University of Georgia

General Education Core Curriculum

The focus of a general education at the University of Georgia should be the development of broad knowledge that can be brought to bear in novel and changing circumstances. The curriculum should provide the foundation for future studies by giving students a substantive introduction to broad and important areas of academic inquiry. General education should engage the student’s intellect and curiosity. The University of Georgia’s general education curriculum should empower the student to participate in debate and advocacy of issues critical to community, state, and nation.

The General Education Core Curriculum is comprised of the following areas:

  1. Foundation Courses (9 hours)
  2. Sciences (7-8 hours)
  3. Quantitative Reasoning (3-4 hours)
  4. World Languages and Global Culture, Humanities, and the Arts (12 hours)
  5. Social Sciences (9 hours)

The list of courses approved to fulfill the General Education Core Curriculum can be found at https://bulletin.uga.edu/Program/GenEdCoreBulletin. Please call 706-542-6358 or email [email protected] with any questions about the General Education Core Curriculum.

Policy Number 01.05.009

Policy Library Link

Instructions for using the General Education System

Once a course has been approved through the course approval process (CAPA), it may be submitted for consideration to be included in the General Education Core Curriculum using the General Education System.

  • Go to https://www.gened.uga.edu 
  • For access to the General Education System, email [email protected].
  • Log in with your UGA MyID and the department or college/school General Education System login ID and password.
  • Choose the “Department Initiator” role
  • Choose the “Begin a General Education Course Proposal” task
  • Click “Proceed”
  • Select the prefix of the course being proposed
  • Select the course ID of the course being proposed
  • Complete course information can be viewed in CAPA by clicking the link at the top of the page, or the course objectives and topical outline can be viewed by clicking the provided link
  • Check the boxes on the form next to the learning outcomes that apply to the course. Boxes can be selected in more than one area. Additional information can be entered in the “Justification” text boxes.
  • Once the form is completed, click “Submit to Department Head”
  • Submitted courses follow the CAPA approval routing process. The Department Head and Dean both need to log in and approve the course submission before it will be reviewed by the General Education Subcommittee.

Please contact the Office of the Registrar at 706‐542‐6358 or [email protected] with any questions about how to access or use the General Education System.

General Education Core Form

Those unable to submit course(s) through the General Education System should use the form found here.

Guidelines to Consider When Proposing a Course for Inclusion in the General Education Core Curriculum

When considering courses for inclusion in the General Education Core Curriculum, the General Education Subcommittee follows the guidelines below to determine if a course meets the necessary standards to be included in the core. Evidence of the general education learning outcomes should be present in the course objectives and topical outline in CAPA and also in the course syllabus. The learning outcomes for each course are reviewed to determine if they comply with the learning outcomes for the specific area of the core.

General Guidelines

  • A substantial portion of the course must address the learning outcomes for the particular core area.
  • There should be a deliberate attempt to make a connection between the content of the course and the learning outcomes of the particular core area.
  • Courses should demonstrate sufficient breadth in the content area. Faculty should consider if this was the only course a student took in that content area, would there be sufficient exposure to that area.
  • Courses proposed for the core do not necessarily need to be “survey.” type courses. Courses can be more narrowly focused on the construction of knowledge in the discipline.

Area I, Foundation Courses

  • Courses are specified and must comply with the University System Board of Regents policy. More advanced mathematical courses may be required for certain majors.

Area II, Physical Sciences

  • The course should provide sufficient breadth and depth of the physical sciences such that if this was the only physical science course a student took, the student would have awareness of how knowledge is constructed in the physical sciences.

Area II, Life Sciences

  • The course should provide sufficient breadth and depth of the life sciences such that if this was the only life science course a student took, the student would have awareness of how knowledge is constructed in the life sciences.

Area III, Quantitative Reasoning

  • The primary focus of the course should be focused on quantitative analysis; not on an area where quantitative analysis is secondary to some other course objective.
  • Programming courses should focus on algorithmic thinking, logic / decision structures and information storage structures.
  • Data science courses should involve a focus on data analysis and relationship identification. Tools of statistical analysis are introduced and used as appropriate.
  • Courses that emphasize historical or social aspects of technology or computing, design without algorithmic coding emphases, and on software package skills would not be acceptable.

Area IV, World Languages and Global Culture

  • The course content should provide evidence of a connection to contemporary cultures and people(s) outside of the U.S.

Area IV, Humanities and the Arts

  • The course should engage with the material either broadly or in depth as long as the focus is on the construction of knowledge in the area.

Area V, Social Sciences

  • The course should provide sufficient breadth and depth of the social sciences such that if this was the only social science course a student took, the student would have awareness of how knowledge is constructed in the social sciences.

Core Curriculum Appeal Process

Students may appeal courses that transfer into UGA that are not directly equivalent to UGA core courses.

Students may not appeal UGA courses taken in residence at UGA as satisfying core curriculum requirements. Students must take a course from the list of approved core courses in order to satisfy UGA core curriculum requirements.

The route of appeals for Core Areas I, II, III, IV, V substitutions or waivers is:

  1. General Education Subcommittee of the University Curriculum Committee
  2. Educational Affairs Committee
  3. University of Georgia President
  4. Board of Regents

The appeal should be in the form of a letter written and signed by the student. The letter should clearly and concisely explain the appeal, state the matter being appealed in the first sentence, and include all relevant information in support of the appeal. The appeal must include the student’s full name, UGA student ID number, postal address, UGA email, and phone number on the first page in the upper left corner. The appeal must be prepared and signed by the student — it cannot be prepared on the student’s behalf by another party.

Core curriculum appeals should be submitted to the General Education Subcommittee. If the appeal is sent to the Educational Affairs Committee, core curriculum appeals will be forwarded to the General Education Subcommittee for consideration prior to consideration by the Education Affairs Committee.

 

Email

[email protected]

 

Mail
General Education Subcommittee
Office of the Registrar
Holmes-Hunter Academic Building,
Athens, Georgia 30602

Any other student academic appeals such as grade, readmission, course withdrawal, or other course requirement appeals should be submitted to the Office of the Vice President for Instruction by any of the methods below:

 

Mail

Educational Affairs Committee
Office of Instruction
Office of Academic Honesty and Student Appeals
University of Georgia
102 Memorial Hall
Athens, GA 30602

Fax
706-542-0544

Email
[email protected]

IMPORTANT
If an appeal is faxed, an email should be sent to [email protected] to confirm it was received.

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