GOALS OF AN UNDERGRADUATE EDUCATION The faculty of the University of California, Riverside hereby declare the following set of general educational goals to be pursued through our individual and collective efforts in teaching and guiding the undergraduates of this campus.
A university education must help students realize their potential as individuals and contributing participants in society. This involves the acquisition of knowledge and skills and the preparation for future responsibilities.
A general education provides a framework enabling one to appreciate and critically examine the significant aspects of civilization. This framework is derived from the study of world history; political and economic systems; the ethnic, cultural, and religious diversity of the peoples of the earth; the arts and letters of all cultures; the social and natural sciences; and technology. Such a broad education is the foundation for concentrated studies that enable students to prepare for careers and to strive for an understanding of the world in which they live and about which they must make decisions.
A university education nurtures the critical skills of oral and written communication, including the exercise of these skills in a language other than one's own. It must teach students to become verbally and quantitatively literate, to analyze and synthesize, and to regard the acquisition of knowledge as a lifetime activity. A university education must promote tolerance of the opinions of others and an understanding of the mutual dependence of human beings on each other and on their natural environment. The student's university years also provide an opportunity to develop integrity, self-esteem, self-discipline, style, humanness, commitment to the general welfare, sensitivity to the interplay of environment and technology, and confidence that the human drama is worthy of a lengthy future.
UCR has three colleges that offer bachelor's degrees: Engineering; Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences; and Natural and Agricultural Sciences.
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE BACHELOR'S DEGREE
Requirements for the bachelor's degree vary according to the college and major selected. There are three kinds of requirements: general university, college, and major.
1. General University requirements
2. College Breadth requirements
3. Major requirements
Students should plan a program of study carefully and consult an academic advisor. Students are responsible for meeting all requirements for graduation.
GENERAL UNIVERSITY REQUIREMENTS
General University requirements are Universitywide requirements which all undergraduates must satisfy. The following regulations and requirements are applicable to all undergraduate students on the Riverside campus.
SUBJECT A
All university faculty assume that students are proficient in reading and writing English, and understand how to compose an essay on an academic topic. For this reason, students are asked to present proof of their writing ability (by the means shown below) on entering the University.
Completion of the Subject A requirement is a prerequisite to English 1A. The Subject A requirement may be completed after enrollment in a course as direction by the Director of Basic Writing (see below). It may be completed before enrollment in any one of the following ways:
All freshmen from California high schools who have not met the Subject A requirement and who are entering in the fall quarter will be required to take a two-hour Universitywide Subject A Examination to be administered throughout the state. The examination is normally given the second Saturday in May.
In late April, California freshmen who have been admitted to at least one UC campus and who are not exempt from the Subject A requirement will be mailed notification of the test; a test ticket; a bill for $55; and a pamphlet giving an explanation of the testing procedures, the nearest test location, the time and date, and telephone numbers to call with questions.
Out-of-state students, those admitted after the test notification date, and students entering in winter and spring will take the examination on campus. Once students have taken the test, they will receive a payment card which they should mail to the Educational Testing Service. The card must be accompanied by a $55 check.
Any student who cannot meet the Subject A requirement before entrance must enroll in an approved Basic Writing course during Summer Sessions, or in Basic Writing 3 or a qualifier course such as English Writing 4A-4B or English 5 during the academic year. (Placement in academic-year courses is determined by the Director of Basic Writing.) Basic Writing 1 and 3 do not carry baccalaureate credit, and must be passed with a grade of "C" or better to fulfill the requirement.
Students taking the qualifier courses must pass the Subject A exit examination at the end of the quarter in order to go on to English 1A. Any student who has not satisfied the Subject A requirement after three quarters of University residence (three quarters of enrollment during the regular academic year) is not eligible to enroll for a fourth quarter at the University of California.
AMERICAN HISTORY AND INSTITUTIONS
Candidates for a bachelor's degree must satisfy the requirement in American History and Institutions by demonstrating a knowledge of American history and of American political institutions and ideals. The requirement may be satisfied by satisfactory completion of any one of the following:
Students applying for one of the teacher credential programs should check with the School of Education concerning limitations on ways of meeting this requirement.
Further information regarding the requirement and examination may be obtained from the Chair of the Committee on Preparatory Education.
UNIT REQUIREMENT
A minimum of 180 units of academic work with a grade point average of 2.00 in all courses undertaken in the University of California is required for graduation.
Not more than 6 units of physical education activities courses, no 400 series course, and not more than three courses in the 300 series may be counted toward the 180 unit requirement.
SCHOLARSHIP REQUIREMENT
To receive a bachelor's degree, students must obtain twice as many grade points as units (2.00 grade point) for all courses attempted in the University. An exception to this rule is made for those students undertaking certain honors courses.
RESIDENCE REQUIREMENT
The minimum residence at the University of California required for a degree is three quarters. One of the three quarters may be completed in a UCR summer session in which the student carries 12 units, unless a reduced load is approved in advance by the dean of the student's college.
Courses completed in the University of California Extension are not considered work in residence.
Thirty-five (35) of the final 45 units must be earned in residence in the student's college (this does not preclude the student from taking courses in other colleges on campus). For students who are enrolled in the Education Abroad Program, 35 of the final 90 units, including the final 12 units, must be earned in residence. Eighteen (18) of the 35 units may be completed in summer session courses on the Riverside campus.
With the approval of the dean of a student's college or school, a candidate for the bachelor's degree who was in active service in the armed forces of the United States in the year preceding the awarding of the degree may be recommended for the degree after only one quarter of University residence in which the candidate completes at least 16 units or passes a comprehensive examination in the major or field of concentration.
Each college has established additional requirements for a degree. The requirements of the colleges at Riverside are designed to stimulate an interest in areas of knowledge not necessarily related to a student's major field. Students should note that they consist of a certain number of units and courses covering a variety of fields. Although these requirements determine a large and important part of the four-year curriculum, there are opportunities for students in all departments to do special, independent work.
The main objective of the colleges on the Riverside campus is to provide a setting within which students may develop those qualities of mind and character necessary to intellectual advancement and to useful membership in society. The major areas of human knowledge form the substance of the colleges on the Riverside campus: the College of Engineering; the College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences; and the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences. The breadth requirements for the colleges are similar; however, please refer to each college's section for a detailed discussion of their requirements.
Courses taken in a student's major discipline (including courses cross-listed with the major discipline) may not be applied toward satisfaction of the Humanities, Social Sciences, Ethnicity, or the Natural Sciences and Mathematics requirements except for Biology majors in connection with the Biological Sciences requirement, English majors in connection with the English Composition requirement, History majors in connection with the World History requirement, Ethnic Studies majors in connection with the Ethnicity requirement, and Foreign Language majors in connection with language requirements. However, courses outside the major discipline, but required for the major, may be applied toward satisfaction of these requirements. Students are urged to make sure that they understand which courses are permitted to satisfy more than one requirement. Information on specific degree requirements and courses is available in the departmental or Student Affairs offices in each college.
For details about the UC policy on intercampus reciprocity of breadth requirements and the UC policy on the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum, see below.
POLICY ON UC INTERCAMPUS RECIPROCITY REGARDING BREADTH/GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS
Students who transfer from one UC campus to another and who have completed the Breadth/General Education (B/GE) requirements of the campus from which they have transferred (except for upper-division B/GE requirements) will be considered to have met the B/GE requirements of the campus to which they transfer.
Courses taken for B/GE requirements at the campus from which they transfer will be accepted toward the appropriate B/GE requirements of the campus to which they transfer.
UNIVERSITY POLICY FOR THE INTERSEGMENTAL GENERAL EDUCATION TRANSFER CURRICULUM
The University's policy for the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum is as follows:
To fulfill the lower-division Breadth/General Education (B/GE) requirements prior to transferring to the University of California, a student has the option of fulfilling the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum or fulfilling the specific lower-division B/GE requirements of the school or college of the campus to which the student will transfer.
If the lower-division B/GE requirements are not satisfied prior to transfer, the student will be subject to the regulations regarding B/GE lower-division requirements of the school or college of the campus to which the student transfers.
Only courses accepted for baccalaureate credit at the University of California, and in which a grade of "C" or better was attained, can be applied toward fulfillment of the University of California lower-division B/GE requirements.
Credit for College Board Advanced Placement Tests can be used for partial fulfillment of the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum. For the category of English Composition, a score of 5 can be used to satisfy one semester or two quarters of this requirement. For all other disciplines, a score of 3 or higher on the appropriate Advanced Placement test may be used to satisfy one semester or two quarters of the requirement. Students should refer to each College's policy regarding IGETC in the Undergraduate Studies section of this catalog.
A major is a coordinated group of upper-division courses giving depth to a student's work in a chosen area. A list of degrees offered and possibilities for establishing individual majors are described in each college section below. Degrees are also listed in the front of the catalog. A student should choose a major not later than the beginning of the junior year. However, a choice of major before that time facilitates program planning in most academic fields.
The departmental major represents advanced and relatively specialized work in one of the academic disciplines in the college. The interdepartmental or nondepartmental major is broader in scope and usually based upon two or more disciplines. The individual major is designed for the student who has an unusual, but definite academic interest for which no suitable major is offered.
Major requirements are described in detail in the Curricula and Courses section of this catalog under the department or program offering the major.
The responsibility for fulfillment of all degree requirements--general university, college, and major--rests with the student. Students are urged, however, to seek program counseling with appropriate advisors.
Assignment to a major or to the undeclared category (open to freshman and sophomore students) is based on the student's choice indicated on the Application for Admission. The student should enroll in accordance with this choice; changes may be made following course enrollment.
Students may transfer from one major to another, elect a double major within their college, or add a second major in another college by filing a declaration with the dean of the colleges concerned.