Preparing Citizens of the 21st Century
Mission Statement
The Mission of the Liberal Studies Program is to prepare students to live responsible, productive, and creative lives as citizens of a dramatically changing world. To accomplish this mission Northern Arizona University provides a Liberal Studies Program that challenges students to gain a deeper understanding of the natural environment and the world's peoples, to explore the traditions and legacies that have created the dynamics and tensions that shape the world, to examine their potential contributions to society, and thus to better determine their own places in that world.
Principles
The Principles to Guide the Development of Student Learning Outcomes are:
- To understand natural processes and the fragility of the earth's environment.
- To understand the world's peoples and their diversity.
- To understand the traditions and legacies that have created the dynamics and tensions that shape the world.
- To understand the potential for and limitations of technology to enhance human and other life.
- To act upon the individual's responsibilities and connections to local, national, and global communities and environments.
- To practice the habits of an examined or self-reflective life to facilitate ethical and responsible living.
Core Liberal Studies
Thirty-five credit hours of liberal studies are required of all students seeking their first baccalaureate degree from Northern Arizona University. These liberal studies requirements consist of both Foundation Requirements and Distribution courses which are offered at the 100-300 levels. Courses must be selected from the approved list of liberal studies courses or from the optional freshman seminars. Courses used for liberal studies may share the same prefix as a student?s minor discipline but not their major discipline.
Essential Skills
We are committed to helping students gain the skills, knowledge, and abilities they will need to move into careers and take leadership roles in our society: Each liberal studies course should have measurable outcomes in one of the following skills, so that student learning outcomes for the course are aligned with this skill and that a direct relationship between student learning outcomes and assessment is apparent.
- Critical thinking
- Effective writing
- Effective oral communication
- Scientific reasoning
- Quantitative Reasoning
Assessment
Central to the liberal studies plan is the commitment to monitor student development and to help students become more reflective about their own strengths, goals, and areas in which they need improvement. The Liberal Studies Committee, with support of the Office of Academic Assessment, conducts assessment of student learning in the liberal studies program.
Summary of Liberal Studies Requirements
- Foundation Requirements (7 credits)
- 4 credits of English 105
- 3 credits of Math
- Distribution Requirements (28 credits)
- 7 credits of Science (to include at least one Lab Science)
- 6 credits of Social and Political Worlds
- 6 credits of Aesthetic and Humanistic Inquiry
- 6 credits of Cultural Understanding
- 3 additional credits of any liberal studies distribution course
- Optional Freshman Seminar (3 credits)
- One optional freshman seminar may be used in the distribution block to which the topic most appropriately applies. (Effective AY07-08)
Explanation of Distribution Blocks
- Aesthetic and Humanistic Inquiry
- Courses in this block involve students in the study of the human condition through philosophical inquiry and analysis of the various forms of creative expression. These courses help students develop an understanding of the relationship between context and human creative expression, major conceptual frameworks utilized to make sense of the creative arts, and how human experience and values are expressed through creative endeavors. Students will also develop their capacities for analysis and ethical reasoning along with an understanding of the multiple facets of the human condition.
- Cultural Understanding
- Courses in this block enhance students' understanding of different cultures of the world through the study of language, literature, religion, and artistic creations or other disciplines. These courses provide students with an experience of diverse cultures [different from their own], and an analytic framework that facilitates awareness of how cultures vary and shape human experience. Students will become more familiar with cultures of the world and develop an appreciation for the unique features and perspectives of varied cultural traditions.
- Science/Applied Science
- Courses in this block will increase student's knowledge about the natural world and involve students in application of knowledge derived from scientific inquiry to address human needs through technological advancements. Understanding of a variety of physical and biological phenomena is developed through the application of the scientific method. Students will learn to employ the logic and techniques of scientific inquiry and thereby develop an understanding of the basis and limits of contemporary scientific knowledge. These courses will also familiarize students with important theories, concepts, and taxonomies that are central to the various science disciplines. Courses in this block also address the impact of technology on the human condition and the natural world.
- Social and Political Worlds
- These are courses that engage students in the study of the patterns that characterize the history of human communities, the relationships between the psychological, social, cultural and political components of human communities, and the dynamics of human behavior in varied contexts. Students will learn how different empirical and theoretical strategies are employed to study human behavior and social, political, and cultural systems. These courses enhance student understanding of the dynamic relationships between human communities and their ecological context, the systemic components and dynamics of contemporary human societies, relationships between human societies and the global community, and the major dimensions of variation in contemporary human experience.
University Requirements
Complementing the liberal studies program are university requirements. Some university requirements are embedded within the major and others may be fulfilled with courses in liberal studies or the major.
Junior Writing and Senior Capstone
There are two university requirements designed to meet the aims and goals of the liberal studies program that are embedded within the academic major. They are a junior level writing course and a senior capstone experience. These courses are designed to build upon learning and skills developed through Liberal Studies and the major.
Diversity
Students must take at least one 3-credit course in each of two categories: U.S. Ethnic Diversity and Global Awareness. This requirement may be fulfilled by designated liberal studies courses, or by designated courses taken from another area of the university curriculum, such as the major or minor.
Summary of University Requirements
- In Major (6-7 credits)
- 3-4 credits of Junior Level Writing Expectation
- 3 credits of Capstone Course/Experience in the Major
- Diversity Requirement (6 Credits)
- 3 credits of U.S. Ethnic Diversity
- 3 credits of Global Awareness
Note: courses designated as ethnic diversity and global awareness courses can be "double dipped" with major, minor, liberal studies, or elective courses.
Explanation / Definition of Categories
- Global Awareness
- Students will acquire an understanding of the perspectives (e.g. theoretical; historical; social; political; economic; cultural; religious; geographic or sense of place; environmental; or intellectual traditions and/ or ways of knowing) of non-Western peoples.
- Junior Level Writing Course
- These courses are designated with a W at the end of the course number. Junior level writing courses engage students in the writing process in the context of a discipline or profession.
- Senior Capstone
- These courses are designated with a C at the end of the course number. Capstone courses are culminating experiences in the major that involve students in application, synthesis, practice, or inquiry.
- U.S. Ethnic Diversity
- Students will acquire an understanding of the perspectives (e.g. theoretical; historical; social; political; economic; cultural; religious; geographic or sense of place; environmental; or intellectual traditions and/ or ways of knowing) of U.S. ethnic minorities