General Education

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The vision of General Education (GE) is to ensure that all CSUN students have a broad background in disciplines at the university level in order to appreciate the breadth of human knowledge and the responsibilities of concerned and engaged citizens of the world. Students must become lifelong learners and leave the university with a set of skills that include the ability to read critically, to write and communicate orally with clarity and persuasiveness, to evaluate and draw appropriate inferences from limited information and to access the wealth of technical, scientific and cultural information that is increasingly available in the global community. Students must gain an understanding of the major contributions made by individuals from diverse backgrounds in the sciences, business and economics, the arts, literatures, politics and technologies. It is through the GE Program, that CSUN ensures that all students gain a sincere appreciation of how the diverse cultures housed in the United States, and specifically Southern California, lead to creative thinking and expression during a time in human history when cultural diversity provides different perspectives and insights from which to view human endeavors.

General Education Required Pattern of Courses

The required pattern of General Education consists of 48 units distributed among these areas:

Basic Skills 12 units

Subject Explorations:

U.S. History and Government (Title 5) 6 units

Total Units Required General Education Units* 48 units

*Note: The sum of the minimums for each section is 47 units. After completing the course requirements for all sections, if fewer than 48 units have been completed, then one additional GE course selected from any of the GE sections must be completed to meet the 48 unit requirement.

Information Competence Requirement

Students are required to take Information Competence (IC) designated courses. Students will progressively acquire information competence skills by developing an understanding of information retrieval tools and practices as well as improving their ability to evaluate and synthesize information ethically.

Students must take two IC designated courses, one course in the Basic Skills section and one course in the Subject Explorations section. IC designated courses are listed below.

Basic Skills (12 Units)

Basic Skills coursework provides students with the knowledge and abilities they will find useful and necessary for other GE and University courses and in their pursuits after graduation. These fundamental courses are Analytical Reading and Expository Writing, Critical Thinking, Mathematics and Oral Communication will teach students how to read to understand and write about complex topics, how to distinguish correct from faulty reasoning, how to study and appreciate mathematical ideas and quantitative reasoning and how to make public presentations of their own thoughts and research. Students should complete this section within their first 60 units. One course in this section must include the Information Competence (IC) designation.

Subject Explorations (29 Units)

Subject Explorations coursework provides courses in the Natural Sciences; Art and Humanities; Social Sciences; Lifelong Learning; and Comparative Cultural Studies/Gender, Race, Class, and Ethnicity Studies, and Foreign Languages. At least one course taken to fulfill Subject Explorations must be designated as an IC course.

  • Natural Sciences

Natural Sciences coursework provides students with a fundamental knowledge in the sciences, an understanding of how scientific knowledge moves forward using the scientific method and an understanding of the role of science in a world that is increasingly reliant on scientific and technological advances.

  • Arts and Humanities

Arts and Humanities coursework helps students to appreciate the rich history and diversity of human knowledge, discourse and achievements of their own and other cultures as they are expressed in the arts, literatures, religions and philosophy.

  • Social Sciences

Social Science coursework will give students an understanding of the behavior of humans as we relate to each other, to ourselves and to our environments as we create the structures and values that govern our lives in the present and through time. These courses will give students an appreciation of the areas of learning concerned with human thought and an understanding of the nature, scope and limits of social-scientific study.

  • Lifelong Learning

Lifelong Learning coursework encourages students to develop an appreciation for the importance of the continued acquisition of new and diverse knowledge and skills, and offers opportunities to integrate personal, professional, and social aspects of life.

  • Comparative Cultural Studies/Gender, Race, Class, and Ethnicity Studies, and Foreign Languages

Comparative Cultural Studies coursework provides students with an introduction to the cultures and languages of other nations and peoples, the contributions and perspectives of cultures other than their own, and how gender is viewed in these cultures. Courses in this section will be referred to in this Catalog with the abbreviated phrase, Comparative Cultural Studies.

U.S. History and Government (6 Units)

U.S. History and Government is prescribed by California law (Title 5) and meets 6 of the 48 units required for General Education. U.S. History and Government courses cannot be used to fulfill the requirements of Subject Explorations.

Upper Division General Education (UDGE) (9 Units)

General Education coursework at the 300 level or above must be selected from within Basic Skills, Subject Explorations or U.S. History and Government. UDGE (300 and above) are not to be taken sooner than the semester in which junior standing (60 units) is achieved. Note that completion of the lower Division writing requirement is a prerequisite for enrollment in Upper Division General Education courses.

Writing Intensive (WI) Requirement

All Upper Division GE courses are designated Writing Intensive (WI). Therefore, the WI requirement will be satisfied by meeting the Upper Division General Education requirement. Writing Intensive courses require students to complete writing assignments totaling a minimum of 2,500 words.

  • General Education Residency Requirement

Students must complete a minimum of 9 units of General Education in residence at CSUN at either the Lower or Upper Division level. If completed at the Upper Division level, the units also may apply to the 9-unit Upper Division GE requirement described above.

  • Grading Method Requirement

Students may NOT take courses on a Credit/No Credit basis to fulfill GE or Title 5 requirements. Refer to the Policies and Regulations section on Credit/No Credit for ALL restrictions on this basis of grading.

  • Additional General Education Rules
  • 1. A student may count for GE credit only one GE course that counts for major credit and is offered by the department of the major. The major departments have designated the course for this modification, which is indicated below in the GENERAL EDUCATION PATTERN MODIFICATIONS and has been coded into the Degree Progress Report. GE courses offered in the major department but NOT required in the major program can apply to GE as listed.
  • 2. Courses taken to fulfill a particular GE requirement will continue to count for GE credit even after a student changes major. However, once a student changes the major, the student is responsible for fulfilling the GE requirements in the areas of GE that have not been completed.
  • 3. Changes or substitutions to GE that are specific to particular majors are listed in the General Education Pattern Modifications section below or may be listed in the description of your major program. An academic advisor in the major should be consulted regarding these changes.
  • Requirements for Transfer Students

Transfer students can meet CSUN GE requirements by completing a General Education certification** plan at a California community college and nine units of Upper Division GE coursework at CSU Northridge after transfer, or by completing the General Education program at CSU Northridge, which includes the following areas of study: Basic Skills, Subject Explorations (which include Natural Sciences; Arts and Humanities; Social Sciences; Lifelong Learning; and Comparative Cultural Studies/Gender, Race, Class, and Ethnicity Studies, and Foreign Languages), and Title 5 U.S. History and Government requirements.

Students transferring community college or university coursework must also meet a three-unit CSUN requirement in Comparative Cultural Studies/Gender, Race, Class, and Ethnicity Studies, and Foreign Languages. This requirement can be met through transfer credit evaluation or the completion of an appropriate CSUN Upper Division GE course designated as a Comparative Cultural Studies course.

**Students who may be eligible for IGETC or CSU General Education certification are urged to consult with their community college counselor about this process, preferably in advance of their transfer.

General Education Pattern Modifications

  • African American Studies majors may apply listed PAS courses in general education.
  • Art majors may count ART 140 in Arts and Humanities.
  • Asian American Studies majors may apply listed AAS courses in general education.
  • Biochemistry majors may count CHEM 101/L , BIOL 106/L and BIOL 107/L in the Natural Sciences.
  • Biology majors may count BIOL 106/L in the Natural Sciences.
  • Business Administration majors (all degrees and options) may count BLAW 280 in Lifelong Learning. Majors in the Management option may count ECON 308 in the Social Sciences. Majors in the Human Resource Management option may count ECON 320 in the Social Sciences.
  • Central American Studies majors may apply listed CAS courses in general education.
  • Chemistry majors may count CHEM 101/L in the Natural Sciences.
  • Chicana/o Studies majors may apply listed CH S courses in general education.
  • Cinema and Television Arts majors may count CTVA 100 in Lifelong Learning.
  • Civil Engineering majors will be considered to have satisfied the Basic Skills, Critical Thinking and Mathematics requirements. CE majors may count MSE 304 in the Social Sciences, and MSE 101/L and CE 280/L in Lifelong Learning.
  • Communicative Disorders and Sciences majors may count BIOL 101/L in Natural Sciences.
  • Communication Studies majors may count COMS 309 in Basic Skills, Oral Communication.
  • Computer Engineering majors will be considered to have satisfied the Basic Skills, Critical Thinking and Mathematics requirements. CompE majors may count BIOL 106/L and BIOL 107/L in the Natural Sciences; MSE 304 in the Social Sciences; and COMP 110L in Lifelong Learning.
  • Computer Science majors will be considered to have satisfied the Basic Skills, Critical Thinking and Mathematics requirements. CS majors may count BIOL 106/L and BIOL 107/L in Natural Sciences. COMP 110/L counts in Lifelong Learning.
  • Construction Management Technology majors will be considered to have satisfied the Basic Skills, Critical Thinking and Mathematics requirements. CMT majors may count BIO 106/L in the Natural Sciences and MSE 300 in the Social Sciences.
  • Economics majors may count ECON 310 in the Social Sciences.
  • Electrical Engineering majors will be considered to have satisfied the Basic Skills, Critical Thinking and Mathematics requirements. EE majors may count MSE 304 in the Social Sciences and ECE 206/L in Lifelong Learning.
  • Manufacturing Systems Engineering majors will be considered to have satisfied the Basic Skills, Critical Thinking and Mathematics requirements. MSE majors may count MSE 304 in the Social Sciences and MSE 319/L in Lifelong Learning.
  • Mechanical Engineering majors will be considered to have satisfied the Basic Skills, Critical Thinking and Mathematics requirements. ME majors may count MSE 304 in the Social Sciences, and ME 101/L and ME 286B/L in Lifelong Learning.
  • English majors may use one of the following courses in the Arts and Humanities: ENGL 275 or 258 or 259.
  • Environmental and Occupational Health majors may count EOH 352 in the Social Sciences section. BIOL 101/L, BIOL 106/L and BIOL 107 may count in the Natural Sciences.
  • Family and Consumer Sciences majors may count FCS 340 in Lifelong Learning. Majors in the Nutrition, Dietetics and Food Science option, and the FCS Education option may count BIOL 101/L in the Natural Sciences.
  • French majors may count FLIT 295A or FLIT 295B in Arts and Humanities.
  • Geology majors in Option III may count BIO 106/L and BIOL 107/L in the Natural Sciences.
  • Health Sciences majors (all options) may count HSCI 345 in the Social Sciences. Health Science majors may count BIOL 101/L in the Natural Sciences. Radiologic Sciences majors may count PHYS 100BL in Natural Sciences.
  • History majors may count HIST 270, HIST 271 or HIST 371 in Title 5.
  • Humanities Interdisciplinary Program majors may count HUM 101 in Arts and Humanities.
  • Jewish Studies majors may count JS 200 in the Arts and Humanities.
  • Journalism majors may count JOUR 100 in Lifelong Learning.
  • Kinesiology majors may count KIN 306 in Social Sciences. BIOL 101/L counts in the Natural Sciences.
  • Liberal Studies majors in teacher preparation options will be considered to have satisfied General Education requirements.
  • Mathematics majors may count Math 150A in Basic Skills, Mathematics. COMP 106/L counts in Lifelong Learning.
  • Music majors in all B.A. options and the B.M. program may count MUS 307 (upper-division GE) in Comparative Cultural Studies, MUS 191/L in Lifelong Learning and MUS 202 in Arts and Humanities.
  • Philosophy majors may count PHIL 230 in Basic Skills, Critical Thinking.
  • Physics majors may count PHYS 220A/AL or PHYS 225/220AL in the Natural Sciences. COMP 106/L and COMP 110/L may count in Lifelong Learning.
  • Political Science majors may count POLS 155 or 355 in Title 5.
  • Psychology majors may count PSY 150 in the Social Sciences
  • Recreation majors may count RTM 352 in Lifelong Learning.
  • Religious Studies majors may count one of the following courses in the Arts and Humanities: RS 100, 101, 304,307, 310,356, 361 or JS 200.
  • Sociology majors may count SOC 305 in the Social Sciences.
  • Spanish majors in the Spanish Literature option may count FLIT 295A or FLIT 295B in the Arts and Humanities.
  • Urban Studies and Planning majors may count URBS 310 in the Social Sciences.
  • Women’s Studies majors may count GWS 300 in Comparative Cultural Studies.

Information Competence (IC) Designated Courses

1. Basic Skills:

  • AAS 155 Freshman Composition (3)
  • CHS 155 Freshman Composition (3)
  • COMS 151/L Fundamentals of Public Speaking (2/1)
  • COMS 225/L Argumentation (2/1)
  • COMS 309 Advanced Public Speaking (3)
  • ENGL 155 Freshman Composition (3)
  • PAS 155 Freshman Composition (3)

2. Subject Explorations:

Natural Sciences
  • ASTR 352/L Current Developments in Astronomy (3/1)
  • BIOL 317/L Microbes and Society (3/1)
  • BIOL 325/L Life in the Sea (3/1)
  • BIOL 362/L Genetics and Society (3/1)
  • GEOG 311/L Atmosphere (3/1)
  • GEOG 365/L Geomorphology and Lab (3/1)
  • GEOG 366/L Geography of Environmental Hazards (3/1)
  • PHYS 305/L Physics of Music and Laboratory (3/1)
Arts and Humanities
  • ART 305 Art Today (3)
  • CTVA 210 Television-Film Aesthetics (3)
  • FLIT 381 Aspects of the Italian-American Experience in Cinema, Literature, Philosophy, and Music(3)
  • JS 300 Humanities in Jewish Society: Ancient & Medieval (3)
  • MUS 106 Hip Hop Music (3)
  • PHIL 349 Philosophy and Public Affairs (3)
  • RS 304 Women and Religion (3)
  • TH 315 World Drama (3)
Social Sciences
  • PSY 312 Psychological Aspects of Parenthood (3)
  • PSY 352 Motivation (3)
  • PSY 365 Introduction to Gerontology (3)
Lifelong Learning
  • BIOL 327 Ecology and People (3)
  • CD 361 Language Development in Children (3)
  • COMP 100 Computers: Their Impact and Use (3)
  • COMP 300 Computer Fluency (3)
  • COMS 323 Group Communication (3)
  • COMS 360 Communication and the Sexes (3)
  • CTVA 100 Introduction to Mass Communication Arts (3)
  • ENGL 313 Studies in Popular Culture (3)
  • FCS 207 Nutrition for Life (3)
  • FCS 330 Child Growth and Development I (3)
  • FCS 340 Marriage and Family Relations (3)
  • FIN 302 Personal Finance (3)
  • FLIT 234 Virtual Study Abroad (3)
  • GEOG 206/L Intro to Geographical Information Science and Lab (2/1)
  • MSE 105 Introduction to Computer-Aided Graphics Tools (3)
  • MSE 106 Introduction to CAD Animation (3)
  • MSE 303 Innovation, Invention, & Technology (3)
  • UNIV 100 Freshman Seminar (3)
Comparative Cultural Studies
  • ART 315 Perspectives in Art History (3)
  • COMS 356 Intercultural Communication (3)
  • ENGL 311 History of African-American Writing (3)
  • ENGL 371 Issues in Jewish-American Writing (3)
  • FLIT 320 Business Culture in Asia (3)
  • FLIT 321 Business Culture in Europe (3)
  • FLIT 322 Business Culture in Latin America (3)
  • HIST 161 Survey of the History of Latin American (3)
  • HIST 192 History of Eastern Civilization (3)
  • HIST 349A Women in American History through 1848 (3)
  • HIST 348B Women in American History since 1848 (3)
  • MSE 302 Women in Mathematics, Science and Engineering (3)
  • MUS 309 Traditional Music of the US (3)
  • MUS 310 Understanding World Cultures Through Music (3)
  • RS 306 Minority Religions of America (3)
  • RS 378 American Jewish Experience (3)
  • RS 390 Buddhism (3)
  • GWS 300 Women as Agents of Change (3)
Title 5
  • HIST 370 Problems in American History to 1865 (3)
  • HIST 371 Problems in American History: 1865 to Present (3)

General Education Sections

1. Basic Skills (12 Units)

All Basic Skills courses must be completed by students within their first 60 units. All first-time freshmen will have mandatory advisement starting with their initial enrollment at the university and continuing each semester until the completion of Basic Skills.

Students will enroll in the appropriate writing and mathematics courses as advised until they complete GE writing or math within the first four semesters or 60 units, whichever comes first. Students will enroll either simultaneously or within two consecutive semesters in GE oral communication and GE writing. Students will enroll in GE critical thinking after completing GE math (within their first 60 units).

Analytical Reading and Expository Writing (3 units)

Goal: Students will analyze and reflect on complex topics and appropriately synthesize their own and others’ ideas in clearly written, well organized and edited American English.

Critical Thinking (3 units)

Goal: Students will analyze information and ideas carefully and logically from multiple perspectives and develop reasoned solutions to problems.

*The prior GE placement for this course was in Oral Communication

Mathematics (3 units)

Goal: Students will gain competence in mathematical reasoning necessary for informed judgment and decision making.

Oral Communication (3 units)

Goal: Students will understand the basic concepts and practices associated with public speaking and will make public presentations of their own thoughts and research.

Subject Explorations (29 Units)

1. Natural Sciences (8 units)

Coursework in this section must include two lecture courses and the two laboratories, activities and/or field studies that are connected to the lectures.

Goal: Students will develop basic knowledge and learn key principles in the natural sciences, including an understanding of the methods of scientific inquiry through laboratory, activity and/or field-based study.

2. Arts and Humanities (6 units)

Goal: Students will understand the rich history and diversity of human knowledge, discourse and achievements of their own and other cultures as they are expressed in the arts, literatures, religions and philosophy.

*The former GE placement for this course was in the Comparative Cultural Studies section
**The former GE placement for this course was in the Lifelong Learning section.

3. Social Sciences (6 units)

Goal: Students will understand and appreciate the complexities of social relations and human experiences and the ways in which they have changed over time, as well as the nature, scope and the systematic study of human behaviors and societies.

*The former GE placement for this course was in the Comparative Cultural Studies section.

4. Lifelong Learning (3 units)

Goal: Students will develop cognitive, physical and affective skills which will allow them to become more integrated and well-rounded individuals within various physical, social, cultural and technological environments and communities.

*The prior GE placement for this course was in Arts and Humanities.

5. Comparative Cultural Studies/Gender, Race, Class, Ethnicity Studies and Foreign Languages (6 units)

Goal: Students will understand the diversity and multiplicity of cultural forces that shape the world through the study of cultures, gender, sexuality, race, religion, class, ethnicities and languages with special focus on the contributions, differences and global perspectives of diverse cultures and societies.

6. Title 5 Requirements In American History and Government (6 Units)

Goal: Students will understand (1) and reflect upon United States history, institutions and ideals; (2) the Constitution of the United States; (3) and the principles of state and local government as established in California.

Requirement (1) in American history, institutions and ideals may be satisfied by completion of one of the following courses:

Requirement (2) in the Constitution of the United States and

Requirement (3) in state and local government may be satisfied by one of the following courses:

In addition to the courses listed above, requirement (3) may be satisfied by the following:
Students transferring to CSUN from outside of California must meet the state and local government requirement.

Eligible students may petition to meet requirement (1) by challenge examination in appropriate courses. All students earning teaching credentials must also meet the requirement in the Constitution of the United States, whether or not they are in a degree program. This requirement may be met by successful completion of any of the courses listed as fulfilling the requirement.