Pace University offers an innovative, cutting-edge Core Curriculum of liberal arts and sciences courses central to all undergraduate degrees and required of all Pace undergraduate majors.
The curriculum requires a minimum of 44 credits in the Liberal Arts and Sciences that are grouped into two distinct sections: Foundational Requirements and Areas of Knowledge. Foundational Requirements include courses in Writing, Mathematics, Science, Computer Science, and Language. Areas of Knowledge requirements provide students flexibility and choice in selecting courses, including the option of developing an in-depth sequence in a specific arts and science discipline.
Core Curriculum courses, regardless of a student’s major, address fundamental problems and issues in the Arts and Sciences from diverse perspectives and approaches and ensure that Pace graduates will develop abilities essential to success in college study and in careers and also achieve competency in a variety of skills that are sought by employers and are needed for graduate level work. Moreover, core courses are enriching intellectually and personally and serve to prepare students to become lifelong learners, better able to respond to the inevitable changes and challenges of their professional and personal lives.
Objectives of Foundational Requirements
Section I of the Core Curriculum ensures that you will achieve competency in a variety of communication and quantitative skills. You may be eligible to place out of some foundational requirements by taking proficiency or placement exams in English, language, or computing. If you require additional work and support in these vital skill areas, you will find the help you need through this series of courses.
Completion of Foundation Requirements
New students entering as freshmen are required to complete Foundational Requirements within 66 credits.
Objectives of Areas of Knowledge Requirements
Section II of the Core Curriculum offers broad exposure to a variety of approaches and perspectives in the Humanities, Social Sciences and Sciences, and to different modes of analysis and understanding. These courses are intended to develop a sense of social, civic, and global awareness and responsibility. There are hundreds of courses to choose from. Moreover, this section offers students the opportunity to develop an in-depth sequence or concentration.
12 Learning Outcomes of the Core Curriculum are:
- Communication
- Analysis
- Intellectual depth, breadth, integration and application
- Effective citizenship
- Social Interaction
- Global, National, and International Perspectives
- Valuing
- Problem-solving
- Aesthetic response
- Information Literacy and Research
- Scientific and quantitative reasoning
- Technological Fluency
Features of the Pace University Core Curriculum are:
- Community Building
- Focus on Student Learning Outcomes
- Social responsibility and civic engagement
- Choice and Flexibility
- Ability to complete a minor in the Core
Other University Core requirements that fit into one of the two sections include:
- One Learning Community (LC): Should be taken within the first two years of study
- Two Writing-Enhanced Courses (WE): In addition to Foundation writing courses
- One Civic Engagement and Public Values Course: [CE and formerly AOK 1]
- Two Anti-Racism Education Courses (ARE)
Note that the above Other Core requirements may be satisfied by Foundational courses, Area of Knowledge courses, major courses, and Open Elective credits. Moreover, school advisors are available to provide students with assistance in choosing these and other Core courses.
Outline of University Core Curriculum (44-55 minimum credits)
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Foundational Requirements | ||
| ENG | Composition 1 | |
| ENG | Critical Writing | |
| ENG | Writing in the Disciplines | |
| COM | Public Speaking | |
| MAT | Mathematics | |
| SCI | Science | |
| CIS | Computer Science | |
| Second Language Proficiency 1 | ||
| Areas of Knowledge Requirements | ||
| WH | Western Heritage course(s) | |
| WCT | World Cultures and Traditions course(s) | |
| HCE | Humanistic and Creative Expressions course(s) | |
| HSN | Analysis of Human, Social, & Natural Phenomena course(s) | |
| University 101 | ||
| UNV 101 | First-Year Seminar: Introduction to University Community 2 | 1 |
- 1
Can test out
- 2
University 101 is a Required First Year Learning Experience. Full-time day students that transfer to Pace University with fewer than 17 credits are required to enroll in a UNV 101 First-Year Seminar: Introduction to University Community class in their first semester unless they have received transfer credit for the equivalent of Pace University’s UNV 101 First-Year Seminar: Introduction to University Community course. University 101 is not offered as an evening course.
Transfer Students
Transfer students must complete 44 credits in the Arts and Sciences. They must fulfill the Foundation Requirements and the Civic Engagement course, with flexibility for the remaining credits.
For purposes of determining the appropriate University Core Curriculum requirements for students who come to Pace with transfer credits, a transfer student is defined as one who successfully completes (grade of "C" or better) a minimum of 25 college-level credits prior to the student’s attendance at Pace University. Students with fewer than 25 transfer credits (freshmen) will be required to take the entire new core.