Core Curriculum of the College of Arts and Sciences  

The hallmark of a liberal education is that it entices a student to examine the tree of knowledge, to see both the distinction and interdependence of its branches. Through its program, the College of Arts and Sciences offers students the opportunity to examine areas of the humanities and sciences in depth, while exposing them to the breadth of the related disciplines.

The following core curriculum is the basis of the education of all students in the College of Arts and Sciences. This statement of the core curriculum begins with a discussion of the aims of a college education and proceeds to a listing of the various elements of the old and new core requirements.

The College of Arts and Sciences recognizes the value of the distinctive and complementary perspectives of humanities, physical and biological sciences, and the social and behavioral sciences in understanding our world and the human condition. Its core curriculum is designed to enable students to be conversant with the goals, methods, and values of these perspectives and to acquire the habits of mind to appreciate and contribute to the constantly evolving body of knowledge.

In order to understand and place in personal perspectives the world in which they live, students will achieve the following Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) in their core classes:

1. Students will grasp the relationship between themselves as individuals and their communities, and develop an appreciation for the past's influence on the present and the cultural differences and challenges posed by increased globalism.
2. Students will display the ability to write clearly and effectively, to read texts critically, to articulate ideas, to reason quantitatively and to use appropriate technology.
3. Students will develop the analytical tools required for an appreciation of the strengths and limitations of scientific methodologies and their applications to the natural world as well as human behavior.
4. Students will acquire basic interpretive tools to develop an appreciation of human creativity in its many forms, and understand its central place in people's daily lives and rituals.
5. Students will appreciate and understand diverse human existence including its spiritual dimension and critically assess their values.  In addition to these broad liberal education objectives, students will develop competence in an academic discipline or area of study.

The following are the requirements for the Core Curriculum of the College of Arts and Sciences and courses and examinations that fulfill these requirements for students required to complete 120 credits to obtain a Bachelor’s degree from Seton Hall University. The A&S Core Curriculum focuses on the following eight areas:

• Aesthetics - Courses in this category will provide students with the knowledge and skills to engage in analyses of artistic work by identifying rules and principles of form in various genres and exploring the development of creative expression across diverse periods and cultures.
• Diversity - Courses in this category will examine in diverse cultural contexts how societies are structured and social inequality is engendered through relations of power.
• Humanities - Courses in this category employ textual analysis, critical thinking, and narrative to formulate arguments about a range of experiences past and present. Through the study of history and literature, students will enrich their comprehension of the complexity, nuance, and fullness of human endeavor.
• Language - Students will attain an intermediate level of mastery in a classical or modern language. In so doing they will experience a sustained engagement with a culture other than their own and enhance their understanding of the structure of language and its significance as a vehicle for cultural expression.
• Philosophy and Religion - Through discipline-specific study of philosophy and religion, students will critically examine fundamental questions of knowledge, reality, faith, and ethics.
• Rhetoric - To be prepared to speak in public, and to understand the varieties of speech discourse, students will study and practice presentations and other forms of spoken influence.
• Science and Mathematics - Science courses in this category will provide students with an understanding of processes of scientific inquiry as applied to natural and physical phenomena in the world around them. Mathematical courses in this category will provide students with reasoning skills as they apply to quantitative problem solving. Students will gain an understanding of the application of mathematical and computational methodologies and modeling to problems in society and the natural world.
• Social Sciences - Courses in this category will acquaint students with theoretical approaches that explain human behavior and social and institutional structures through various methodologies including critical, qualitative, and quantitative.