General Education requirements for the Associate in Arts and Associate in Science degrees are listed below: Students must complete General Education categories 1 through 5, at least 22 units of which must be completed in Categories 1 through 4.
A course used to satisfy requirements in one category may not be used to satisfy a second General Education category, with the exception of a course used to satisfy the Ethnic Studies requirement. A course may be used to fulfill both a General Education and a major requirement. The following list of courses will be revised each semester as courses are added or deleted from the curriculum.
Courses in the natural sciences are those that examine the physical universe, its life forms, and its natural phenomena. To satisfy the general education requirement in natural sciences, a course should help you develop an appreciation and understanding of the scientific method and encourage an understanding of the relationships between science and other human activities. This category would include introductory or integrative courses in astronomy, biology, chemistry, general physical science, geology, meteorology, oceanography, physics, and other scientific disciplines (BP 5.20).
Courses in the social and behavioral sciences are those that focus on people as members of society. To satisfy the general education requirement in social and behavioral sciences, a course should help you develop an awareness of the method of inquiry the social and behavioral sciences use. It should stimulate critical thinking about the ways people act and have acted in response to their societies and should promote appreciation of how societies and social subgroups operate. This category would include introductory or integrative survey courses in anthropology, economics, history, political science, psychology, sociology, and related disciplines (BP 5.20).
Courses in the humanities are those that study the cultural activities and artistic expressions of human beings. To satisfy the general education requirement in the humanities, a course should help you develop an awareness of the ways in which people throughout the ages and in different cultures have responded to themselves and the world around them in artistic and cultural creation and help the student develop aesthetic understanding and an ability to make value judgments. Such courses could include introductory or integrative courses in the arts, foreign languages, literature, philosophy, and religion (BP 5.20).
Courses in language and rationality are those that develop for you the principles and applications of language toward logical thought, clear and precise expression, and critical evaluation of communication in whatever symbol system you use (BP 5.20).
Courses fulfilling the written composition requirement shall include both expository and argumentative writing (BP 5.20).
Minimum level of elementary algebra (BP 5.20). May be met by one of two options listed below:
A broad understanding of computer concepts (BP 5.20).
Requirements shall include written communication, oral communication, literature, or selected English as a second language courses (BP 5.20).
Courses fulfilling the communication and analytical thinking requirement include oral communication, mathematics, logic, statistics, computer languages and programming, and related disciplines. To satisfy the Communication and Analytical Thinking area, courses taken in Mathematics shall be at the Elementary Algebra level or higher (BP 5.20).
Ethnic studies is an intensive and scholarly study of African-American, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American experiences in the United States involving an examination of these cultures and the history, social, economic, and political influences on them (BP 5.20).
All Ethnic Studies courses, worth at least 3 semester units, may simultaneously satisfy one of the Categories 1-4, if they are offered within that category. It should be noted that such units are calculated only once.
This list is updated periodically. Consult a College of Alameda counselor for a current listing of approved courses.