See an overview of the categories, and find specific information about categories in the Undergraduate Catalog.
I. Informed Learners
Informed Learners understand nature and society through forms of inquiry fundamental to the sciences, the humanities, and the arts. Learners are informed by knowledge and ways of knowing that extend beyond core concepts, enabling them to link theory and practice.
Informed Learners demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
- the ways of modeling the natural, social, and technical worlds
- the aesthetic facets of human experience
- the past and present from historical, philosophical, and social perspectives
- the human imagination, expression, and traditions of many cultures
- the interrelationships within and across cultures and global communities
- the interrelationships within and across disciplines
II. Empowered Learners
Empowered Learners are critical thinkers who demonstrate intellectual agility and creativity and the ability to manage or create change. They are able to derive meaning from experience and observation. They communicate well in diverse settings and employ various strategies to solve problems. They are empowered through mastery of intellectual and practical skills. Empowered Learners demonstrate:
- effective oral and written communication abilities
- ease with textual, visual, and electronically-mediated literacies
- problem-solving skills using a variety of methods and tools
- information literacy skills, including the ability to access, evaluate, interpret, and use information from a variety of sources
- the ability to transform information into knowledge and knowledge into judgment and action
- the ability to work within complex systems and with diverse groups
- critical thinking skills, including analysis, application, and evaluation
- reflective thinking and the ability to synthesize information and ideas
III. Responsible Learners
Responsible Learners are engaged citizens of a diverse democratic society who have a deep sense of social responsibility and ethical judgment. They are responsible for their personal actions and civic values. Responsible Learners demonstrate:
- intellectual honesty
- concern for social justice
- civic engagement
- an understanding of the ethical and behavioral consequences of decisions and actions on themselves, on society, and on the physical world
- an understanding of themselves and a respect for the identities, histories, and cultures of others
Dimensions of Wellness
You must take three credits of coursework that addresses topics like nutrition, fitness, substance abuse, or stress management. Completing one year of ROTC/Military Science is an alternate way of fulfilling this requirement.
Because responsible adaptations in behavior can help promote and maintain good health, you should know and begin to practice the components of a healthy lifestyle.
An alternate method of fulfilling this requirement is the completion of one year of Military Science/ROTC: MLSC 101 Introduction to Military Science and Lab (two semester hours) and MLSC 102 Fundamentals of Military Science and Lab (two semester hours). Verified successful completion of Basic Training in any US Armed Service is transferable as MLSC 101 and 102. MLSC 203 and MLSC 204 may be substituted for MLSC 101 and 102.
Fine Arts
The languages of art, architecture, music, drama, and dance are wonderful ways for us to express our feelings and perceptions. You may select a course that focuses on music, theater, art, or dance.
Study in the fine arts helps you think about beauty and how it is expressed, make your own aesthetic judgments, and enjoy the choices you make. Because the course will introduce you to and help you appreciate many of the cultural events you will be attending on campus, it should be taken during your first year.
Requirement: One course from list, 3cr
Global and Multicultural Awareness
To help you develop attitudes and understandings necessary to live in a world in which contact between cultures is increasingly important, at least one of the courses you take at IUP must deal with a non-Western culture.
This can be one of your Liberal Studies courses, but it can also be a major course or a free elective. If you do not have such a course elsewhere in your curriculum, you will need to save one of your Liberal Studies electives for this purpose. Advances in travel and communications are changing our lives; it is no longer unusual for students to go halfway around the world to study or for our economic relationships to be calculated in global terms. Knowing only what is close at hand and familiar is no longer enough.
Requirement: one course from list, 3cr
Students must fulfill this requirement by completing one course from the list; most of these courses will at the same time fulfill other requirements set by Liberal Studies or, in some cases, by a college or department.
Humanities
Three courses in the humanities will help you to understand the heritage of Western civilization in all its richness and diversity. You must have one course in each of three areas: literature, philosophy or religious studies, and history.
This is your opportunity to meet some of the world’s greatest thinkers and writers and to place your own time in historical perspective. You will have a chance to think deeply about enduring, fundamental issues—like justice or equality or love—which men and women have continually struggled to understand better.
Requirement: Three courses, 9cr
Note: one course in History, one in Literature, and one in Philosophy or Religious Studies
Humanities: History
Three courses in the humanities will help you to understand the heritage of Western civilization in all its richness and diversity. You must have one course in each of three areas: literature, philosophy or religious studies, and history.
This is your opportunity to meet some of the world’s greatest thinkers and writers and to place your own time in historical perspective. You will have a chance to think deeply about enduring, fundamental issues—like justice or equality or love—which men and women have continually struggled to understand better.
Humanities: Literature
Three courses in the humanities will help you to understand the heritage of Western civilization in all its richness and diversity. You must have one course in each of three areas: literature, philosophy or religious studies, and history.
This is your opportunity to meet some of the world’s greatest thinkers and writers and to place your own time in historical perspective. You will have a chance to think deeply about enduring, fundamental issues—like justice or equality or love—which men and women have continually struggled to understand better.
Humanities: Philosophy or Religious Studies
Three courses in the humanities will help you to understand the heritage of Western civilization in all its richness and diversity. You must have one course in each of three areas: literature, philosophy or religious studies, and history.
This is your opportunity to meet some of the world’s greatest thinkers and writers and to place your own time in historical perspective. You will have a chance to think deeply about enduring, fundamental issues—like justice or equality or love—which men and women have continually struggled to understand better.
Learning Skills: English Composition
Writing is an important foundation for education.
To meet the writing requirement, you must complete two composition courses: Composition I, which you should take during your first year, and Composition II.
Learning Skills: Mathematics
Mathematical thinking is an important skill.
To meet that requirement, you must complete at least one mathematics course (some majors require more). Your advisor will help you select one that is appropriate.
Liberal Studies Electives
Depending on your program of study, you may be required to select from one or more courses from an extensive list of offerings.
Because your goal is still breadth, you may not count any course labeled with your major prefix as one of your Liberal Studies electives (for instance, a history major cannot use an HIST course). Nor may you choose more than one course with the same prefix, except in the case of intermediate-level foreign language study, where you may use a prefix twice. [At least one of your courses must be numbered 200 or higher.]
Natural Sciences
You will be asked to complete two courses in the natural sciences, at least one of which must be a laboratory course.
We live in a world in which scientific and technological questions—about atomic energy, computers, genetics, the environment, or mineral resources—play increasingly important roles. If you do not know something about science, you will be no more than a helpless observer in many of the critical discussions that affect your life.
Natural Science: One Option, 7–8 credits
Option I: Two-semester Laboratory Course Sequence, 8cr
Two courses with laboratories (four credits each) from the natural science laboratory course list below. These two courses do not have to be taken in sequence.
Option II: One Laboratory plus One Nonlaboratory Course, 7cr
One course with laboratory (four credits) from the natural science laboratory course list and one course (three credits) from the natural science non-laboratory course list.
Social Sciences
You will complete three social science courses, with no two chosen from the same discipline. Offerings are available in anthropology, criminology, economics, geography, journalism, political science, psychology, and sociology.
We do not live in isolation; we interact with other people, and we belong to groups that interact with other groups. The social sciences provide ways of understanding human social institutions and processes. They grapple with issues like economic policy, foreign affairs, crime, family relationships, and the significance of gender, race, and class.
Requirement: Three courses from list, nine credits
No course prefix may be used more than once.
Also fulfills the requirement for Global and Multicultural Awareness course.
Writing Across the Curriculum Requirements
In addition to the two English composition courses that provide a good foundation for writing, you must include among your other courses at least two that are designated as “writing-intensive.” These are courses that put an emphasis on writing and use it to help you learn the subject. One of the two must be in your major.
Being able to express yourself in writing may be the most important skill that you can have. It will be essential for career advancement after you graduate, and it will improve your learning—and hence your grades—while you are in college. One of the best ways to understand something is to write about it, because writing is really a concentrated form of thinking. You should expect to be doing some writing in nearly every course you take. But writing is so important that we want to be sure you select some courses that are designed especially to help you develop and practice your writing. Like any other skill, this one will grow stronger the more you use it.