UNIVERSITY-WIDE GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTSIn today’s global society, the most important contribution a university can make is to help prepare its students for lifetimes of change and for futures as educated and responsible citizens. OU’s university-wide general education core curriculum, which was implemented in Fall 1990, meets this challenge by providing a core of courses designed to help students think creatively, reason and communicate clearly, and respond quickly to our rapidly changing environment.
OU was the first college in the state—and among the pioneers nationally—to organize its requirements into a focused curriculum that emphasizes the key areas of knowledge essential in today’s society and life in the 21st Century.
In designing its general education curriculum, OU looked toward two new centuries—the 21st Century, in which students will need to cope with global, societal and career changes—and OU’s second century, in which it will continue to produce leaders for the state, nation and world. OU’s general education curriculum is designed to help its students succeed in both of these centuries.
Because effective communication skills are essential, writing is emphasized across the general education curriculum. Courses also will help students learn to express themselves orally, use mathematical analysis, examine and solve problems, appreciate the creative arts, explore the concepts and methodologies of the natural and social sciences, and better understand their own and others’ cultural heritages. Courses are designed to foster enthusiasm, curiosity and a desire to continue learning.
To complete the curriculum, students beginning their higher education studies in Fall 1990 and thereafter will take at least 40 credit hours in the following core areas:
SYMBOLIC AND ORAL COMMUNICATION (9-19 hours, 3-5 courses)
English Composition (six hours, two courses)
Mathematics (three hours, one course)
Foreign Language (0-10 hours, two courses in the same language, which can be met by successfully completing two years of the same foreign language in high school).
Other (for example, courses in communication, logic or public speaking. Courses in this area are not required, but may be used to complete the 40-hour general education curriculum.)NATURAL SCIENCE (seven hours, two courses)
At least two courses with three or more credit hours each, and totaling a minimum of seven credit hours are required. The courses must be from different disciplines, and at least one course must include a laboratory component, denoted by [L].
SOCIAL SCIENCE (six hours, two courses)
One course must be Political Science 1113, “American Federal Government,” (three hours)
HUMANITIES (12 hours, four courses)
Understanding Artistic Forms (three hours, one course)
Western Civilization and Culture (six hours, two courses, including History 1483, “United States 1492-1865,” or History 1493, “United States 1865 to Present”)
Non-Western Cultures (three hours, one course)SENIOR CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE (three hours, one course)
Designed to integrate and culminate a student’s undergraduate study, the capstone experience might be a senior thesis or research project; a senior seminar dealing with major issues; a field experience; or, in the arts, a recital. The capstone will include a writing component.
In addition to the Senior Capstone Experience, students must take at least one upper-division General Education approved course outside the student’s major.
A minimum of 40 hours of general education courses is required to complete the curriculum.
Courses are being developed on an ongoing basis to give students a full range of choices to meet the curriculum.
OU is proud of its university-wide general education core curriculum, which provides all OU undergraduate students—regardless of major—with a common foundation of knowledge, a broader perspective of the world, and the skills necessary to succeed in the 21st Century. More information about the general education curriculum can be obtained from the Office of Prospective Student Services, Office of Admissions, or from advisers in University College and the various colleges and departments.
