Helios Certificate of Integrated Liberal Arts
Certificate Learning Outcomes
- Students will integrate learning from liberal arts disciplines with learning from applied fields of knowledge.
- Students will value different perspectives and be able to collaborate with people who are different from them.
- Students will understand the connection between liberal arts principles and social responsibility.
The certificate is comprised of twelve credits. Students take three credits of first-year, gateway course that provides a foundation for integrated learning. Through an exploration of transformative texts, students will grapple with enduring questions of the human experience. They then take nine credits in a thematic cluster that allows them to build in-depth knowledge in a specific theme by integrating different disciplinary perspectives.
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Gateway Course | 3 | |
| Choose one from the following 1 | ||
| Studio College Writing I | ||
| College Writing I | ||
| College Writing II | ||
| Introduction to Creative Writing | ||
| Introduction to Philosophy | ||
| Thematic Clusters | 9 | |
| Choose 9 credits from one of the following thematic clusters 2 | ||
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion | ||
| Native American Art | ||
| The Political Economy of Race, Gender and Ethnicity | ||
| Introduction to LGBTQ+ Studies | ||
| Race and Ethnicity in Film | ||
| Intro to Multi-Ethnic American Literature | ||
| LGBTQ+ Literature | ||
| African-American Literature | ||
| Topics in US Minority Ethnic Literature | ||
| Race, Gender, and Class in the U.S. | ||
| The Native American Experience | ||
| Introduction to Ethnic Studies | ||
| Black Experience in the U. S. | ||
| Native America and Colonial Borderlands to 1887 | ||
| Native American History, What you thought you knew | ||
| African-American History 1619 to Present | ||
| Black Women and Feminism in the U.S. | ||
| History of Minorities in America | ||
| American Women's History | ||
| Psychology of Women and Gender | ||
| Psychology of Prejudice, Discrimination, and Stigma | ||
| The Psychology of Human Sexuality | ||
| Gender and Society | ||
| Sociology of Race and Ethnicity | ||
| Introduction to Women's & Gender Studies | ||
| Gender and Popular Culture | ||
The Environment and Sustainability | ||
| Conservation, Wildlife, and Recreation | ||
| Environmental and Wildlife Crime | ||
| Literature of Nature | ||
| Native America and Colonial Borderlands to 1887 | ||
| Native American History, What you thought you knew | ||
| The Land Ethic | ||
| Space, Place, and Gender | ||
| Environmental Conservation | ||
| Environmental Ethics | ||
| Introduction to Social and Environmental Justice | ||
| Rural Sociology | ||
| Society and the Environment | ||
| Foundations of Education: History & Practice in Rural America | ||
Global Citizenship | ||
A third- or fourth-semester language course for up to four credits total | ||
| Faculty Led Short-Term International Experience in Agriculture | ||
| Cultural Anthropology | ||
| Faculty-Led Short-Term International Experience in Art | ||
| Global Public Health | ||
| Cycling Infrastructure in the Netherlands | ||
| Short Term Faculty-Led International Experience in Energy | ||
| World Literature II | ||
| International Cinema | ||
| Language and Culture | ||
| World Languages Travel Abroad Seminar | ||
| World Civilization I | ||
| World Civilization II | ||
| Global Cold War 1945-1989 | ||
| Portuguese Empire: Imperialism, Oceans, and the Lusophone World | ||
| History of Science and Technology in Europe: Faculty-Led Short-Term Intl Exp | ||
| Globalism in the 21st Century | ||
| Major Traditions in Eastern Religions | ||
| International Relations | ||
| Comparative Politics | ||
| International Human Rights | ||
| International Security | ||
| Global Social Problems | ||
| World Languages Travel Abroad Seminar | ||
| Liberal Arts & Education Short Term International Experience | ||
| BILSA Short-Term International Experience | ||
| EMS Short-Term International Experience | ||
Law and Conflict Resolution | ||
| Introduction to Criminal Justice | ||
| Ethnicity, Race and Crime | ||
| Women, Gender, and Justice | ||
| Crime and American Detective Fiction | ||
| Social Inequalities | ||
| History of U S Foreign Relations | ||
| Philosophy of Law | ||
| International Relations | ||
| Constitutional Law | ||
| Civil Liberties | ||
| Techniques of Counseling | ||
| Introduction to Social and Environmental Justice | ||
| Contemporary Social Problems | ||
Science, Technology, and Society | ||
| Global Public Health | ||
| Introduction to Linguistics | ||
| Literature and Science | ||
| Technical Writing | ||
| Writing for Science and Research | ||
| An International History of Technology | ||
| History of Medicine | ||
| History of Western Science | ||
| History of Science and Technology in Europe: Faculty-Led Short-Term Intl Exp | ||
| Biomedical Ethics | ||
| Science, Technology, and Ethics | ||
| Positive Psychology | ||
| Women and Health | ||
| Total Credits | 12 | |
- 1
Gateway courses can be found in PASS Class Search with the Course Attribute filter "Certificate in Liberal Arts" and the Course Attribute Value "Transformative Texts".
- 2
Students must take courses in at least two different disciplines.
Individually Contracted Major
Coordinator: Associate Dean, College of Liberal Arts and Education
Office: 160 Gardner Hall
Phone: 608.342.1151
Mission
The purpose of the individually contracted major is to afford an individualized source of study to students who are unable to fulfill important educational and/or career goals via the existing majors.
Objectives
- The student will self-assess personal, educational and occupational goals.
- The student will review the existing major and minor programs.
- The student will determine and demonstrate that existing majors and minors will not fulfill the student’s goals.
- The student will employ critical thinking to prepare, with the assistance of an advisor and a committee of faculty, a detailed individually contracted major specifically tailored to that student’s needs.
- The student will master the coursework and content of the agreed-upon major.
- The student will develop increased self-knowledge, occupational knowledge, creativity, flexibility and organizational skill.
Students sometimes find that the selection of a major does not fit their own unique interests or career plans. Instead, their needs can best be served by an individualized course sequence composed of offerings from several departments or even from more than one college within the university. To accommodate such students, the College of Liberal Arts and Education offers the individually contracted major. Students, working closely with faculty members, propose and develop a course of study that will lead to the fulfillment of their personal educational goals.
The following process sets forth the steps by which students can plan and pursue an individualized course sequence constituting the equivalent of a conventional major. At the same time, it provides a means by which the faculty can monitor students’ planning and subsequent activities to ensure that they meet the standard requirements for a degree. The process culminates in an agreement which sets forth the details of the proposed major.
Step One
Any sophomore or junior with a 3.0 or higher grade point average may select a member of the faculty of the college who is willing to be the advisor. With the advisor’s assistance, the student drafts a preliminary proposal which includes four elements:
- A justification of the projected major (including evidence both of the validity of the proposed program and of the unavailability of suitable alternatives)
- A rationale for the program
- Evidence of the student’s capability to conduct independent study
- A statement of the likely acceptability of the projected major to graduate schools or potential employers. The preliminary proposal is then presented to the coordinator.
Step Two
The coordinator, after confirming the completeness of the proposal, may help the student bring together a suitable committee of at least three faculty members, a majority of whom are from the College of LAE. One member of the committee serves as chairperson. The coordinator forwards the student’s proposal to the committee chairperson for review.
Step Three
The committee reviews the proposal, and if it is acceptable, requests that the student submit a more detailed proposal.
Step Four
The student consults with his or her advisor and the members of the committee to develop the detailed proposal. The proposal contains a rationale and includes a complete list of courses which will be taken, the formal course descriptions and sequencing of courses where applicable. The proposal also contains a thorough report on the acceptability of the major to employers or graduate schools, depending on the student’s long-term goals. The complete proposal is reviewed by the committee which can approve it, send it back for revisions, or reject it.
Step Five
The committee chairperson forwards the approved proposal to the coordinator who reviews it to make sure that college and university requirements are met. The coordinator may approve the proposal, send it back to the committee for changes, or reject it. Upon the coordinator’s approval, an agreement is signed between the student and the college, and information is forwarded to the appropriate offices.