Thinking through General Education

General education is a required element of all associate degrees, whether the degree is an associate of arts (AA), associate of science (AS), or an associate degree for transfer (ADT). 

When reviewing pathways and designing programs within a guided pathways framework, it is important to think about the role general education plays in each program.

Some questions to contemplate:

• What is the role of general education within a degree?
• How does your college's local GE pattern meet that requirement?
• What does your local GE pattern consist of?

Some additional questions to contemplate related to your guided pathways framework:

• Do your GE options complement your major courses?
• Should your GE options support or enhance your major courses?
• Is there a need to rethink the role of GE?
• Are there GE options that you can't offer?
• Are the unit loads consistent across all the courses that fulfill a specific general education requirement?  Should they be?
• How does your local GE pattern relate to CSU GE Breadth and IGETC? Should there be a connection?
• What role do your local graduation requirements play?
• Is your GE delivery effective?
• What is the answer to the question, "Can ____________ students finish?" Consider various populations to fill in the blank: evening, weekend, athletes, online, part-time, ???

Questions to ask relative to scheduling:

• Are all GE courses available to all students with schedule restrictions?
• Are sufficient sections of courses in all GE areas offered?
• Do you have "holes"? If so, how can the "holes" be filled?
• Do your students have the opportunity to fill GE requirements elsewhere?