Academic Programs / General Education

General Education

The General Education (GenEd) program serves as Temple University's liberal education requirements for all undergraduate students admitted as freshman beginning Fall 2008 and for all transfer students who are admitted to Temple for Fall 2010 and beyond. GenEd is a response to the reality of the 21st century--the amount of information available to us and the speed with which we can access information and the pace with which access continues to expand. In a world where no one can hope to know it all, the best way to prepare for the future is to learn how information is linked and how pieces of information are interrelated.

GenEd is about making connections. GenEd classes draw connections between academic knowledge and current controversies. From global terrorism to global climate change, from digital mapping to the future of television, GenEd classes will involve looking at cutting edge issues from multiple perspectives. GenEd draws connections too with the city of Philadelphia, as classroom study is integrated with Temple's dynamic urban environment.

Find out more about General Education at www.temple.edu/gened.

Program Framework

The General Education curriculum introduces students to nine areas of learning and a total of eleven courses, divided into Foundation courses and Breadth courses.

Foundation Courses

Course Sequencing

Students are advised to take the three-semester sequence formed by Analytical Reading & Writing, Mosaic I and Mosaic II as soon as possible after entering Temple in order and in successive semesters.

In addition, GenEd considers Quantitative Literacy a foundational course, and thus, students are advised to take a GenEd Quantitative Literacy course as soon as possible after entering Temple and before enrolling in Science & Technology courses.

Breadth Courses

Finding GenEd Courses

Each GenEd area has a list of courses approved as satisfying the requirements for that area. Descriptions of the GenEd areas and their approved courses can be found by clicking on the links under the GenEd Areas menu to the left.

Descriptions of GenEd courses are available in the online Undergraduate Course Descriptions catalog (www.temple.edu/bulletin/ugradbulletin/ucd/ucdtoc.html).

Current students can find courses that fulfill GenEd areas by using the following tools:

OWLnet (http://owlnet.temple.edu): Click on the "Register/Roster" tab, then click on the "find a course" button and choose a department. The two-character GenEd code for a course appears in the "Course ID (RCI)" column.

The Course Schedule (TUcourses): Select a semester, then click on the "View General Education Courses Only" option.  Alternatively, select a semester, then select a department and a GenEd area to display.

The online Course Descriptions catalog: The GenEd courses are listed by GenEd areas, and are listed in numerical order at the beginning of each department section.  The two-character GenEd RCI codes appear near the course titles within the course descriptions.

The Course Renumbering web site, (http://renumbering.temple.edu/courses.asp): Select an area in the "Required Course Identifier (RCI)" box and click "Search" to see a list of all courses offered in that GenEd area.

General Education Policies and Requirements

In general, students should be aware of the following:

Every Temple undergraduate fulfills the requirements of the General Education Curriculum in some way.

• Students entering Temple with fewer than 45 transfer credits complete the full General Education Curriculum.

• Students with 45 or more transferable credits satisfy the 45+ GenEd Curriculum. (See GenEd Transfer Programs.)

• Students with an Associate degree approved for GenEd-to-GenEd, Core-to-GenEd, or Core-to-Core Transfer meet most GenEd requirements with the general education courses taken for the Associate degree. Associate degrees are approved for GenEd-to-GenEd, Core-to-GenEd, and Core-to-Core Transfer by two university-wide faculty committees. See GenEd Transfer Programs for information on the policy and a list of approved community college Associate degrees.

A GenEd course counts in one GenEd area only.

A student may use no more than two courses from a single department to satisfy GenEd requirements. (Foundation and transfer courses are excluded.)

All GenEd courses must be completed with a grade of C- or higher to satisfy a GenEd requirement.

All GenEd course numbers begin with "08XX." GenEd Honors courses begin with "09XX."  Students may use only Temple University courses at the 0800- and 0900-levels or specified waiver courses to satisfy General Education requirements.  See the GenEd Transfer Programs section of this Bulletin for information on completing GenEd requirements with transfer credits.

In GenEd, courses may be offered in multiple departments. These courses, regardless of the sponsoring department, are the same course and will have the same number and course title.

Students seeking to repeat a GenEd course may repeat using any departments’ version of the course. (See Academic Policies: Repeating a Course for additional information.)

Students seeking to withdraw from a GenEd course should be aware a student may not withdraw from the same course more than once, even if offered by different departments. (See Academic Policies: Withdrawal Policies for additional information.)

Departments, Majors and GenEd

GenEd courses may not be required introductions to a specific major. A GenEd course may be accepted by a major to fulfill elective requirements.

Departments and colleges may not single out a specific GenEd course as a requirement.

A curriculum or degree program may identify a GenEd course as part of an array for its majors. (An array is defined as a set of options from which the student may choose. The array must present at least three options for any one course chosen.)

A student may use no more than two courses from a single department to satisfy GenEd requirements. (Foundation and transfer courses are excluded.)

Early Progress Reports

All GenEd course instructors will submit Academic Progress Reports.

Credit/No Credit

Students may not take GenEd courses for credit/no credit.

General Education Waivers

Select waivers have been adopted in recognition of repetitive and substantial exposure to key habits of mind, skills, and/or bodies of knowledge and for which programs have submitted requests.

Once a student fulfills a GenEd requirement with an approved waiver – a placement test, course or series of courses – the waiver follows the student. Advisors will need to process DARS exceptions for students who complete a waiver identified with a particular major/school/college but are not in the identified major/school/college.

If a waiver for a GenEd requirement is comprised of a series of courses, students must successfully complete all courses to receive the waiver. Courses must be completed with a C- or better to satisfy GenEd waiver requirements. Departments, schools and/or colleges may stipulate a higher grade to satisfy its own requirements.

Quantitative Literacy (GQ)

Students considering undergraduate degrees with advanced mathematical or statistical requirements may satisfy the GenEd Quantitative Literacy requirement  through alternative coursework.

A student will be waived from the GenEd Quantitative Literacy requirement upon completion of any of the following:

• Mathematics 1031, Math 1041, Math 1042, Math 1941, Math 1942, or Math 2043. 
• Statistics 2101, 2910 or 2103, 2903 or an equivalent transfer course. (Primarily for FSBM and STHM majors and FSBM minors)
• Completion of a three-course sequence to include Math 1015, Math 1021, and Early Childhood Education (ECE) 3107.  All courses must be completed to receive the wavier. (Primarily for Early Childhood majors)
• Completion of a four-course sequence to include Math 1015, Math 1021, Math 1022 and Math Ed 3145. All courses must be completed to receive the waiver. (Primarily for Middle School majors concentrating in Science and Language Arts). 
• Completion of a four-course sequence to include Math 1021, Psychology 1167 (or Sociology  1167 or Sociology 3201), Nursing 3261, and Nursing 3262. (Primarily for Nursing majors)

Consult an academic advisor for more information.

Arts (GA)

Students pursuing undergraduate degrees in the Boyer College of Music and Dance and the Tyler School of Art may be exempted from the GenEd Arts requirement upon completion of collegiate requirements.

A student will be waived from GenEd Arts requirement upon completion of any of the following four-course sequences:

• Dance 1811, Dance 2813, Dance 2814, and Dance 3815. All courses must be completed to receive waiver.
• Music Studies 1711, Music Studies 1712, Music Studies 2711, and Music Studies 2712.  All courses must be completed to receive waiver.
• Art 1101, Art 1201, Art 1401 (or 1496 or 1996), and Art 1501. All courses must be completed to receive waiver.
• Foundation 1512, Foundations 1522, Foundations 1532, and Foundations 1542.  All courses must be completed to receive waiver.

Consult an academic advisor for more information.

Human Behavior (GB)

Students pursuing undergraduate degrees in the College of Education may be exempted from the GenEd Human Behavior requirement upon completion of collegiate requirements.

A student will be waived from the GenEd Human Behavior requirement upon completion of the following three-course sequence:

• EDU 2109, Adolescent Development for Educators, SP ED 2231, Introduction to Inclusive Education, and EN ED 3338, Foundations of Language Teaching: Teaching English Language Learners in Middle  and Secondary Grades. All courses must be completed to receive waiver.  

Consult an academic advisor for more information.

Science & Technology (GS)

Many majors and programs of study require substantive studies of science to develop the expertise necessary in their fields. The sciences include studies of anatomy and physiology in human health, chemistry as the basis of human health, matter and motion, and natural phenomena. General Education would like to accommodate those students interested in pursuing such studies and have developed, in conjunction with the College of Science & Technology, a number of two-semester course sequences that would exempt students from the GenEd Science & Technology requirement.

Therefore, students considering undergraduate degrees with scientific, engineering or technical components may satisfy the GenEd Science & Technology requirement  through alternative coursework. (See waiver information below.)

A student will be waived from the GenEd Science & Technology requirement upon completion of any of the following two course sequences:

• Botany 1111 – Horticulture 2114
• Biology 1011 – Biology 1012
• Biology 1111 – Biology 2112 
• Biology 1911 – Biology 2912 (honors)
• Chemistry 1021/1023 – Chemistry 1022/1024 
• Chemistry 1031/1033 – Chemistry 1032/1034
• Chemistry 1041/1043 – Chemistry 1042/1044
• Chemistry 1951/1953 – Chemistry 1952/1954 (honors)
• EES 1001 – EES 2011
• EES 1001 – EES 2015 
• EES 1001 – EES 2021
• EES 1001 -  EES 2022
• EES 1001 – EES 2061
• EES 2001 – EES 2011 
• EES 2001 - EES 2015 
• EES 2001 – EES 2021 
• EES 2001 – EES 2022 
• EES 2001 – EES 2061
• Kinesiology 1223 – Kinesiology 1224
• Physics 1001 – Physics 1002 
• Physics 1001 – Physics 1004   
• Physics 1011 – Physics 1012  
• Physics 1021 – Physics 1022   
• Physics 1061 – Physics 1062 
• Physics 2021 – Physics 2022
• Physics 2921 – Physics 2922
• Physics 0121 – Physics 0122

Students who change their course of study prior to completing the second course of any of the specified two-course sequence, may complete their GenEd Science & Technology requirement in two ways:

• One GenEd GS course and one course from either List I or List II
• One course from List I and one course from List II

List I
Botany 1111
Biology 1011 
Biology 1111
Biology 1911 (honors) 
Chemistry 1021/1023
Chemistry 1031/1033
Chemistry 1041/1043
Chemistry 1951/1953 (honors) 
EES 1001
EES 2001 
Kinesiology 1223
Physics 1001 
Physics 1011 
Physics 1021 
Physics 1061 
Physics 2021 
Physics 2921 (honors)

List II
Horticulture 2114
Biology 1012
Biology 2112
Biology 2912 (honors)
Chemistry 1022/1024
Chemistry 1032/1034
Chemistry 1042/1044
Chemistry 1952/1954 (honors)
EES 2011
EES 2015
EES 2021
EES 2022
EES 2061
Kinesiology 1224
Physics 1002
Physics 1004
Physics 1012
Physics 1022 
Physics 1062
Physics 2022
Physics 2922 (honors)

Consult an academic advisor for more information.

World Society (GG)

An approved summer or semester study abroad program will satisfy the World Society requirement. Consult an academic advisor for more information.