GENERAL EDUCATION, WRITING ACROSS THE CURRICULUM, UNITED STATES CULTURES (US) AND INTERNATIONAL CULTURES (IL)
All Penn State undergraduate students must complete a set of basic requirements in addition to course requirements for the major. These basic requirements comprise General Education courses, Writing Across the Curriculum courses, and United States Cultures (US) and International Cultures (IL) courses. More information about General Education in the curriculum is available at in the Undergraduate Degree Program Bulletin .
All students need to consult with an adviser to determine specific General Education, United States Cultures (US) and International Cultures (IL), and Writing Across the Curriculum requirements based on his/her program and interest area. Students need to be aware of the importance of planning to meet these requirements prior to graduation. The University Undergraduate Advising Handbook is a guide to assist in the selection of these requirements.
The General Education requirement is intended to introduce and integrate major areas of knowledge, presenting the most fundamental and universal concepts, issues, and achievements in that specific discipline or cluster of disciplines. The requirement consists of 45 credits distributed between two General Education components: Writing/Speaking Skills and Quantification Skills (15 credits), and Knowledge Domains in the Arts, Humanities, Natural Sciences, Social and Behavioral Sciences, and Health and Physical Activity. Two additional requirements may be completed as part of General Education requirements or courses required in the major. These requirements, which every baccalaureate degree student must complete, are 3 or 6 credits of United States Cultures (US) and International Cultures (IL), and 3 credits of Writing Across the Curriculum course work.
Beginning summer 2005, the United States Cultures (US) and International Cultures (IL) requirement replaced the Intercultural and International Competence (GI) requirement. Courses approved to fulfill this requirement are designated as US, IL, or both US and IL.
Students admitted to baccalaureate or associate degree status before summer 2005 must complete a 3-credit course that is US, IL, or both US and IL. However, students who have fulfilled their Intercultural and International Competence requirement with a course designated as DF or GI are exempt from this requirement. Any semester- or year-long Penn State-approved study abroad program can be used to satisfy the requirement.
