Categories in this section include:
Chris Foreman, Ph.D., Director
cforeman@emich.edu
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.
General Education Core Requirements
General Education Application Requirements
- Students may choose to complete WRTG 120 as an elective to prepare for the required WRTG 121 course. 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 WRTG 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 CTAC 124 course. Waivers are granted only 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 /MATH 098 in preparation for MATH 110 . However, students may take the Math Placement Test to place into MATH 110 . (NOTE: MATH 097 and MATH 098 do NOT count toward the minimum 124 hours required for graduation. Students who complete MATH 097 and/or MATH 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 of 93 or higher are waived from the MATH 110 requirement.
- Upon a student’s initial enrollment at EMU, the University Advising and Career Development Center (200 McKenny Hall, (734) 487-0400) 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 - University Advising and Career Development Center, 200 McKenny Hall, (734) 487-0400)
- IB - Office of Records & Registration, 303 Pierce Hall, (734) 487-4111
- Military credit - Veterans Services, (734) 487-3119
- After their initial enrollment at EMU, students who wish to receive General Education approval to take, at another institution, courses 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.
NOTE: Exceptions to this are the courses in Effective Communication and Quantitative Reasoning whose guidelines appear above.
Waivers and substitutions for courses taken at EMU and not approved for the General Education Program can only be granted by the General Education Director ((734) 487-0439) and cannot be approved for General Education credit by academic departments.
Students are placed into a Quantitative Reasoning (QR) category based upon their ACT or SAT math scores. 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 by using the College Level Math section (CLM) of the mathematics placement test. Testing into QRChoice can only be done under the following conditions:
- A student must obtain a form designated for this purpose from the University Advising and Career Development Center (UACDC), 200 McKenny. (This is not the same as the pink math placement authorization form.)
- 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**.
- The student cannot take the CLM test more than two times. This includes times that the test is taken for initial placement purposes.
- A student must wait a minimum of 30 days between a first attempt and a second attempt.
- The test must be taken within two calendar years 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.
- 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 University Advising and Career Development Center (UACDC) 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 University Advising and Career Development Center to be used for graduation audit purposes. A study guide can be found here.
* 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.
The Michigan Transfer Agreement (MTA) satisfies EMU’s General Education Core Requirements.
Transfer students with an MTA endorsement on their transcript will only need to complete the General Education Application Requirements:
- Perspectives on a Diverse World - Demonstrate the application of learning in either global awareness or U.S. Diversity by completing one course, which may be transferred in as a part of the MTA
- Learning Beyond the Classroom- Demonstrate the application of classroom knowledge and obtain hands on experience in settings outside of the classroom, which must be completed while at EMU
- Writing Intensive - Demonstrate the application of written communication skills within the major, which must be completed with an EMU approved Writing Intensive course.
* MTA may be completed after initial enrollment at EMU
For transfer students without the MTA endorsement, transfer courses completed before admission to EMU will be applied to General Education Core requirements if they meet the spirit of the requirement.
For students who started at a community college prior to Fall 2014, and are currently working on a MACRAO agreement, please click here .
