General Education

INTRODUCTION

All students beginning studies fall 1987 or later must complete a minimum of 51 semester units of General Education courses selected in accordance with the pattern designated on the following pages. General Education courses must be selected from an approved list. Students should refer to the latest university Schedule of Classes for the most up-to-date list of approved General Education courses. A student who has a break in enrollment for more than one semester in any calendar year may be held to new catalog requirements.

CSUF students may complete lower-division general education (G.E.) requirements at a community college. In choosing equivalent courses, students must follow the CSUF General Education (G.E.) plan and not the plan of the community college. Questions can be directed to the CSUF Academic Advisement Center, University Hall 123.

A score of 145 or higher on the English Placement Test (EPT), or completion of English 99 (EPT test required) with a grade of “CR” or better, is a prerequisite for enrollment in English 101 in G.E. Category I.B. Written Communication, for all students except those with an exemption.

A score of 50 or higher on the Entry Level Mathematics (ELM) examination is a prerequisite for enrollment in courses in G.E. Category III.A.1., Mathematics, for all students except those with an exemption.

TITAN DEGREE AUDIT
The Titan Degree Audit (TDA) serves as an advising tool for both students and academic advisers. The report provides information on student progress towards the completion of general education, major and other degree requirements. Students can access their TDA by logging on to TITAN Online and selecting the “Student Academics” tab. The student’s campus-wide ID number and PIN are required to log in.

GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS
Unit Requirements
51 total units including:

• 9 units upper division taken as a junior or senior
• 9 units in residence at CSUF
• 3 units in cultural diversity (courses marked with an asterisk*)
• Limited to either 9 units or 3 courses from a single department, excluding courses in G.E. Category I, Core Competencies
• Each course counts in only one G.E. category, except those meeting Category V, Cultural Diversity

Academic Standards

• Letter grade required
• “C” (2.0) or better required in G.E. Categories I.A, I.B, I.C. and III.A.1. Thus, a grade of C– (1.7) is not sufficient to fulfill these requirements
• CR/NC allowed if it is the only grade option available

Courses in Your Major

• Courses offered by the department of the student’s major may NOT be used to fulfill the unit requirements of Categories III or IV, with the exception of categories offering choices from only one department.
  
• Courses that are cross-listed meet G.E. requirements for all majors except those in the home department of the cross-listed course. The “home” department is the one under which the course description appears in the catalog. For example, Afro-Ethnic is the “home” department for Afro-Ethnic Studies 311/Human Services 311; therefore, it cannot be used by Afro-Ethnic majors to meet G.E. requirements.
• Upper-division courses offered by the department of the student’s major may not be used for G.E. credit.
• Upper-division G.E. courses are not applicable for graduate degree credit, regardless of the student’s major or the department offering the course.

Transfer Students

There are two General Education-Breadth patterns that California community college students can complete.

(1) CSU General Education-Breadth Program
This program is a lower-division, 39-semester-unit pattern. Students must take specified courses in five specific areas. Students with full certification are required to complete a minimum of 9 semester units of upper-division general education in residence after transferring to CSUF. Students may be instructed to take those 9 units in specific areas in order to complete G.E. categories.

(2) Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC)
All lower-division Cal State Fullerton G.E. requirements may be satisfied by the completion in its entirety of this transfer curriculum at a California community college. Information about IGETC is available at each campus. Upper-division G.E. requirements for IGETC-certified transfers are as follows:

Nine units of upper-division course work from categories III.A.3., III.B.3., III.C.2., and/or IV with the following conditions:

• No more than six units from any one category
• No more than six units from any one department
• No units from the department of the student’s major
• A minimum of three units of a “cultural diversity” (identified with an asterisk* course, if not met prior to transfer.
• Using their student portal, students can access their Titan Degree Audit to get a summary of their G.E. requirement

CSUF General Education Plans
Students who have checklists or worksheets for “Plan B” (G.E. requirements for whose who entered or transferred between fall 1987 and spring 1999) should refer to the following chart to find corresponding lists of courses that satisfy G.E. requirements:

Students under earlier G.E. plans or who need help with the above chart should contact the Academic Advisement Center, University Hall 123, at (714) 278-3606.

CERTIFICATION POLICY
Under provisions of Title 5 and Executive Order 595, accredited colleges and universities may certify the completion of part of the 48-51 units required in general education. Within the policy of the Board of Trustees, Cal State Fullerton will accept such certification of general education up to a maximum of 39 semester units, but may accept no more in general education than the number of units required in each area.
Transfer students who are certified in any category with fewer than the required units will be subject to additional units and will be permitted to take the additional units in upper-division categories.

LOWER-DIVISION TRANSFER PATTERNS BY MAJOR
Lower-Division Transfer Patterns (LDTP) present potential transfer students with a set of “road maps” to follow that will ensure appropriate academic preparation for studies at CSU and decrease time to graduation once these students enter the CSU. The LDTP for each discipline or major has statewide as well as campus-specific components. The statewide component of the LDTP is appropriate for any CSU campus that offers the major and is comprised of general education course work as well as some courses within the discipline. The campus-specific component identifies discipline-related course work relevant to the major at the specific CSU campus where the student intends to transfer. Together these components for an LDTP will typically total at least 60 units, which is the number of units needed to transfer to CSUF as an upper-division student.

CALIFORNIA ARTICULATION NUMBER
California State University, Fullerton is authorized to cross-reference certain courses with a California Articulation Number (CAN). This is a system of equating courses between campuses in California. It is used by an increasing number of community colleges and four-year universities and colleges to identify some of the transferable, introductory courses in several academic disciplines.

The system assures students that CAN courses noted in the catalog of one campus will be accepted in lieu of the comparable CAN courses on another participating campus. An example is our Anthropology 101 Introduction to Biological Anthropology; CAN ANTH 2 is accepted in lieu of courses similarly marked in other university or college catalogs.

The California Articulation Numbers are listed in parentheses by the course descriptions in the catalog. A listing of courses currently approved for CAN follows:

THE GOALS OF GENERAL EDUCATION
General education is central to a university education and should enhance students’ awareness of themselves in a complex universe, drawing upon multiple points of view. As a result of general education experience, students should acquire knowledge of diverse disciplinary and cultural perspectives and skill in comparing, contrasting, applying and communicating effectively these perspectives in tasks considered appropriate to particular courses.

The G.E. Program at California State University, Fullerton, is divided into five categories:

I. Core Competencies

II. Historical and Cultural Foundations

III. Disciplinary Learning

IV. Lifelong Learning

V. Cultural Diversity

These G.E. categories consist of lower-division (100- and 200-level) courses in areas fundamental to a university education and upper-division (300- and 400-level) courses that draw upon, integrate, apply, and extend the knowledge and skills that are the goals of the lower-division courses.

Category V includes goals for learning in the area of cultural diversity. Student work in Categories III and IV must include at least one three-unit course, identified with an asterisk (*), that meets the learning goals for Category V, Cultural Diversity.

The goals of Category I, Core Competencies, are essential goals for the entire program of general education. Specifically, G.E. courses will include student writing assignments appropriate to the course. Writing assignments in G.E. courses should involve the organization and expression of complex data or ideas, and careful and timely evaluations of writing so that deficiencies are identified and suggestions for improvement and/or for means of remediation are offered. Assessments of the student’s writing competence shall be used in determining the final course grade.

The learning goals specified in this document identify ideal student learning objectives for each G.E. category and subcategory. Except where otherwise specifically provided for, no single course should necessarily be expected to pursue every goal specified for that course’s category or subcategory, but the more goals that a particular course addresses the more appropriate that course will be as a general education offering.

I. CORE COMPETENCIES
Courses in Core Competencies (Oral and Written Communication and Critical Thinking) include the following overall goals for student learning:

• To organize one’s thoughts and communicate them clearly and effectively, using language that demonstrates sensitivity to gender and cultural differences.
• To select and present clearly and effectively information and arguments for a variety of purposes and audiences.
• To recognize and evaluate with rigor the features, functions and contexts of language that express and influence meaning.
• To compare and contrast with care and accuracy the relative merits of alternative or opposing arguments, interpretations, assumptions and cultural values.
• To reflect in an open-minded manner on one’s own thinking in relation to the ideas of others.
• To work effectively as a member of a collaborative team.

A. Oral Communication
Courses in Oral Communication include the following goals for student learning:

• To develop and present a clearly spoken message in English.
• To practice effective listening and speaking in a dialogue.
• To present an oral message clearly and effectively using relevant and adequate supporting evidence.
• To understand the influence of culture and context on oral communication.
• To understand and value difference in communication styles.
• To negotiate cooperative action and solutions to problems.
• To select and use effectively appropriate techniques and materials to support ideas and to motivate and persuade others.

B. Written Communication
Courses in Written Communication include the following goals for student learning:

• To develop and present a clearly written message in English.
• To express and advocate ideas clearly and effectively in writing.
• To support written arguments with relevant and adequate evidence.
• To demonstrate sensitivity to matters of style in written language.
• To assess with insight one's own writing by critiquing the writing of others.
• To synthesize learning through the medium of writing.

C. Critical Thinking
Courses in Critical Thinking include the following goals for student learning:

• To identify the relevant evidence and experiences needed to make a decision, solve a problem or create new knowledge.
• To clarify the facts, concepts, evidence and relationships that contribute to addressing questions and solving problems.
• To evaluate the quality and sufficiency of evidence and other forms of support for a position.
• To revise arguments and findings based on critical reflection.
• To recognize the explicit and implicit features in communication.
• To assess accurately similarities and differences in points of view.
• To monitor one's own comprehension and apply various strategies to clarify one's own thoughts and actions.
• To be organized, persistent and focused in thinking, inquiry and communication.

II. HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL FOUNDATIONS
Historical and Cultural Foundations include the Development of World Civilization and American History, Institutions and Values, the latter consisting of American history and government.

A. The Development of World Civilization
Courses in Development of World Civilization include the following goals for student learning:

• To understand holistically the origins and historical development of world civilizations within a global context.
• To describe and analyze critically the reciprocal influence of Western and non-Western institutions, values and ideas.
• To recognize the forces that contributed to the particular development of diverse societies and shaped our present world.
• To recognize and understand the contributions of ethnic and gender groups to past and present societies in contexts of accommodation and resistance.
• To understand and describe critically major political, economic, intellectual and cultural themes recurring throughout the history of the world.

B. American History, Institutions and Values
Courses in American History, Institutions and Values include the following overall goals for student learning:

• To understand critically the historical development of American institutions and values and their impact on the individual and collective lives of Americans.
• To assess critically how the Constitution of the United States and government under the Constitution have shaped American democracy and contemporary American society.
• To understand critically the political culture of citizen participation, including political parties, pressure groups, public opinion and the electoral process.

1. American History
Courses in American History include the following as principal goals for student learning:

• To recognize the significance of important cultural, intellectual, moral and political struggles that have shaped contemporary American society.
• To recognize the significance of the contributions of various ethnic and gender groups to American history, political institutions and values within contexts of cultural accommodation and resistance.

2. Government
Courses in Government include the following as principal goals for student learning:

• To assess critically the Constitutions of the United States and of California, and the operation of representative democratic government under those Constitutions.
• To explain the processes and interaction between and among local, state and national government, with particular reference to California.
• To understand critically the structures, functions, and processes of the three branches of government and resulting public policies.
• To assess critically behavior and institutional practices in United States and California politics.

III. DISCIPLINARY LEARNING
Disciplinary Learning includes Mathematics and Natural Sciences (12 units minimum), Arts and Humanities, and Social Sciences.

A. Mathematics and Natural Sciences

1. Mathematics
Courses in Mathematics include the following goals for student learning:

• To understand and appreciate the varied ways in which mathematics is used in problem-solving.
• To understand and appreciate the varied applications of mathematics to real-world problems.
• To perform appropriate numerical calculations, with knowledge of the underlying mathematics, and draw conclusions from the results.
• To demonstrate knowledge of fundamental mathematical concepts, symbols and principles.
• To solve problems that require mathematical analysis and quantitative reasoning.
• To summarize and present mathematical information with graphs and other forms that enhance comprehension.
• To utilize inductive and deductive mathematical reasoning skills in finding solutions, and be able to explain how these skills were used.
• To explain the overall process and the particular steps by which a mathematical problem is solved.
• To demonstrate a sense of mastery and confidence in the ability to solve problems that require mathematical concepts and quantitative reasoning.

2. Natural Sciences
Natural Sciences include the following overall goals for student learning:

• To understand how different themes of science make connections within and between the different scientific disciplines. Examples of unifying themes are:
  
  

  Energy	Patterns of Change
  Stability	Scale and Structure
  Evolution	Science as Inquiry
  System and Interactions	Science and Society

  
  
• To apply scientific methodology through active experimental methods and experiences (laboratory/activity).
• To evaluate the validity and limitations of theories and scientific claims in interpreting experimental results.
• To understand the dynamic and evolving nature of the sciences.
• To recognize the importance of scientific paradigms and methods in understanding scientific concepts.
• To solve theoretical or experimental problems that require knowledge of science concepts and scientific reasoning.
• To understand the issues raised by science for contemporary society and to appreciate the relevance and application of science in everyday life.
• To understand that there is synergism between science and technology- advances in science drive new technologies and new technologies make possible new advances in science. The principles of science provide the underpinnings of technology and, consequently, technology should be taught in conjunction with content directly linked to the scientific disciplines.

a. Physical Science
Physical Science include the following goals for student learning:

• To understand appropriate science and technology concepts and principles as follows:

Major Ideas in Physical Science

• Energy exists in many forms. In any process, energy changes form and/or place, but the total amount of energy remains the same.
• Objects interact with one another by exerting forces. Unbalanced forces acting on an object cause change in the motion of the object.
• All matter has observable properties that depend on the conditions and scale at which we look. Investigations of matter at the atomic and subatomic levels explain the properties, reactions and interactions of matter.

b. Earth and Astronomical Sciences
Earth and Astronomical Sciences include the following goals for student learning:

• To understand appropriate science and technological concepts and principles as follows:

Major Ideas in Earth and Astronomical Sciences

• Earth materials and structures are organized in interacting systems; the earth itself is part of a planetary system.
• The earth changes continuously and is part of a universe that itself is changing. Energy and matter flow and cycle through earth and astronomical systems.
• Changes within an earth or astronomical system may affect other earth or astronomical systems. Humans are part of and may affect or be affected by these systems.
• Earth and astronomical systems can be understood by applying the basic principles of the physical and life sciences.

c. Life Science Life
Science include the following goals for student learning:

• To understand appropriate science and technology (see previous note) concepts and principles as follows:

Major Ideas in Life Science

• Living things are made of smaller structures whose functions enable the organism to survive.
• Living things depend on each other and the physical environment as they interact to obtain, change and exchange matter and energy.
• The great diversity of living things is the result of billions of years of evolution of organisms through the mechanisms of heredity, random change and natural selection.

3. Implications and Explorations in Mathematics and Natural Sciences
Courses in this category draw upon, integrate, apply and extend knowledge and skills previously acquired in Category III.A. Disciplinary Learning: Mathematics and Natural Sciences. These courses have a substantial scientific and/or mathematical content and require completion of appropriate courses in Categories III.A.1 and III.A.2 as prerequisites to enrollment. In addition, courses in III.A.3. Implications and Explorations in Mathematics and Natural Sciences include the following goals for student learning:

• To understand broad, unifying themes in mathematics and/or science from cross-disciplinary perspectives.
• To solve complex problems that require mathematical and/or scientific reasoning.
• To relate mathematics and/or science to significant social problems or to other related disciplines.
• When deemed appropriate, to apply disciplinary concepts from mathematics and the natural sciences in a variety of settings, such as community-based learning sites and activities.

B. Arts and Humanities
The Arts and Humanities includes Introduction to the Arts, Introduction to the Humanities, and Implications, Explorations, and Participatory Experience in the Arts and Humanities.

1. Introduction to the Arts
Introduction to the Arts include the following goals for student learning:

• To understand and appreciate one or more of the traditional artistic disciplines (art, dance, drama and music).
• To recognize the historical relationship between the arts and the development of civilization.
• To recognize the social and cultural role that the arts play in a culturally diverse contemporary world.
• To understand creativity in the arts through direct participation either in the making or performing of art forms or through the experience of such a process by direct observation (such as attending dance or music concerts, plays or museums).
• To distinguish between subjective and objective responses to a work of art, and be able to articulate an informed opinion about the values of and differences between those responses.

2. Introduction to the Humanities
Introduction to the Humanities include the following goals for student learning:

• To understand the distinctive characteristics of the humanistic perspective.
• To understand the historical and cultural factors, in a global context, that led to the development of the humanistic perspective.
• To understand the differences between the humanistic and other perspectives, as well as the differences among the humanistic disciplines.
• To understand and appreciate the contributions of the humanities to the development of the political and cultural institutions of contemporary society.
• To be familiar with and understand major texts (both written and oral), key figures, significant traditions and important themes in the humanities.
• To analyze the meaning of major texts (both written and oral) from both Western and non-Western cultures, either in English or, if appropriate, in the language of the texts being analyzed.
• To apply the humanistic perspective to values, experiences and meanings in one's own life, and demonstrate how understanding the humanities can shed light on what it means to be human today.

3. Implications, Explorations, and Participatory Experience in the Arts and Humanities
Courses in this category draw upon, integrate, apply, and extend knowledge and skills previously acquired in Category III.B. Disciplinary Learning: Art and Humanities, and require completion of appropriate courses in Categories III.B.1 and III.B.2 as prerequisites to enrollment. In addition, courses in III.B.3. Implications, Explorations and Participatory Experience in the Arts and Humanities include the following goals for student learning:

• To understand broad, unifying themes in the arts and/or humanities from cross- disciplinary perspectives.
• To solve complex problems that require artistic or humanistic understanding.
• To relate the arts and/or humanities to significant social problems or to other related disciplines.
• When deemed appropriate, to apply disciplinary concepts from the arts and/or humanities in a variety of settings, such as community-based learning sites and activities.
• In arts courses, to deepen previously acquired artistic appreciation and understanding through participation either in the making or performing of art forms or through the experience of such a process by direct observation.

C. Social Sciences
Introduction to the Social Sciences and Implications, Explorations and Participatory Experience in the Social Sciences.

1. Introduction to the Social Sciences
Introduction to the Social Sciences include the following goals for student learning:

• To reflect on what it means to be a social being.
• To understand the role that cultural diversity plays in defining what it means to be a social being: the past and present processes of cultural differentiation in our own society or elsewhere.
• To understand the origins, workings and ramifications of social and cultural change in our own society or elsewhere.
• To understand what makes a social science different from other disciplines.
• To understand and compare the distinctive methods and perspectives of two or more social science disciplines.
• To understand major concepts, methods, theories and theorists in one or more of the social sciences.
• To apply these methods, perspectives and concepts to everyday, “real life” situations.
• To appreciate the relevance of the social sciences to social, political and/or economic institutions and behavior.
• To analyze and evaluate critically social science concepts and theories as applied to particular problems or themes.

2. Implications, Explorations and Participatory Experience in the Social Sciences
Courses in this category draw upon, integrate, apply, and extend knowledge and skills previously acquired in Category III.C. Disciplinary Learning: Social Sciences, and require completion of appropriate courses in Category III.C.1 as a prerequisite to enrollment. In addition, courses in III.C.2. Implications, Explorations and Participatory Experience in the Social Sciences include the following goals for student learning:

• To understand broad, unifying themes in the social sciences from cross-disciplinary perspectives.
• To solve complex problems that require social scientific reasoning.
• To relate the social sciences to significant social problems or to other related disciplines.
• When deemed appropriate, to apply disciplinary concepts from the social sciences in a variety of settings, such as community-based learning sites and activities.

IV. LIFELONG LEARNING
Lifelong Learning provides the opportunity for students to integrate the elements of their university experience (core competencies, historical and cultural foundations, and disciplinary learning) in attempting to address the complex context and trajectory of human life. Courses in this category include the following goals for student learning:

• To understand the human being as an integrated physiological, sociocultural and psychological organism.
• To understand the course of human life, that is, how human life and experience are constructed and altered through biological, psychological, social, scientific, technological and cultural influences.
• To understand conceptions of the course of human life from different cultural perspectives.
• To understand the importance of a lifelong commitment to physical activity and a healthy manner of living for both personal well-being and civic responsibility.
• To understand the basis and the means by which individuals and society make decisions.

V. CULTURAL DIVERSITY
Students must complete at least one three-unit course that includes all of the following learning goals for cultural diversity:

• To understand that culture is socially constructed and fundamental to social interaction.
• To appreciate the complex relationships that gender, ethnicity and class bring to a discussion of society and culture.
• To understand that because we live in an inter-connected world, we need to understand the diversity and relationships within and among cultures.
• To recognize and evaluate how one's cultural history affects one's sense of self and relationship to others.

Courses in General Education that meet these learning goals will be identified by a star (*) in appropriate publications.

GENERAL EDUCATION COURSE REQUIREMENTS

I. CORE COMPETENCIES
(9 units minimum)
NOTE: A grade of “C” (2.0) or better is required in sections I.A., I.B., and I.C. and III.A.1.

A. Oral Communication (3 units minimum)

B. Written Communication (3 units minimum)
Students must satisfy the English Placement (EPT) requirement or be exempt from the EPT prior to enrollment in the course.

C. Critical Thinking (3 units minimum)

II. HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL FOUNDATIONS
(12 units minimum)

A. The Development of World Civilization (6 units minimum)

B. American History, Institutions and Values (6 units minimum)
Courses in this section meet Title 5, section 40404 requirements by providing a “comprehensive study of American history and American government including the historical development of American institutions and ideals, the Constitution of the United States and the operation of representative democratic government under the Constitution, and the process of state and local government.”

1. American History (3 units minimum)
2. Government (3 units minimum)
NOTE: Transfer students from outside the State of California who have ALREADY completed a basic course in American Government may substitute Political Science 300 Contemporary Issues in California Government and Politics (3) for Political Science 100.

III. DISCIPLINARY LEARNING
(27 units minimum)

A. Mathematics and Natural Sciences (12 units)
At least one laboratory course must be taken in III.A.2a., III.A.2b., III.2c or III.3. Approved laboratory courses are indicated with a dagger (†).

1. Mathematics (3 units minimum)
A grade of "C" (2.0) or better is required in this section. Students must pass the Entry Level Mathematics (ELM) test or be exempt from the ELM before taking any course in this section.

2. Natural Sciences (6 units minimum including at least one laboratory course.)
a. Physical Science (0-3 units; 3 units minimum must be taken in 2a Physical Science or 2b Earth and Astronomical Sciences)
b. Earth and Astronomical Science (0-3 units; at least 3 units must be taken from 2a Physical Science or 2b Earth and Astronomical Sciences)
c. Life Science (3 units minimum)

3. Implications and Explorations in Mathematics and Natural Sciences (0-3 units)

B. Arts and Humanities (9 units minimum)
1. Introduction to the Arts (3 units minimum)
2. Introduction to the Humanities (3 units minimum)
3. Implications, Explorations and Participatory Experience in the Arts and Humanities (3 units minimum)

C. Social Sciences (6 units minimum)
1. Introduction to the Social Sciences (3 units minimum)
2. Implications and Explorations in the Social Sciences (3 units minimum)

IV. LIFE-LONG LEARNING
(3 units minimum)

V. CULTURAL DIVERSITY
One three-unit course identified with a star (*) from Categories III.B.3, III.C.2, or IV must be taken.