General Education Pathway

Utah State University’s General Education (GE) program provides the subject-area knowledge and learning skills foundation for its 2- and 4-year degrees. General Education courses are highly advisable for concurrent enrollment students; they are required for college graduation and transferable from one Utah System of Higher Education (USHE) institution to another.

Review Gen Ed Requirements (PDF)

Selecting Classes

  1. Review the class list below with parents and counselors. Select one class from each category.
  2. Speak with an expert about your choices.
    • Ask a high school counselor which GE classes are available at your school; ask about other ways to fulfill GE requirements (AP, for example).
    • Ask a USU academic advisor how course choices fit different certificate or degree programs.

Core

Composition (CL1 and CL2)

Complete 3 credits in each of these designation areas (CL1 and CL2)

Course Code Course Name Credits
CIVC 1100 Flourishing and the Good Life (CL1) 3
ENGL 1010 Writing as Inquiry (CL1) 3
ENGL 2010 Research and Argument Across Perspectives (CL2) 3

Quantitative Literacy (QL)

Complete 3 credits in one of these courses.

Course Code Course Name Credits
STAT 1040 Introduction to Statistics 3
STAT 1080 Foundations of Data Science 3
MATH 1050 College Algebra 4

American Institutions (BAI)

Complete 3 credits in one of these courses.

Course Code Course Name Credits
ECON 2020 Introduction to Macroeconomics 3
HIST 1700 American Civilization 3
POLS 1100 United States Government and Politics 3

Breadth

Breadth Creative Arts (BCA)

Complete 3 credits in one of these courses.

Course Code Course Name Credits
ART 1010 Exploring Art 3
LAEP 1030 Introduction to Landscape Architecture 3
MUSC 1010 Introduction to Music 3
THEA 1013 Understanding Theater 3

Breadth Humanities (BHU)

Complete 3 credits in one of these courses.

Course Code Course Name Credits
CMST 1020 Public Speaking 3
CMST 2110 Interpersonal Communication 3
ENGL 2200 Understanding Literature 3
USU 1320 Civilization: Humanities 3

Breadth Social Sciences (BSS)

Complete 3 credits in one of these courses.

Course Code Course Name Credits
CIVC 1800 Disagree Better 3
ASTE 2900 Humanity in the Food Web 3
BUSN 1010 Business Principles 3
CJ 1010 Introduction to Criminal Justice 3
FCSE 1350 Financial Literacy 3
HDFS 1500 Human Development Across the Lifespan 3
HDFS 2400 Couple and Family Relationships 3
JCOM 1500 Introduction to Mass Communication 3
PSY 1010 General Psychology 3

Breadth Life Science (BLS)

Complete 3 credits in one of these courses.

Course Code Course Name Credits
ADVS 1110 Introduction to Animal Science 3
BIOL 1010 Biology and the Citizen 3
ENVS 1350 Introduction to Environmental Science 3
HEAL 1500 Anatomy and Physiology 3
NDFS 1020 Science and Application of Human Nutrition 3
PSC 1800 Introduction to Horticulture 3
WATS 2500 Introduction to Marine Biology 3
WILD 2200 Ecology of Our Changing World 3

Breadth Physical Science (BPS)

Complete 3 credits in one of these courses.

Course Code Course Name Credits
CHEM 1010 Introduction to Chemistry 3
CS 1030 Foundations of Computer Science 3
GEO 1060 Introduction to Environmental Geoscience 3
PHYS 1010 Elementary Physics 3

Completing the USU General Education Pathway