2012–2013 UNIVERSITY CATALOG - Florida Institute of Technology

Electives
The following definitions of electives pertain to all degree programs
at Florida Tech. The student should consult these definitions when
selecting appropriate courses to satisfy the electives listed under
program requirements. The counsel and consent of the student’s
academic program chair or adviser is important in the final
selection.
Engineering Design Elective
Engineering design is the process of devising a system, component
or process to meet desired needs. It is a decision-making process,
often iterative, in which the basic sciences, mathematics and
engineering sciences are applied to convert resources optimally to
meet a stated objective. Among the fundamental elements of the
design process are the establishment of objectives and criteria,
synthesis, analysis, construction, testing and evaluation. Central to
the process are the essential and complementary roles of synthesis
and analysis. Each engineering design course includes some of the
following features: development of student creativity, use of openended
problems, formulation of design-problem statements and
specifications, consideration of alternative solutions, feasibility considerations,
detailed system descriptions and a variety of realistic
constraints, such as economic factors, safety, reliability, aesthetics,
ethics and social impact. A list of approved engineering design electives
is normally available in each engineering department office.
Engineering Science Elective
Engineering sciences have their roots in mathematics and basic
sciences but carry knowledge further toward a creative application.
These studies provide bridges between mathematics, basic science
and engineering practice. A list of approved engineering science
electives is normally available in each engineering department
office.
Flight Training
Flight training is available to any Melbourne campus student and
may be used as elective credit in many degree programs with program
chair or adviser approval. FAA Private Pilot Certificate training
requires only two courses totaling five semester hours of credit.
Foreign Languages
Students who have had less than two years of foreign-language
study at the secondary level may enroll in elementary language
courses at Florida Tech. Students who have had two or more years
of foreign-language study at the secondary level and students who
transfer one year of foreign-language study to Florida Tech from
another college or university must enroll in intermediate courses.
Native or multilingual speakers of foreign languages may not
enroll in elementary or intermediate courses; they may, however,
enroll in advanced-level courses. The head of the department of
humanities and communication will make final decisions regarding
the placement of students in foreign-language courses.
Free Elective
Free electives may be any courses 1000-level or above taken
at Florida Tech, or courses taken elsewhere if transfer credit is
awarded by Florida Tech. Courses can be combined to satisfy
the specified free elective credits (e.g., three 1-credit courses can
satisfy one 3-credit listing in a degree program) or vice versa (one
3-credit course for three 1-credit listings). No more than a total of
four credit hours of free elective credits earned for physical education
activities and/or health education can be applied toward meeting
degree requirements.
38 Florida Tech
Humanities Elective
Courses concerned with human culture including literature, history,
philosophy, religion, linguistics, professional ethics and foreign
languages other than a student’s home language meet the requirements
for humanities electives. Courses in art, music and drama,
other than performance courses, also meet these requirements.
These courses are designated as humanities (HU) or humanities/
social science (HU/SS) electives in the Course Descriptions section.
A foreign language is considered to be the student’s home language
if it is the formal or commonly used language of the student’s country
or community, or if it was the language used as the medium of
interaction in all or part of the student’s pre-university education.
Humanities elective credits may not be granted by equivalency
examinations.
Liberal Arts Elective
A liberal arts elective is any course offered by the department
of humanities and communication (HUM, COM, LNG) or any
psychology course (PSY). Certain BUS and EDS courses may also
be considered liberal arts electives as determined by the student’s
academic unit.
Restricted Elective
A restricted elective is an elective selected from a specified academic
discipline. The academic discipline is included in the
specification of the elective, e.g., Restricted Elective (Chemistry)
or Restricted Elective (CHM). The level of the elective may also be
specified by the academic unit.
Social Science Elective
Studies of society and of the relationship of the individual to society
including anthropology, psychology, sociology, economics, political
science, history, linguistics, social responsibility and foreign
languages other than a student’s home language meet the requirements
for social science electives. These courses are designated as
SS or HU/SS electives in the Course Descriptions section.
Social science elective credits may not be granted by equivalency
examinations.
Technical Elective
A technical elective is a course in any field of science or engineering,
subject to department or program approval. Courses classified
as mathematics, basic science, applied science, engineering science,
engineering design or some combination of these satisfies the
requirement. These courses should be at a level appropriate to the
level at which they appear in the program.
academic Regulations
The following represents an abbreviated presentation of some of the
more commonly encountered regulations affecting undergraduate
students at Florida Tech (see also other definitions in this section).
Most can be found on the Florida Tech website. For other academic
policies and regulations, the vice president for academic affairs
should be consulted. Academic policies are subject to change.
Attendance
Melbourne Campus
Students registered for any course are expected to attend all lectures
and must attend all laboratories, examinations, quizzes and
practical exercises, subject to penalties specified by the instructor
for that course.