Undergraduate Bulletin > Academic Units > College of Arts and Sciences > College Additional Requirements (CAR)

College of Arts and Sciences Additional Requirements (CAR)

Freedom and self-motivation in the context of a rational plan of disciplined study are fundamental to a liberal arts education. Students are encouraged to seek relationships among the various subjects studied and to develop a coherent intellectual perspective. To aid in this process, the College requirements build upon the University’s General Education requirements.

In addition to the course requirements stated in the University’s General Education Core (GEC), students majoring in the College of Arts and Sciences must also complete the following:

Humanities (Literature GLT, Fine Arts GFA, Philosophical/Religious/Ethical Perspectives GPR)

Students in the College must distribute the 12 semester hours required by GEC in the Humanities as follows:

GLT, six (6) hours;

GFA, three (3) hours;

and GPR, three (3) hours.

Historical Perspectives (GEC: GHP; CAR: GPM and GMO)

Students must complete a total of six (6) semester hours in GHP courses, with one course chosen from the premodern (GPM) list and one from the modern (GMO) list.

Natural Sciences (GEC: GNS; CAR: GLS and GPS)

Students must complete a total of 9–10 semester hours in GNS courses, with at least one course chosen from the Life Science (GLS) list, and at least one course chosen from the Physical Science (GPS) list. One of the three must include a laboratory. See Summary of CAR.

Social and Behavioral Sciences (GSB)

Students must complete a total of nine (9) semester hours in GSB courses, with courses taken from at least two different academic departments.

Foreign Language (GFL)

Students are required to demonstrate intermediate-level proficiency in a foreign language. The typical sequence of UNCG courses for foreign language is 101, 102, 203, and 204. The College considers successful completion of the 204 course a demonstration of proficiency. Students may place out of one or more courses through a placement test.

Students whose high school courses were taught in a foreign language may document their proficiency with a high school transcript. Students who are proficient in a language other than those taught at UNCG may submit a letter of certification from a professor at any accredited U.S. college or university documenting proficiency. Students with documented learning disabilities or demonstrable long-standing difficulties learning a foreign language can apply for the Modified Foreign Language Program through which they may demonstrate proficiency.

Six hours of foreign language course work, with the exception of American Sign Language, may be used toward the General Education marker requirement of 12 hours of Global (GL) or Global Non-Western (GN) courses. See General Education Core Requirements (GEC) and GE Marker Approved Courses.

Petitions for exemption from the foreign language requirement will be considered only in the most exceptional circumstances when an otherwise qualified student has submitted evidence that the Modified Foreign Language Program in Spanish cannot provide appropriate accommodations for his or her disability or language-learning difficulty. In very rare cases, a substitution for the 203 and/or 204 level of a foreign language may be considered.

The following reasons do not merit an appeal:

Change of major from a professional school to the College of Arts and Sciences, or change within the College of Arts and Sciences from a B.F.A. to a B.A. degree.
Concerns about grade point average (GPA)
Dislike of the requirement
Failure to plan adequately for the graduation timeline, including interruptions of the foreign language sequence that make future foreign language success more difficult
Failure to succeed in a single course
Misunderstanding of the degree requirements
Differences in General Education requirements between the College of Arts and Sciences and previously attended institutions
Waivers or substitutions offered by previously attended institutions

Please contact College of Arts and Sciences Advising at 336/334-4361 for further information.

For information concerning the Modified Foreign Language Program, see www.uncg.edu/rom.

Students are reminded that they will be eligible for election to the UNCG chapter of Phi Beta Kappa only if they have completed the equivalent of six semester hours of foreign language study, excluding American Sign Language, at the intermediate (203–204) college level.

Writing Intensive Courses (WI)

Students in the College of Arts and Sciences must complete a total of four Writing Intensive (WI) courses:

At least one of the four Writing Intensive courses must be in the student’s primary major and at least one must be in the upper division (300 and above). A single course may satisfy both the requirement for a course in the major and the requirement for a course in the upper division, as long as a total of four Writing Intensives are taken.
Transfer students:
1. Students with 30–59 transfer hours, and returning students who completed 30–59 hours of their course work at UNCG prior to 1989, are required to take three Writing Intensive courses. One of the three must be in the student’s primary major and at least one must be in the upper division (300 and above). A single course may satisfy both the requirement for a course in the major and the requirement for a course in the upper division, as long as a total of three Writing Intensives are taken.
2. Students with 60–89 transfer hours, and returning students who completed 60–89 hours at UNCG prior to 1989, are required to take two Writing Intensive courses. The two courses may be at any level, but at least one must be in the department or program of the primary major.
3. Students with 90 or more transfer hours, or who return having completed 90 or more hours at UNCG prior to 1989, must take one Writing Intensive course. The course may be at any level from the department or program of the primary major.

NOTE: Writing Intensive courses may also meet General Education Core category, marker, or major requirements.

Students who obtain a score of 4 or higher on the English Advanced Placement Literature and Composition examination are exempted from one of the Writing Intensive courses. Contact the Department of English for further information.

All students in the College must fulfill the foregoing College Additional Requirements (CAR). A course in the major may be used to satisfy College requirements.

Requirements for each of the degrees offered by the College of Arts and Sciences are included in the descriptions of majors, concentrations, and minors under the respective departments.