1. College of Arts and Sciences

2.  A “credit” means one hour (50 minutes) of class time per week. (This means 3 hours of outside-of-class study time is recommended.)  A typical class is worth 3 credits (3 50-minute or 2 75-minute classes per week).  Your program will require at least 120 credits (or 40 courses). 5 courses a semester, 8 semesters will complete a degree program.

3.  Many students choose or are recommended to start college with only 12 credits.  This allows them to get their feet on the ground with the transition from high school to college.  Dropping a class, failing a class, or taking a class not recommended by one’s advisor can slow down progress.  The RAIDER PLAN is the commitment to stay on track for graduation in 4 years.

4. What Is focused on your ultimate success? Provides you a balanced foundation? Introduces you to new disciplines? Gives you breadth and depth of learning? Supports your major program? Separates a university education from technical or vocation training?

5. GATEWAY TO MAJOR OR DISCIPLINEBROAD SURVEY COURSE  Some courses provide an overview or introduction to a field.  These courses give you a taste of what that discipline is all about, perhaps inspiring you to take more courses in that area.  Other courses in the General Education program are just meant to give you the only exposure you may ever have to that particular discipline.  These courses may provide connections to other knowledge, or they may just contribute to your liberal education.

6. Required Courses of Everyone at the University

7.  Everyone “places” into a writing class, based either on SAT score, placement essay, or performance in summer class.  Some students may need 2 semesters of writing, so they have Basic Writing first.  Most students will have WIFYS, Writing- Intensive First-Year Seminar.  Others have Advanced Writing or College Writing (for transfer students)

8.  In your college-level writing class, you will read and write about a variety of topics.  You will learn to collaborate and peer edit more effectively to produce clear and effective writing.  You will learn to incorporate source materials correcting, avoiding plagiarism.  You will read a variety of texts more critically as your communication skills strengthen.

9.  Every first-year student will take Introduction to Human Communication Studies, the semester opposite the writing semester.  You will strengthen your skills in public speaking, but you will also become a more effective listener, you will learn to interface appropriately with others in groups, and you will learn more about how humans interact.

10.  All students will take at least one math class to improve their numerical skills and to better appreciate the importance of analytical, computational, and quantitative skills.  Depending on placement and your major, you will find a wide variety of math courses in the General Education program.

11.  Every student at Shippensburg will take a 2- course sequence in World History.  This important coursework lays the foundation of understanding (a timeline) for many of the other courses you will take.  In addition, you will improve your reading and writing skills in a content-based course.

12. The Spectrum of Fields and Disciplines Available at Shippensburg

13.  Logic and Numbers for Rational Thinking  You need only ONE course in this category.  Students choose another Math course, a Computer Science course, or a Philosophy course.  All of these types of courses increase your ability to think symbolically and to use reasoning precisely.

14.  You are placed into a math course in this category based on your PLACEMENT results (or SAT) and your MAJOR.  If you have any questions about what math to take, see your ADVISOR and/or the MATH DEPARTMENT.

15.  Linguistic, Literary, Artistic, and Cultural Traditions  All students take one literature class and two other classes from this category.  These courses focus on the humanities, on art, music, and the other ways that human beings express themselves (even in other languages).

16.  Every student at Shippensburg is required to take a General Education literature course, either in English or a modern language (like Spanish or French).  The English offerings are ENG 250 Introduction to Literature, ENG 248 Introduction to Culturally Diverse Literature, or ENG 243 The Art of the Film.

17.  You must take 2 other courses in this category, not literature.  Your choices include Art, Music, language courses, and Interdisciplinary Arts (a new course, IAP 111).  As with many Gen Ed categories, you cannot take two from the same department or discipline.

18.  Biological and Physical Sciences  Students take THREE science courses from different disciplines.  Courses focus on scientific inquiry and problem solving, which can impact many other disciplines and ways of thought.  Many courses in this category have laboratory components, providing hands-on learning.

19.  The biggest problem we see with General Education Category C is that often students will take more than one course in a department.  Although, Human Biology and Problems of the Environment are apparentlly very different, they are both in Biology.  Students must take Biology, Chemistry, Physics, or Earth Science (3 courses).

20.  Political, Geographic, and Economic Sciences  Courses in this category provide important cultural and informational backgrounds for understanding our increasingly global society.  Students choose TWO courses to fulfill this category and increase their perspectives of government, our world, and our interdependence.

21.  Your choices in this category are Economics, Political Science, and Geography.  Since there are relatively few choices in this category, it’s pretty simple.  You need 2 courses from 2 disciplines.

22.  Social and Behavioral Sciences  This final category has students choosing TWO courses to help them better understand how people function.  Psychology focuses on the individual mind while Sociology looks at people in groups.  Anthropology deal with humanity, broadly, and Women’s Studies focuses on specific social issues related to gender.

23.  This category is also fairly simple to understand. You need 2 courses from 2 disciplines.  Your choices are General Psychology, Introduction to Sociology, Cultural Anthropology or Geography, or Introduction to Women’s Studies.

24.  As part of your writing competency course, you will learn about resources: how to find them, how to use them, and how to document and cite them.  Becoming competent with library resources will help you become an independent learner.  You will complete a tutorial through the library and demonstrate your knowledge in every class you take at Shippensburg.

25.  Shippensburg University is committed to helping its students appreciate and understand the diversity, in its many forms, in the United States.  Diversity comes in many forms: culture, religion, ethnicity and race, gender, age, social class, sexual orientation, and abilities.

26.  Students take at least ONE course from the following General Education courses—Art Appreciation, Introduction to Culturally Diverse Literature, Cultural Geography and Geography of US and Canada, Introduction to Sociology, or Introduction to Women’s Studies—or another upper-level course designated as a “diversity course” across several disciplines to satisfy the diversity requirement.

27.  You CANNOT drop three of the competency courses: World History, Writing, and Human Communication Studies.  Be extra careful to work very hard in these classes since they are required and inescapable.  Many of the Math courses at the University will fulfill either the competency requirement or the Category A requirement; however, you cannot use the same course for both.  You must pass Dev. Math if you placed at that level before taking a college- level math.

28.  Know your curriculum and how General Education is specified for your major.  All curriculum worksheets are available from your department or online.  Have several options chosen in case what you want is full.

29.  Don’t feel that you need to get these courses “out of the way.” Explore, discover, challenge yourself in new areas.  Taking all majors’ classes can be very difficult, so don’t hesitate to “save” some fun or popular General Education classes until later in your college years.  Taking diverse classes with everyone on campus is an experience in itself; enjoy the journey!

30.  Look online to see what you need (catalog, pages 76-80) for General Education.  Login to the SIS to see what you’ve already taken.  Keep up with your checksheet.  Know what you are taking and why!  Talk to your advisor, your department chair, and/or the dean’s office (Mrs. Hooper or Dr. Long) if you are still confused!