1a. IntroSUS 2003 - University of Maryland University College

B A C H E L O R ’ S D E G R E E R E Q U I R E M E N T SAt the undergraduate level, UMUC offers the Bachelor of Arts (BA),Bachelor of Science (BS), and Bachelor of Technical and ProfessionalStudies (BTPS) degrees, as well as 43 certificates. The Associate ofArts degree and several other certificates are available only to activedutymilitary personnel.Requirements for degrees vary according to the major and minor.The requirements that all candidates for the bachelor’s degree mustmeet are summarized in the following sections.EXPECTATIONSUMUC aims to produce graduates who are well prepared to beresponsible citizens of a global society as well as effective participantsin the complex, fast-changing world of work. A bachelor’sdegree from UMUC offers a multidimensional experience, combininga solid educational foundation with cross-curricular breadthand focused study in an academic discipline. Through that experience,UMUC graduates develop and demonstrate the hallmarks ofthe educated person: intellectual ability, curiosity, and flexibility; fundamentalskills in reasoning, analysis, and expression; understandingof the principles of scientific and intellectual inquiry; awareness ofglobal and historical context; and civic and ethical responsibility.UMUC demands that students demonstrate the ability to learn andto apply that learning to career and life experience. The UMUCdegree begins with basic intellectual tools, ensuring through thegeneral education requirements that students are able to• Communicate effectively, orally and in writing.•Reason mathematically.•Examine and critically assess aesthetic, historical, and culturalworks reflecting the variety of human thought and culturalachievement.• Comprehend the nature, techniques, and limits of science andthe social and behavioral sciences.•Use libraries and other information resources to locate, evaluate,and use needed information effectively.•Understand information technology and apply it productively.Cross-curricular initiatives, promoted both by specific courses and byintegration throughout all programs, build the student’s ability to analyze,synthesize, and integrate knowledge, perspectives, and techniques.The cross-curricular requirements in effective writing, fluency in informationtechnology, historical and international perspectives, civic responsibility,and information literacy ensure that students are able to•Define problems, identify appropriate resources, and use informationeffectively.•Understand information technology and use it productively.• Think critically and communicate effectively.•Function in professional roles that require an appreciation andunderstanding of the interdependency among all disciplines in theglobal workplace.•Put learning in the context of historical events and achievements.•Function responsibly as adult citizens of the world, engaging andnegotiating different perspectives and exercising ethical judgmentin their personal and professional lives.In pursuit of an academic major (and minor), the UMUC studentacquires mastery of a considerable body of knowledge in a specificacademic subject area or group of related subjects. Each major andminor provides clearly articulated objectives for the knowledge,skills, and abilities a student acquires in completing the major.REQUIREMENTSIn general, the UMUC degree requirements that apply to a studentare those that were in effect when the student began continuousenrollment in any public institution of higher education in Maryland(including UMUC). If a student has not been continuously enrolled,the requirements that apply are those in effect at UMUC when thestudent resumes continuous enrollment. To be considered continuouslyenrolled, degree-seeking students must be or have beenenrolled at UMUC or another Maryland public institution ofhigher education and have had no more than two sequential yearsof nonenrollment. When a continuously enrolled student chooses tochange his or her degree program, the student may be subject tothe degree requirements in effect at the time of the change.The following requirements for the BA, BS, and BTPS are applicableto students who enroll on or after August 1, 2003.Summary of Bachelor’s Degree Requirements1. Bachelor’s Degree General Education Requirements ......41 s.h.2. Cross-Curricular Requirements........................................9 s.h.3. Academic Major ......................................................30–38 s.h.4. Academic Minor (optional)......................................15–19 s.h.5. Electives ..................................................................15–49 s.h.TOTAL ............................................................................120 s.h.Within these requirements, students must also•Maintain a cumulative grade-point average of at least 2.0 (C).• Complete a minimum of 45 s.h. of upper-level credit, includinghalf the credit earned for the major and 15 s.h. taken throughUMUC.• Complete a minimum of 30 s.h. through UMUC, includinghalf the credit earned for the major and for the minor.21