General Education « Degree Requirements « Students « College of Liberal Arts & Sciences « University of Illinois

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LAS General Education Distribution Requirements

The Importance | LAS Gen Ed Requirements | Gen Ed Course Lists | Restrictions on Gen Ed Courses

Note: As of Fall 2011, there have been changes to general education requirements. See a list of frequently asked questions about the changes.

The Importance of General Education Coursework

All undergraduates at the University of Illinois are required to satisfy general education requirements—certain core courses that all students must take in order to graduate.

These requirements are an important component of students’ education at the University of Illinois. Besides specializing in a major and training for a career, students should become familiar with some of the many rapidly changing disciplines. Through these requirements, Illinois undergraduates:

• expand their historical, aesthetic, cultural, literary, scientific, and philosophical perspectives
• improve critical and analytical thinking; and
• acquire skills in finding, managing, and communicating knowledge.

This breadth of preparation is particularly important for students in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. We believe that the learning you do here should prepare you not just for a career, but for life.

LAS General Education Requirements

LAS students generally have a great deal of flexibility in fulfilling their general education requirements, which include the following:

• Non-Primary Language
  4 levels of one language or 3 levels of two different languages
• Composition I
• Advanced Composition (ACP)
  Some curricula may require a specific course
• 6 hours Humanities & Arts (HP or LA)
  Historical & Philosophical Perspectives
  Literature & the Arts
• 6 hours Social & Behavioral Sciences (SS or BS)
  Social Sciences
  Behavioral Sciences
• 6 hours Natural Sciences & Technology (LS or PS)
  Life Sciences
  Physical Sciences
• Western Cultures (W)
  One course
• Non-Western Cultures/U.S. Minority (NW or US)
  One course
• Quantitative Reasoning I (QR1)
  One course
• Quantitative Reasoning II (QR1 or QR2)
  One course

General Education Course Lists

See go.illinois.edu/CourseExplorer_GenEd for a current listing of the general education categories and individual courses that satisfy each requirement on this campus.

Students are advised that some general education requirements may be fulfilled by courses already required in the major. See the individual major requirements in the Programs of Study for more information.

• Students in Specialized Curricula should check with their advisors about restrictions that may apply to their general education coursework.
• Students in Secondary Education Curricula should note that teacher certification requirements may require them to complete their general education requirements by taking specific courses.

Restrictions on General Education Courses

The Credit/No Credit option may not be used for courses that are taken to meet general education requirements. Courses taken to satisfy requirements for a major may be used to satisfy general education requirements as long as they appear on the campus list.