Requirements for the Baccalaureate Degree

Credit Hour Requirements

Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees in the College of Liberal Arts require a minimum of 123 credits, distributed according to the university and college policy outlined below, with at least a 2.0 cumulative grade point average (GPA). A minimum 2.0 GPA must also be maintained in College of Liberal Arts and College of Science and Technology (hereafter "CLA/CST") coursework and in the major.

To earn a CLA baccalaureate degree, a student must complete a minimum of 123 credits, including: 90 credits in CLA/CST courses, 45 credits of which must be at the upper level (numbered 2000-4999). Of that, 6 credits must be outside the student's major division (e.g. Social Sciences or Humanities).

A maximum of 9 credits of Independent Study can be applied to the Bachelor's degree.  This does not include internship, externship, or research credits.

Degree Eligibility

The College of Liberal Arts does not award baccalaureate degrees to students who have already completed an accredited first Bachelor's, Master's, or Ph.D. degree, regardless of when the degree was completed. 

University Requirements

All students entering an undergraduate degree program in 2011-2012 are required to complete the university General Education (GenEd) curriculum.

All students must take a minimum of two writing-intensive courses at Temple University as designated by their major requirements. The specific writing-intensive courses required for each major are listed on the individual program pages and are identified by "WI" in the Attribute column.

Foreign Language/Global Studies Requirement for Bachelor of Arts Students

NOTE: This is *not* required for students majoring in the Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience: Systems, Behavior, & Plasticity program.

1) All B.A. students complete the second level of a foreign language;

2) All B.A. students must complete at least one course from the GenEd World Society category; and

3) All B.A. students must complete one of the following options:

• Third level of a foreign language;
• Demonstrated proficiency in a foreign language;
• A second General Education World Society course;
• Study Abroad at an approved program; or
• Take one Global Studies course from the following list:
  • Anthropology 2361: Peoples of Latin America
  • Anthropology 2362: Peoples and Cultures of the Caribbean
  • Anthropology 2364: People and Cultures of the Middle East
  • Anthropology 2374: Anthropology of Modern China
  • Asian Studies 2021: Japanese Literature in Film
  • Asian Studies 2501: Introduction to East Asia: China 
  • Asian Studies 2502: Introduction to East Asia: Japan 
  • Asian Studies 2503: Introduction to Southeast Asia: Insular 
  • Asian Studies 2504: Introduction to Southeast Asia: Mainland 
  • Chinese 2011: Pre-Modern Chinese Literature
  • English 2601: Introduction to Postcolonial Literature    
  • English 2712: International Film
  • English 3112: Masterpieces of European Drama
  • Geography & Urban Studies 2032: Urban Systems in a Global Economy
  • Geography & Urban Studies 2073: African Development
  • Geography & Urban Studies 3073: Geography of Travel and Tourism
  • Geography & Urban Studies 3097: Environment and Development
  • Greek & Roman Classics 1004: Ancient City
  • Greek & Roman Classics 2002: Gender in Antiquity
  • Greek & Roman Classics 2101: The Greeks
  • Greek & Roman Classics 2102: The Romans
  • Hebrew 3711: Israelis and Palestinians
  • History 1501: Third World History
  • History 1702: World History Modern
  • History 2304: 20th Century Europe
  • History 2702: Imperialism, Race and Empire
  • Italian 2221: Italian Culture through Film (taught in English)
  • Italian 3201: Italian Culture and Civilization (taught in Italian)
  • Italian 3240: Topics in Italian Cinema and Literature (taught in English)
  • Japanese 2012: Modern and Contemporary Japanese Literature in Translation
  • Japanese 2021: Japanese Literature in Film
  • Japanese 2096: Japanese Popular Culture and Literature
  • Latin American Studies 1001: Perspectives on Latin America
  • Latin American Studies 2232: Politics of Development in Latin America
  • Political Science 1201: Foreign Governments and Politics
  • Political Science 1301: International Politics
  • Religion 2002: Religion and Human Sexuality
  • Religion 2606: Introduction to Islam
  • Religion 3001: Earth Ethics
  • Russian 1201: Russian Culture
  • Sociology/GUS/History/POL SCI 0862: Development and Globalization
  • Sociology 3219: Globalization: Causes, Promises and Discontents
  • Sociology 3221: Global Development
  • Sociology 3511: Sociology of the Environment

(Please note: The Foreign Language/Global Studies requirement does not pertain to students pursuing the B.S. in Neuroscience. Neuroscience majors under the GenEd program must complete one World Society course.)

Major

Students must also complete the requirements of a major. The minimum acceptable grade in a course taken to fulfill major requirements is a "C-," though students need a 2.0 GPA overall in major coursework in order to graduate. At least half of the coursework required for a major must be taken at Temple University. 

Students are permitted to double-major (both inside CLA and across schools and colleges) but Temple University does not permit transcription of a third major. 

Students are encouraged to declare their major as soon as possible, and university policy requires that a major must be declared by the time a student has earned 60 credits.

Major requirements are determined by the effective semester of their declaration.  The Academic Advising Center is responsible for making this assignment and informs the student via e-mail.

Students who wish to declare or change their major or minor should consult the Academic Advising Center at 1810 Liacouras Walk, Suite 301.

B.A. and B.S. majors are offered in the divisions of the Humanities and the Social Sciences.

• Humanities: English, French, German, Greek and Roman Classics, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese (only available at our Japan campus), Philosophy, Religion, Russian, and Spanish (includes tracks in Language, Literature and Linguistics, Professional Studies, Education )
• Social Sciences: African American Studies, American Studies, Anthropology (includes tracks in Human Biology and Visual Anthropology), Asian Studies, Criminal Justice, Economics, Environmental Studies, Geography and Urban Studies, History, Jewish Studies, Latin American Studies, Mathematical Economics, Neuroscience: Systems, Behavior and Plasticity (B.S.), Political Science, Psychology, Sociology (includes track in Sociology of Health), and Women's Studies

Upper-level distribution requirements

All B.A. and B.S. students in the College of Liberal Arts must complete upper-level distribution requirements by taking two upper-level (numbered 2000-4999) CLA courses outside the curriculum division of the major (or upper-level College of Science and Technology courses) as stated above. Students who have double majors in two different divisions automatically satisfy the distribution requirement.

Note: The Humanities Division has been expanded to include upper-level courses in Art History.

Military Science Courses

Undergraduate students in the College of Liberal Arts whose degree programs allow for free electives may apply up to 12 credits of military science courses at the 3000 and 4000 levels in Aerospace Studies (Air Force ROTC), Military Science (Army ROTC), and Naval Science (Navy ROTC).

Courses Inapplicable to Graduation

Students will not receive credits for lower-level courses after successful completion of higher-level courses in sequenced courses of study. This only applies to the First Year Writing sequence in English (0701-0802), and all courses in Mathematics and Foreign Languages. For example, after passing a Spanish 1002 course, a student will not receive credits for Spanish 1001. 

Credit/No Credit

During the junior and senior years, any College of Liberal Arts student who is in good standing and taking a minimum of 12 semester hours may elect to take one course each semester on a Credit/No Credit basis, except for courses that count toward major, minor, GenEd, or distributional requirements. Application must be made at the Academic Advising Center during the first two weeks of a fall or spring semester course and during the first three days of a first or second summer session course.

Special Major & Minor Requirements

Interdisciplinary Major

Rather than major in an existing department or program, students may apply for a major in Interdisciplinary Studies. The proposed major should consist of coursework totaling at least 36 semester hours and be justified in terms of some thematic unit of cohesive rationale. The program must not closely resemble any major currently available in the College of Liberal Arts.

The proposed major program may include courses outside of the College of Liberal Arts, but at least 24 semester hours must be in upper-level liberal arts or science courses. The student's proposal must be sponsored by two faculty members from different departments, at least one of whom must be in the College of Liberal Arts. Approval for the program must be obtained from the College of Liberal Arts Academic Advising Center prior to the initiation of the last 60 semester hours of the degree.

Honors Interdisciplinary Major

Students in the University Honors Program may apply for a College of Liberal Arts Honors Interdisciplinary Major. They must complete the degree requirements of the B.A. in the College of Liberal Arts and the requirements for the Interdisciplinary Major described above as well as the requirements for the University Honors Program. Approval for this program must also be obtained from the University Honors Committee prior to the initiation of the last 60 semester hours of the degree.

In addition, the proposed major program should include submission of an acceptable honors thesis to the University Honors Oversight Committee.

Minor

Students may also choose to complete the requirements for a minor. The minimum acceptable grade in a course taken to fulfill minor requirements is "C-," though students need a 2.0 GPA in the minor in order to have it awarded at graduation.  At least half of the courses taken by a student to fulfill the minor must be taken at Temple. Students may declare a minor at the Academic Advising Center, 1810 Liacouras Walk, Suite 301.  The College of Liberal Arts offers minors in:

African American Studies; American Studies; Ancient Mediterranean Studies (see Classics); Anthropology (General), Anthropology (Visual), Arabic; Asian-American Studies; Asian Studies; Chinese; Classics; Cognitive Neuroscience (see Psychology); Criminal Justice; Economics; English; Environmental Studies; French; Geography and Urban Studies; German; Hebrew; History; Italian; Japanese; Jewish Studies; Latin American Studies; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Studies (LGBT); Neuroscience Research; Philosophy; Political Science; Portuguese; Psychology; Religion; Russian; Sociology; Sociology of Health; Spanish; and Women's Studies.

Certificates of Specialization

Students may choose to complete the requirements for an additional Certificate of Specialization. At least half of the courses taken by a student to fulfill a certificate of specialization must be taken at Temple. Students may declare a certificate in the Academic Advising Center, 1810 Liacouras Walk, Suite 301. Certificates of Specialization are available in the following programs:

• Asian Business and Society (see Asian Studies)
• Foreign Languages: Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Russian, Spanish (see departments)
• Geography of Sports, Recreation and Tourism Planning (see Geography and Urban Studies)
• Geography of Tourism (see Geography and Urban Studies)
• Health Research (see Sociology)
• Jewish Secular Studies (see Jewish Studies)
• Latin American Studies Semester (see Spanish)
• Management Career (see Economics)
• Multilingual Business and Government Studies (see Spanish)
• Political Economy (see Economics and Political Science)
• Sociology Health Research (see Sociology)
• Spanish and Latin American Studies for Business (see Spanish)
• Spanish and Latino Studies for the Health and Human Services Professions (see Spanish)
• Travel and Tourism (see Geography and Urban Studies)
• Women's Studies (see Women's Studies)
• Writing (see English)