General Education Program
General Education provides a common intellectual experience for all university students. The program will help you develop strong communication and critical thinking skills, a broad understanding of disciplinary areas, and the knowledge and skills necessary for responsible citizenship in an interconnected world. General Education is the foundation of all undergraduate degree programs at The University of Akron.
Note: This page is for students who started at UA in fall 2017 or later. If you started at UA before fall 2017, see your General Education curriculum.
Program Learning Outcomes
Intellectual Skills
You will gain intellectual skills and practice them in increasingly challenging contexts throughout the general education program and your major, including:
- Effective communication
- Information literacy
- Critical and complex reasoning
- Integration and application of knowledge
Breadth of Knowledge
You will gain broad knowledge and practice disciplinary methods of inquiry in the Arts, Humanities, Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences.
Responsible Citizenship
You will gain skills and knowledge required for responsible citizenship through the
- Analysis of diversity within domestic and global contexts
- Application of interdisciplinary perspectives to a complex social issue
Requirements
Students must take 34 credit hours in Tiers I and II, as well as four courses in Tier III. Many courses in Tier III also fulfill requirements in the major or in Tier II, so additional credit hours will vary.
Tier 1: Foundational Skills — 12 credits
- Quantitative Reasoning (3)
- Speaking (3)
- Writing (6)
Tier 2: Breadth of Knowledge in Disciplinary Areas — 22 credits
- Arts and Humanities (9)
- Natural Science (7)
- Social Science (6)
Tier 3: Responsible Citizenship and Critical Thinking (Tags) — 4 courses
- Complex Systems Affecting Individuals in Society
- Critical Thinking
- Domestic Diversity
- Global Diversity
See courses in the General Education Curriculum.
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