General Education Information

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• General Information
• Curriculum Categories
• Waiver, Placement and Substitutions Information
• QRChoice Category Information
• General Education Transfer Guidelines

General Education Program
Education for Participation in the Global Community

General Education Program Listing 

Director: Chris Foreman
Email: cforeman@emich.edu
Website: http://www.emich.edu/gened

General education is the core of an undergraduate education. It is general in that it provides students with a comprehensive educational experience and prepares them for study within their major.  General education teaches students to think critically and communicate effectively; it provides an introduction to the methodologies and practices of the…academic disciplines; it promotes intellectual curiosity and a love of learning.  General education…(is) the heart of an EMU education and a source of institutional pride.

The General Education Program can be found here .

Effective Communication

• Frequently cited as employers’ number one concern with college graduates. Education in speaking and writing is essential in helping students think clearly and in helping them organize and present their thoughts effectively. Individuals need to be able to communicate effectively for their own advancement and for their engagement with the world.

Quantitative Reasoning

• Quantitative reasoning skills are required in almost every major and professional program, as well as in personal and professional life. Students need quantitative literacy to function in society. Common examples include managing one’s own finances (e.g., credit card debt), reading and understanding the newspaper, and informed voting.

Perspectives on a Diverse World

• Global Awareness
  • Because of the interconnectedness of nations at this point in our history, very few organizations function solely in the U.S. We all need to understand the world in which we live; to be informed citizens, we need to be able to think about and understand other cultures. By studying some aspects of a number of nations or one nation in depth, students learn the skills for understanding other nations.
• U.S. Diversity
  • College is often the first place where students are placed in an environment with people unlike them. We all need to learn respect for other persons, and such respect comes with knowledge. An understanding and appreciation for diversity is central in employment, civic participation, and life more generally

Knowledge of the Disciplines

• Because each discipline offers a different perspective for understanding the world, understanding anything well requires some understanding of all of them. Students employ critical thinking skills to develop questions of inquiry that reflect an understanding of different disciplinary perspectives.

Learning Beyond the Classroom

• A university education is about more than just classes. Students involved in activities outside of the classroom have higher retention rates and more positive educational experiences. Learning beyond the Classroom encourages students to obtain hands on experience and to learn about professionalism; it also provides a way to apply classroom knowledge.

• Students may choose to complete ENGL 120 as an elective to prepare for the required ENGL 121 course. Students will decide this by completing the Guided Self-Placement (GSP) Student Survey located at: http://www.emich.edu/english/gsp/. Students with an ACT English sub-score of 29 or higher, or an SAT Verbal sub-score of 640 or higher, are waived from this requirement.
  International students may use ESLN 412 to meet the ENGL 121 requirement Area I, #1.

• Students with a very strong background in oral communication (public speaking and critical listening) may contact the Communication and Theatre Arts department at 124 Quirk, 734.487.3131, for a possible waiver of the required CTAS 124 course. Waivers are only granted on a case-by-case basis.

• Students with an ACT Math sub-score of less than 19, or an SAT Math sub-score of less than 520, are encouraged to take MATH 097/098 in preparation for MATH 110. However, students may take the Math Placement Test to place into MATH 110. (NOTE: MATH 097 and 098 do NOT count toward the minimum 124 hours required for graduation. Students who complete MATH 097 and/or 098 will be required to complete additional hours over the minimum of 124 hours to graduate.)
  
  
• Students with
  • an ACT Math sub-score of 19-22, or an SAT Math sub-score of 520-570, are eligible to take MATH 110 based on that test score.
  • an ACT Math sub-score of 23-27, an SAT Math sub-score of 580-660, or a CLM score of 53-92 may take MATH 110 or another course designated as a quantitative reasoning (QR) course.
  • an ACT Math sub-score of 28 or higher, an SAT Math sub-score of 670 or higher, or a CLM score 93 or higher are waived from this requirement.

• Upon a student’s initial enrollment at EMU, the Academic Advising Center (734.487.2171) has the authority to exercise professional judgment when accepting transfer courses for the General Education Program. Credits earned through the Advanced Placement (AP), College-Level Examination Program (CLEP), International Baccalaureate (IB), and the military are treated as transfer credit and the scores/credits are evaluated by the following departments:
  
  
  • AP - College of Arts and Sciences, Dean’s Office, 734.487.4344
  • CLEP - Academic Advising Center, 734.487.2171
  • IB - Office of Admissions, International Admissions, 734.487.0205
  • Military credit -Veterans Services, 734.487.3119
• Students wishing to receive General Education approval for courses taken elsewhere after their initial enrollment at EMU and the credits are not accepted as direct (course-to-course) equivalencies to the General Education Program must receive prior approval from the General Education Director (734.487.0439).

• Waivers and substitutions for courses taken at EMU and are not approved for the General Education Program can only be substituted by the General Education Director (734.487.0439) and cannot be approved for General Education credit by academic departments. NOTE: Exceptions to this are the courses in Area I and II which have the guidelines written above in the first three paragraphs.

Students under the new General Education Program are placed into a Quantitative Reasoning (QR) category based upon their ACT or SAT math score. Students with an ACT math score greater than or equal to 23 or an SAT math score greater than or equal to 580 are in the “QRChoice” category; they can take any approved QR course (or may be waived from the requirement* if the score is 28+ for ACT or 670+ for SAT). All other students, including those without an ACT or SAT score, must take MATH 110 or MATH 110E (for Elementary Education certification) as the requirement for the General Education Program.

Students who are not eligible for QRChoice may test into this category. Students may do this by using the College Level Math section (CLM) of the mathematics placement test. Testing into QRChoice can only be done under the following conditions:

1. To qualify for the QRChoice category, a student must obtain a form designated for this purpose from the Academic Advising Center, 301 Pierce. (This is not the same as the pink math placement authorization form.)
2. The score on the CLM must be 53 or higher. No exceptions will be made to this cutoff.
   A score of 93 or higher will earn the student a QR waiver**.
3. In order to count for this purpose, the student cannot take the CLM test more than two times. This includes times that the test is taken for initial placement purposes.
4. A student must wait a minimum of 30 days between a first attempt and a second attempt.
5. The test must be taken within one (1) calendar year from the beginning of the student’s first term at EMU with an application decision of “regular admit”. This applies also to a second attempt if taken.
6. To take the QRChoice test, a student must have a minimum math score on the ACT of 19 or on the SAT of 520 or have passed the Elementary Algebra placement test with a minimum score of 83.

Students should consider getting the QRChoice Category Request to Test Form if this situation applies to them.

QRChoice Category Request to Test Forms will be returned to the Academic Advising Center through a secure route, and kept on file there. Students who successfully test into QRChoice will have a code entered onto their record by the Academic Advising Center to be used for graduation audit purposes. A “study guide” can be found at: http://math.emich.edu/placement.html

_{*A QR waiver means that the QR requirement for the General Education Program is deemed to have been satisfied. A student may still have to take one of the designated QR courses if his/her program (major, minor or curriculum) requires it or if it is needed as a prerequisite to another course he/she wishes to take.}

Transfer students with MACRAO* will need to meet three requirements:

1. QR requirement
   A course transferring in as MATH 105, MATH 112, or any course on the QR list, will meet this requirement if taken before the first semester at EMU with an application decision of “regular admit”. If not, the student must satisfy the QR requirement by a course at EMU or a course-for-course transfer (see General Education Program, Area II).
2. Perspectives on a Diverse World
   One course is required and may be in either Global Awareness or U.S. Diversity; and can be transferred if taken before the first semester at EMU with an application decision of “regular admit”.
3. Learning Beyond the Classroom
   Only one course or experience is required and must to be completed at EMU.

Transfer students without MACRAO* but have 30 or more transferable hours will need to satisfy:

1. All General Education requirements
   Requirements may be met by transferred courses if taken before the first semester at EMU with an application decision of “regular admit”.
2. QR requirement (exception)
   A course transferring in as MATH 105, MATH 112, or any course on the QR list, will meet the requirement if taken before the first semester at EMU with an application decision of “regular admit”. If not, the student must satisfy the QR requirement by a course at EMU or a course-for-course transfer (see General Education Program, Area II).
3. Perspectives on a Diverse World (exception)
   One course is required and may be in either Global Awareness or U.S. Diversity; and can be transferred if taken before the first semester at EMU with an application decision of “regular admit”.
4. Learning Beyond the Classroom (exception)
   Only one course or experience is required and must to be completed at EMU.

Transfer students without MACRAO* and with less than 30 transferable hours will need to satisfy:

1. All General Education requirements
   Requirements may be met by transferred courses if taken before the first semester at EMU with an application decision of “regular admit”.
2. QR requirement (exception)
   A course transferring in as one of MATH 105, MATH 112, or any course on the QR list, will meet the requirement if taken before the first semester at EMU with an application decision of “regular admit”.†If not, the student must satisfy the QR requirement by a course at EMU or a course-for-course transfer (see General Education Program, Area II).
3. Learning Beyond the Classroom (exception)
   Only one of the two LBC requirements may be an equivalent course that is transferred if taken before the first semester at EMU with an application decision of “regular admit”. The other LBC must to be completed at EMU.

_{* MACRAO may be completed after initial enrollment at EMU
To receive credit for transfer courses completed after the first term of enrollment at EMU with an application decision of “regular admit”, the courses must be direct equivalencies (course-to-course) to EMU’s General Education Program in order to be applied to General Education requirements. Questions regarding course-to-course equivalencies should be directed to the Director of the General Education Program at 734.487.0439.}