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General Education

General Education Mission
Learning Outcomes
GE Identifications
GE Transfer Credit

The total number of credits required to complete General Education (GE) is 34. General Education completion is required for the Associate of Arts (AA); Associate of Science (AS); Associate of Science Business (ASB) and Associate of Fine Arts (AFA).

Only courses numbered 1000 or above are counted toward graduation. A 2.00 (C) cumulative grade point average or better must be earned on work completed at Snow College.

At least 15 semester credits must be resident credit earned at Snow College. AP, CLEP, IB, and Credit-by-Exam are not considered resident credit.

The following General Education Worksheets should be studied carefully as students prepare semester schedules. In addition, students should check their individual major's departments for recommended classes and prerequisites. With careful planning, many courses can do double duty by filling both a general education requirement and a major requirement.

General Education Mission

“A man’s mind is stretched by a new idea or sensation, and never shrinks back to its former dimensions.” (Oliver Wendell Holmes)

The mission of general education at Snow College is to stretch students’ minds and enlarge the foundation of their intellectual and practical skills in order to create in them a lifelong love of learning.

As many of the world's great thinkers have observed before, a general education is more than simply facts and numbers: it is that part of the self that remains when the details have been forgotten. At Snow College, first and foremost, general education is who we are.

The general education curriculum is designed to accomplish several goals: to provide students with a broad exposure to different academic disciplines in order to assist them in selecting their course of study; to introduce a variety of ways of making knowledge so that students understand the complexity of information and knowledge; to facilitate the development of a passion for a specific area of study and a love of learning in general; to provide connections between disciplines by providing interdisciplinary, integrated learning opportunities; and to prepare students to participate fully in human culture, ask probing and thoughtful questions, and engage as responsible citizens.

Specific courses are selected for inclusion in the general education curriculum only when the GE Committee has evidence that the course advances the GE mission, fulfills General Education learning outcomes, fulfills core or knowledge area outcomes, and articulates a coherent assessment plan. Courses approved for GE credit will be included in the General Education assessment for the knowledge area, and the GE Committee will receive the results.

GE Requirements

The General Education curriculum is mandated by the state of Utah and consists of courses that formulate a GE core as well as a selection of course options that fall into several GE Knowledge areas:

  • GE Core
    • Quantitative Literacy
    • American Institutions
    • English 1 and 2
  • Knowledge Areas  
    • Fine Arts
    • Humanities
    • Life Science
    • Physical Science
    • Social Science

  • Other GE Areas
    • Foundations
    • Natural Science Lab
    • Integrated Exploration (for the AS)
    • Foreign Language (for the AA)

General Education Learning Outcomes

A student who graduates from Snow College with an AS or AA degree:

  1. has a fundamental knowledge of human cultures and the natural world;
  2. can read and research effectively within disciplines;
  3. can draw from multiple disciplines to address complex problems;
  4. can reason analytically, critically, and creatively;
  5. can communicate effectively through writing and speaking; and
  6. can reason quantitatively.

In addition, a student who graduates from Snow College with an AA degree can speak, read, and write a foreign language with basic proficiency.

Core Area Outcomes

American Institutions (AI)

A student shall demonstrate reasonable understanding of the history, principles, form of government, and economic system of the United States. Students who fulfill the GE requirement of American Institutions will be able to:

  • Analyze, contextualize, and use primary source documents to understand the history, principles, form of government, and economic system of the United States
  • Explain, interpret, and use historically, politically, and economically relevant information;
  • Communicate effectively about the history, principles, form of government, and economic system of the United States;
  • Engage  a variety of viewpoints in a constructive manner that contributes to a dialogue about the history, principles, form of government, and economic system of the United States;
  • Use historical, political, and economic methods to come to an understanding of the United States that integrates those viewpoints.
Quantitative Literacy (MA)

A student shall demonstrate reasonable understanding and interpretation of numerical information. Students who fulfill the GE requirement of Quantitative Literacy will be able to:

  • Explain information presented in mathematical forms (e.g., equations, graphs, diagrams, and tables);
  • Convert relevant information into various mathematical forms (e.g., equations, graphs, diagrams, and tables);
  • Demonstrate the ability to successfully complete basic calculations to solve problems;
  • Demonstrate the ability to problem solve using quantitative literacy across multiple disciplines. Make judgments and draw appropriate conclusions based on quantitative analysis of data, recognizing the limits of this analysis;
  • Express quantitative evidence in support of the argument or purpose of the work (in terms of what evidence is used and how it is formatted, presented, and contextualized);
English (E1 and E2)

Writing skills are foundational for success in higher education, crucial for workforce preparation, and a basis for life as an educated person. Classes that meet E1 and E2 GE requirements should focus on developing effective and efficient writing processes and will not privilege course content over composition instruction and practice. Instructors should provide and arrange for detailed feedback on higher-order concerns on multiple drafts of multiple paper assignments. Students should write 15-20 pages of revised prose for each class (including an 8-12 page research paper for E2). Additionally, the instructors should help students address syntax, usage, and mechanical issues in the context of student writing. Class sizes should be kept low (20-25 students) to ensure that instructors can devote enough attention to student work. Finally, E1 and E2 need to be fulfilled by two courses taken sequentially.

Outcomes: General education courses in this area enable students to:

Course 1 (E1)
  • Assess rhetorical situations and plan written responses that account for audience, purpose, context, and genre.
  • Organize effective arguments that engage readers, provide needed background, present compelling evidence, and respond to opposing viewpoints.
  • Write using an effective process that includes planning, drafting, peer workshopping, and revision. This process should be explicit in class activities and assignment design; revision should improve the overall quality of the document.
  • Carefully and critically read written arguments, identifying the use of rhetorical techniques by the author.
Course 2 (E2)
  • Assess rhetorical situations and plan written responses that account for audience, purpose, context, and genre.
  • Organize effective arguments that engage readers, provide needed background, present compelling evidence, and respond to opposing viewpoints.
  • Write using an effective process that includes planning, drafting, peer workshopping, and revision. This process should be explicit in class activities and assignment design; revision should improve the overall quality of the document.
  • Carefully and critically read written arguments, identifying the use of rhetorical techniques by the author.
  • Think critically about arguments by exploring multiple perspectives.
  • Find and evaluate credible primary and secondary research and utilize that research appropriately to support an argument/position. In doing so, students will include precise documentation, avoid plagiarism, and integrate source material smoothly.

Knowledge Area Outcomes

Fine Arts

Courses to be designated as a Fine Arts (FA) General Education experience are expected to provide students with an understanding of the basic conceptual frameworks, historical and cultural contexts of artistic works, and be instilled with a sensibility of the creative process. Assessment will occur through the student’s ability to critically evaluate creative works using the language and methodology appropriate to the disciplines of dance, music, theater, and/or the visual arts.

Outcomes. Students who complete a course designated to fulfill the Fine Arts (FA) General Education requirement at Snow College should be able to:

  • Articulate the dynamics of the creative process including the development of a lifetime sensibility as it applies to the disciplines of dance, music, theater, or visual arts.
  • Provide an informed synopsis of the performing and/or visual arts in the contexts of culture and history through reading and interpreting pertinent information using a variety of traditional and electronic media.
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the conceptual and elemental principles fundamental to the creation of various forms of artistic expression.
  • Exhibit an ability to critically analyze artistic works using appropriate techniques, vocabulary, and methodologies.
Humanities

The Humanities are a group of academic disciplines that study the many ways by which humans have attempted to understand themselves and their world. At Snow College, the Humanities focus on cultural traditions that are expressed largely through text or which have a strong textual component: languages, literature, and philosophy. The methods by which the Humanities study culture are at once analytical and interpretive, objective and subjective, historical and aesthetic.

Outcomes. General education courses in this area enable students to:

  • Ask and explore a variety of philosophical and theoretical questions about human thought and experience.
  • Understand how knowledge is created through the study of language systems, literature, and/or philosophy.
  • Understand cultural traditions within an historical context and make connections with the present.
  • Critically read and respond to primary texts (original, uninterpreted) from a Humanities’ perspective.
  • Write effectively within the Humanities discipline to analyze and form critical and aesthetic judgments.
Natural Science (Life and Physical Science)

For the natural sciences, science is the systematic inquiry into natural phenomena organizing and condensing those observations into testable models and hypotheses, theories or laws. The success and credibility of science is anchored in the willingness of scientists to: 1) expose their ideas and results to independent testing and replication by other scientists which requires the complete and open exchange of data, procedures, and materials; 2) abandon or modify accepted conclusions when confronted with more complete or reliable experimental evidence. Adherence to these principles provides a mechanism for self-correction that is the foundation of the credibility of science (Adapted from a statement by the Panel on Public Affairs of the American Physical Society which was endorsed by the Executive Board of the American Associations of Physics Teachers in 1999).

Broad categories of the Natural Science disciplines include Physics, Astronomy, Chemistry, Geology, Meteorology, and Biology. At Snow College, the first five are considered physical sciences and biology the life science. While properties of matter and energy in the physical sciences are common to life science, the emergent properties resulting from the complexities of life require additional study to amplify and clarify the scientific mechanisms of nature.

Outcomes. A student who has earned Snow College General Education Life Science Learning Outcomes will be able to:

  • Demonstrate understanding of science as a way of knowing about the natural world.
  • Demonstrate basic understanding of how organisms live, grow, respond to their environment, and reproduce.
  • Discuss the organization and flow of matter and energy through biological systems.
  • Explain from evidence patterns of inheritance, structural unity, adaptation, and diversity of life on Earth.
  • Describe how the Life Sciences have shaped and been shaped by historical, ethical, and social contexts.

Outcomes. A student who has earned Snow College General Education Physical Science Learning Outcomes will be able to:

  • Demonstrate understanding of science as a way of knowing about the physical world;
  • Demonstrate understanding of forces in the physical world;
  • Discuss the flow of matter and energy through systems (in large and small scales);
  • Develop evidence-based arguments regarding the effect of human activity on the Earth;
  • Describe how the Physical Sciences have been shaped by historical, ethical, and social contexts.
Social and Behavioral Sciences

Students will develop an understanding of the world around them through study of content and the processes used by social and behavioral scientists to discover, describe, explain, and/or predict human behavior and social systems. Students must understand the various complexities of the cultural and social world, past and present, from a social scientist’s perspective, and methodologies, and come to an informed sense of self and others.

Outcomes. A student who earns General Education in the Social and Behavioral Sciences will be able to: 

  • Explain social institutions, structures, and processes across a broad range of historical periods and cultures from a social and behavioral science perspective.
  • Develop and communicate hypothetical explanations for individual human behavior within the large-scale historical or social context.
  • Draw on the social and behavioral sciences to evaluate contemporary problems using social science research methodology.
  • Describe and analytically compare social, political, economic, cultural, geographical, and historical settings and processes other than one’s own.
  • Explain and use the social-scientific method to test research questions and draw conclusions.
  • Write effectively within the social science discipline, using correct disciplinary guidelines, to analyze, interpret, and communicate about social science phenomena. 

Other GE Outcomes

Foundations

Foundations (GNST 1200) exposes students to three disciplines wrestling with one thematic issue (e.g. cloning, GMOs, definitions of beauty). Foundations is designed to give students college success skills while instilling in students an appreciation for the importance of diversity of thought and perspective to the understanding and addressing of important questions or concerns in today’s society.

In this course, we will study one thematic issue (e.g. cloning, GMOs, definitions of beauty) from three different disciplinary perspectives in order to understand ways in which knowledge is connected, dependent, and relevant. Additionally, this course will focus on the habits of mind (intellectual, motivational, emotional, self-awareness, and self-directedness) that are essential for becoming a learner in an interdisciplinary world.

Outcomes. Students who complete the Foundations curriculum will be able to:

  • Understand expectations of a college education and they will be able to articulate habits of the learning mind.
  • Identify the College's general education outcomes and design an educational objective that will enable them to achieve those outcomes.
  • Validate knowledge from a variety of perspectives.
  • Understand and practice methods of communication.
  • Read critically, with a particular understanding of multiple disciplinary conventions.
  • Articulate roles and responsibilities inherent in teamwork, and they will be able to work effectively as a member of a team.
Integrated Exploration

The Integrated Exploration (IE) requirement supports the General Education Mission of Snow College by providing students with an opportunity to either explore deeper into or broaden their foundation of General Education by taking an additional course in one of the Core or Knowledge Area offerings.

Alternatively, students may choose to take an IE designated course which meets the following outcome:

Outcome. Students who fulfill this General Education requirement will either:

  1. be able to work effectively as a member of a team or
  2. practice writing and/or speaking respectfully and effectively.

Associate of Applied Science Education Outcomes

Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degrees require some, but not all, of the GE for AS and AA degrees. A student who graduates from Snow College with an AAS degree:

  1. can describe the scope and principal features of his/her field of study, citing its core theories and practices, and use the current terminology of the field;
  2. can read, retrieve, evaluate, interpret, and deliver information using a variety of traditional and electronic media;
  3. can speak and write effectively and respectfully as a member of the global community, and work effectively as a member of a team;
  4. can reason quantitatively in a variety of contexts;
  5. can reason analytically, critically, and creatively about his/her field of study;
  6. can address complex problems by integrating the knowledge and methodologies of multiple disciplines;
  7. can generate products, recreate products, or provide services respective to his/her field;
  8. has acquired entry-level skills specific to and appropriate for employment in his/her field of study; and
  9. is aware of industry specific certifications and has developed skills sufficient to acquire the same.

A student who graduates from Snow College with an AAS degree with career specific hazards can demonstrate safe practices and awareness of potential hazards in his/her field of expertise. 

Math Transfer Requirement

To qualify for graduation from Snow College, each student must earn a minimum grade of C- in a GE level math course (Math 1030, Math 1040, Math 1050, etc.). Please note that some schools that require these math courses as part of their program will only count the course as meeting the prerequisite if the student has earned at least a C. Please check with your transfer institution to verify minimum grade requirements for your program.  

GE Identifications

General education courses are identified with the following abbreviations:

  • AI:  American Institutions
  • E1 & E2:  English
  • FA:  Fine Arts
  • FND:  Foundations
  • HU:  Humanities
  • IE:  Integrated Exploration
  • LB:  Natural Science Lab
  • LS:  Life Sciences
  • MA:  Quantitative Literacy
  • PS:  Physical Sciences
  • SS:  Social Sciences

GE Transfer Credit

For information on transferring credit from regionally accredited institutions of higher education, please see the Transfer Articulation section of this catalog.