60 hours;1 and
- Be continuously enrolled in an English composition or math course until ENGL 112 and MATH 150 or higher level math course have been successfully completed.
Total Semester Hours: 12-14
1Transfer students who are near or beyond the 60-hour mark may apply for appropriate exemptions.
History
The student must complete six hours from the following courses:
Arts and Humanities
The student must complete 6 hours in at least two of the following areas: ARTS, COMM, ENGL, MUSI, PHIL or RELI. A complete list of which courses can fulfill the Arts and Humanities requirement can be found here.
Natural Sciences and Mathematics
Students may elect to take two science lecture courses, or a mathematics course and a science lecture course, or a science lecture and associated lab course totaling not less than five hours, to satisfy the Natural Sciences and Mathematics portion of the requirement.
Social and Behavioral Sciences
The student must complete six hours in at least two of the following areas: ANTH, ECON, GEOG, POSC, PSYC, SOCI. A complete list of which courses can fulfill the Social and Behavioral requirement can be found here.
Total Semester Hours: 23-26
Ethics
Every student who graduates from Columbia College must complete an ethics course, either PHIL 330 , Ethics, or an approved Departmental ethics course in the student’s major.
Total Semester Hours: 38-41
English Composition Requirement
Students must fulfill requirements for ENGL 112 by the time they have completed 60 semester hours of course work with Columbia College. Full-time day students must enroll in the appropriate English course (ENGL 107 , ENGL 111 or ENGL 112 ) each semester until they have completed the requirement with grades of C or better.
Entering full-time students with no transfer credit in English will be placed in the appropriate composition course according to their ACT English Subtest Scores or equivalent SAT Scores.
If students enroll at Columbia College with more than 30 semester hours of approved transfer credit but have not yet earned credit for ENGL 112 , they must fulfill requirements and receive credit for this course during the next 24 semester hours of coursework.
Ethics Course Requirement
All students may complete PHIL 330 - Ethics 3 hours to satisfy the ethics course general education requirement.
The courses listed below satisfy the Ethics requirement for specific majors and the Teacher Certification Program.
These courses can be taken in place of PHIL 330 .
Beacon/Daystar Programs
(Students seeking teacher certification only):*
Business Administration Majors:
Computer Information Systems Majors:
Criminal Justice Administration Majors:
Environmental Science Majors:
General Studies with a Minor:
** Ethics course specific to the minor
General Studies for Elementary Education Certification:
Management Information Systems Majors:
Note(s):
Students who take a major-related ethics course and subsequently change their major will be required to take PHIL 330 or a major-related ethics course for the new major.
Students pursuing a double major or a dual degree may take PHIL 330 or a major-related ethics course to one of the majors.
*Students seeking teacher certification via the BEACON or DAYSTAR programs may use EDUC 200 to satisfy the Ethics course requirement. If a student has taken EDUC 200 and then decides to not pursue teacher certification, EDUC 200 can no longer be used to satisfy the Ethics requirement. Students will be required to take PHIL 330 or an ethics course related to their major.
**If a student is pursuing the Bachelor of General Studies and a minor, the student may complete PHIL 330 or a specific ethics course related to the minor. Below is a list of specific ethics courses and the minors (with general studies degrees only) with which they may be utilized:
CJAD 345 : BGS with a minor in Criminal Justice Administration
EDUC 200 : BGS with a minor in Education (noncertification minor)
ENVS 332 /PHIL 332 : BGS with a minor in Biology or Environmental Science
MGMT 368 : BGS with a minor in Accounting, Business, Computer Information Systems, Economics, Finance, Management or Marketing
If a student is pursuing a degree other than the Bachelor of General Studies and a minor, ethics courses related to the minor cannot be used to satisfy the ethics requirement. The student must complete PHIL 330 or a major related ethics course.
Total Semester Hours: 12-14
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