GENERAL EDUCATION
Customize your journey at SOU.
Choose from six skills or capacities that students need and employers seek!
Take a moment.
Consider the building blocks of your university diploma.
General Education matters! All students build their undergraduate degrees by completing General Education and selecting a major. Depending on their interests and ambitions, many students also choose to complete a minor or certificate or even pursue a double major.
Here are FOUR good reasons why General Education matters.
No major field of study on its own offers enough courses to add up to 180 credits!
GE promotes knowledge diversity and exploration, which are the hallmarks of a quality diploma from an accredited university.
GE engages the core capacities, skills, perspectives, and experiences our community and employers know are critical to personal and professional success.
Finally, learners can be more confident about their career choices as GE is the opportunity to explore options, clarify goals, and refine visions for possible futures.
At SOU, General Education courses work across programs, majors, minors, and certificates to effectively guide undergraduates toward their first university degrees and build the capacities they need now and for the rest of their lives.
GE Capacities
A deeper dive into the ongoing conversation about careers and higher education quickly points to the capacities that will empower learners to thrive in a contemporary world. 21st-century capacities are more than the ability to work with computers or pursue science, technology, and engineering studies.
Seminar Courses
Seminar courses personalize learning, jumpstart academic skills, and unlock the many opportunities SOU offers. Seminars develop solid communication, thinking and research skills, encourage a dynamic relationship with learning generally, and support learners’ academic success at SOU.
Special Programs
SOU offers special programs to fit different learners’ needs. The Bridge Program helps students make the transition to SOU. Two “Degree in 3” Programs accelerate the graduation timeline. The Honors College offers an active and challenging learning environment.
What General Education Students are Saying
Purposeful Learning Seminar introduced me to ideas I was never exposed to growing up. My view on life opened up and changed. I learned to create an optimistic lens and not to dwell too much on the hard stuff. Lastly, I really found and accepted myself, and I found acceptance from others. I lost fears and gained the confidence to trust in who I am.
I walked into Purposeful Learning thinking it was going to be some non-important busywork GEN ED class. I quickly found with every assignment a deeper meaning that helped improve both my critical thinking and my social skills. My classmates became a family that supported each other throughout the entire course.
Purposeful Learning Seminar was the perfect course to prepare me for my academic journey here at SOU. Writing research papers doesn’t scare me anymore thanks to the useful tips and information presented in my seminar courses. Seminar not only helped me academically, it also helped me to feel better integrated into college life.
