Bachelor of Arts General Degree Requirements

1. Verbal and Quantitative Skills, 8-11 credits + Writing Emphasis (WE) required.

    A.  Freshman English. 3-6 credits required: English 101 and 102, or 150 through placement.  Also see note below.   

Writing Emphasis (WE). 6 credits required. English 101 and 102 or 150 are prerequisites to WE courses. Individual departments may designate WE courses as part of the major.  You may use WE courses simultaneously to fulfill electives, major requirements, or general degree requirements.  To see which courses are offered as Writing Emphasis for a particular semester, check the online timetable on the Registration and Records homepage (http://www.uwsp.edu/reg-rec/) and then click on "Timetable." From there, click on "List of Courses by Term." Then select a term and under "Type", select "GDR-Writing Emphasis."

If you are a transfer student with fewer than 60 semester credits, you must take 6 credits of writing emphasis courses. If you transfer with 60 or more credits, you need to take only 3 credits of writing emphasis courses. A course completed at another institution that is OFFICIALLY designated as a WE course will count toward the WE requirement at UWSP.

Six WE credits are required, but they are NOT part of the GDR total. There is no test-out or credit-by-exam for WE.

     B.  Communication. 2 credits required; Communication 101.

     C.  Mathematics. 3 credits required; Mathematics 100 or 105 or equivalent. See note below.

NOTE: You must complete the general degree requirements you need (according to your placement scores) from Mathematics 100, 105 and English 101, 102, 150 before you complete 60 credits toward graduation. If by the 60 credit limit, you have not complied with this policy, you will be allowed to register for a maximum of 12 credits. Those 12 credits must include the mathematics and English general degree requirement courses you lack.

If you are placed into REMEDIAL mathematics, you must complete those remedial courses before you earn 30 credits toward graduation. If you do not, you will be restricted to a maximum of 12 credits a semester, including the remedial courses, until the requirement is met.

2. Critical Thinking/Natural Science, 6-10 credits required. You must take at least one laboratory course in each of two disciplines. See the catalog under the specific natural science department or under your major to determine what sequence of courses to take and what restrictions apply for taking more than one course in a discipline.

• Astronomy 100, 205, 206.
• Biology 100 or 101, 130, 160, 285.
• Chemistry 100 or 101, 105, 106, 115, 116.
• Geography 100EL, 101, 350.
• Geology 100, 104.
• Physics 100EL or 101, 115, 150, 203, 204, 250.

3. Critical Thinking/Cultural Awareness. 32 credits required. You must take at least one course designated non-Western (NW) culture and at least one course designated minority studies (MNS). Although a course may be designated both NW and MNS, you may not satisfy both requirements with one course.

Non-Western Culture. One course required. Anthropology 101, 110, 125, 315, 320, 335, 338, 339, 345, 380; Art 181, 270, 271, 370, 371, 372, 374, 375, 378, 380, 396; Arabic 101-102; Chinese 101, 102, 200, 201; Communication 364; English 281, 374; Geography 110, 113, 120, 300, 302, 325, 327; History 101, 102, 201, 204, 205, 206, 216, 217, 232, 233, 240, 241, 248, 249, 310, 313, 316, 317, 318, 322, 338, 348, 370, 371, 372, 373, 374, 392; Hmong 101, 102; Interior Architecture 150, 310; Japanese 101, 102, 211, 212, 313; Music 220; Philosophy 105, 230, 381; Political Science 160, 362, 371, 372, 375, 382; Religious Studies 100, 105, 107, 305, 316, 333, 340, 341; Russian 101, 102, 211, 215, 216, 315, 316; Sociology 343, 370; Spanish 483; Water 220.

Minority Studies. One course required. Anthropology 371; English 280, 282, 382, 386; History 284, 285, 288, 289, 290, 291, 292, 310; Interior Architecture 160; Music, 105, 305; Philosophy 381; Political Science 202, 315, 408, 414; Psychology 322; Religious Studies 311, 316; Sociology 101, 102, 270, 316; Spanish 480, 482; Women’s Studies 105, 320.

     A.  History, 6 credits of a two-course sequence required. History 101-102NW, 176-177, 216-217NW, 232-233, 240-241, 248-249, 256-257, 284-285, 289-290, 372-373.

Humanities and Social Science. 18 credits required, of which 9 must be in humanities and 6 must be in social science. The remaining 3 credits are from either group.

     B.  Humanities. 9-12 credits. One course required in each of areas (1), (2), and (3). If you elect 12 credits in the humanities, you may select the additional course from any of the four areas.

Humanities Area 1  
History and appreciation of art, communication, dance, theatre, music:

• Art 181NW, 282, 283, 346NW, 397.
• Communication 160, 171, 190, 250, 273, 360, 361, 362, 363, 367.
• Dance 352.
• Interior Architecture 150NW, 160MNS, 309, 310NW.
• Music 100, 103, 105MNS, 220NW, 221, 300, 301, 305MNS, 307, 320, 323, 326, 329, 427.
• Web Digital Media Development 100.
• Theatre 105, 329, 351, 352, 361, 362, 451, 452, 490.

Humanities Area 2 
Literature:

• Comparative Literature 102.
• English 106, 108, 200, 211, 212, 213, 214, 280MNS, 281NW, 282MNS, 283, 285, 286, 288, 289, 308, 309, 310, 311, 312, 313a, 313b, 314, 319, 320, 329, 330, 333, 334, 336, 361, 362, 363, 365, 366, 374NW, 378, 382MNS, 383, 386MNS (by subtitle), 395.
• French 340.
• German 340.
• Spanish 340.

Humanities Area 3
Philosophy, religious studies, and political theory:

• History 380.
• Philosophy 100, 101, 105NW, 121, 230NW, 270, 301, 302, 305, 306, 307, 315, 320, 325, 326, 327, 336, 380EL, 381NW/MNS.
• Political Science 270, 391, 393, 394, 395.
• Religious Studies 100NW, 101, 202, 105NW, 107NW, 301, 302, 303, 304, 311MNS, 316NW/MNS, 321, 325, 330, 333NW, 340NW, 341NW, 342.

Humanities Area 4
Civilization, area studies, and interdisciplinary courses:

• Foreign Language 381.
• French 481.
• German 481.
• History 322NW, 348NW, 367, 370NW, 396.
• International Studies 381.
• Peace Studies 200.
• Spanish 481, 482MNS, 483NW.
• Women's Studies 300, 320MNS.

     C.  Social Science, 6-9 credits required, from two or more social science disciplines, with a minimum of 6 credits in category (1) and up to 3 additional credits from courses in category (1) or category (2). Note that you may not count both Human Development 261 and Psychology 260 toward the social science requirement. You may not earn credit in both Political Science 101 and 201.

Social Science Category 1

• Anthropology 101NW, 110NW, 125NW, 315NW, 320NW, 325, 335NW, 338NW, 339NW, 345NW, 380NW.
• Economics 210, 211.
• Geography 110NW, 113NW, 120NW, 211, 226, 300NW, 302NW, 325NW, 327NW, 328, 366, 369, 373, 374.
• Political Science 101, 160NW, 180, 201, 202MNS, 212, 242, 250, 315MNS, 341, 361, 362NW, 370NW, 371NW.
• Psychology 110, 240, 260, 320, 330.
• Sociology 101MNS, 102MNS, 224, 225, 230, 240, 270MNS, 300, 310, 327, 360EL, 370NW.

Social Science Category 2

• Clinical Lab Science 105.
• Communication 240, 280.
• Geography 342.
• Human Development 166, 261, 265, 367.
• Natural Resources 150EL, 372.
• Political Science 306.
• Sociology 308, 355EL, 366, 368.
• Women's Studies 105MNS, 301.

     D.  Foreign Language, 8 credits; one year of college work in one of the following sequences:

• Arabic 101-102NW.
• Chinese 101-102NW
• French 101-102.
• German 101-102.
• Hmong 101-102NW.
• Japanese 101-102NW
• Polish 101-102.
• Russian 101-102NW.
• Spanish 101-102.

4. Environmental Literacy, 3 credits. Choose one:

• Art 335.

• Chemistry 100.

• Clinical Lab Science 395.

• English 392.

• Food and Nutrition 357.

• Forestry 361NW.

• Geography 100, 329, 371.

• History 204NW, 280, 304, 392NW.

• Human Development 381, 386.

• Interior Architecture 130, 315.

• Natural Resources 150, 220NW, 324, 370, 395.

• Paper Science 103.

• Philosophy 380.

• Physics 100.

• Political Science 304, 305.

• Psychology 321.

• Safety and Health Protection 330.

• Sociology 355, 360.

• Water 220NW, 324.

5. Wellness, 3 credits required.

     A.  Take 1 or 2 credits in aerobics/activity (AA) from the following:

• Dance 103, 104, 105, 106, 114, 115, 203, 204, 205, 206, 212, 214, 215, 303, 304, 305, 306, 314.

• Military Science 111, 121, 153, 154.

• Physical Education 150.

• Wellness 100 to 299.  To see which courses are offered as A/A for a particular semester, check the online timetable on the Registration and Records homepage (http://www.uwsp.edu/reg-rec/) and then click on "Timetable."  From there, click on "List of Courses by Term." Then select a term and under "Type", select "GDR-Wellness-AA."

     B.  Take 1 or 2 credits in health enhancement (HE) from the following:

• Food and Nutrition 151.
• Health Education 140, 280, 390.
• Health Promotion/Wellness 102, 103, 107, 110, 148, 206, 207, 208, 248, 299.
• Psychology 255, 290.
• Wellness 100 to 299.  To see which courses are offered as HE for a particular semester, check the online timetable on the Registration and Records homepage (http://www.uwsp.edu/reg-rec/) and then click on "Timetable." From there, click on "List of Courses by Term." Then select a term and under "Type", select "GDR-Wellness-HE."

6. Minimum Credits for Graduation. To graduate, you must earn at least 120 credits, which include the general requirements for your degree and the requirements for at least one major.  You may need to take some elective credits. Some majors may require more than 120 credits. Read the section entitled Majors & Minors to find out how many credits your major requires.

7. Forty Credit Rule. To graduate, you must earn at least 40 credits in courses numbered 300 or above.

8. Graduation Application and Approval. Apply online for graduation at http://www.uwsp.edu/reg-rec/gradinfo.aspx at least one full semester prior to the term in which you will complete your degree. We will grant you a bachelor's degree only if you complete the general degree requirements and at least one major (and one minor if applicable) that is approved for your degree area.

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Revised: June 11, 2009.