Requirements

Non-transfer students must take their signature core courses at SJU. Advanced Placement (AP) credit may be used to fulfill the HIS 154 requirement.

• PHL 154 Moral Foundations
• THE 153, 154, or 155 Signature Theology
• ENG 102 Texts and Contexts (pre-req: ENG 101)
• HIS 154 Forging the Modern World
• First Year Seminar
• Faith and Reason course (pre-reqs: PHL 154 and THE 154)
• INT 151 Inequality Seminar (one-credit P/NP course)

Transfer credit and/or AP credit may be used to satisfy GEP variable requirements.

• Art, Music/Theatre/Film, or Literature
• Mathematics Beauty
• Natural Science with Lab
• Non-Native Language
• Social/Behavioral Science
• Philosophical Anthropology
• Religious Difference
• Writing

The GEP integrative learning component (ILC) involves three courses that are specified by a student’s primary major. ILC courses count toward the GEP rather than the major. They must be courses that are taken outside of the student’s major department.

Overlay requirements may be satisfied by major courses, elective courses, or other GEP courses (with some restrictions). Students must satisfy the following overlay requirements:

• Diversity
• Diversity, or Globalization, or Non-Western Studies
• Ethics Intensive
• Writing Intensive

Philosophy 154 – Moral Foundations
Moral Foundations is a critical study of the various ways in which agents, actions, and social practices are evaluated from the moral point of view, as this has been articulated in major ethical theories.
This course is a pre-requisite to ethics-intensive courses, Philosophical Anthropology courses, and Faith and Reason courses.

Theology 153-5 – Faith, Justice and the Catholic Tradition
Courses in this area are designed to introduce students to the values that have shaped Saint Joseph’s and the ways in which these values are historically grounded in Roman Catholic doctrine and informed by its present articulation.
This course is a pre-requisite to Faith and Reason courses.

English 102 – Texts and Contexts (pre-req: ENG 101)
In Texts and Contexts, students will engage with and respond to influential literary texts in English from recognized literary periods and genres.

History 154 – Forging the Modern World
In this course, students will analyze primary and secondary sources to understand the interactions creating the predominant structures and relationships that have transformed our world from the early modern era to the twentieth century.

First Year Seminar (— 150)
The First Year Seminar is an introduction to the adventures of learning in a college context, focusing in depth on a question or topic of disciplinary or interdisciplinary interest. There are no course prerequisites to the First Year Seminar.
This course may be taken either semester in the first year. The First Year Seminar requirement is a core requirement for non-transfer students; transfer students are exempt from this requirement.

Faith and Reason
Courses in this area will lead students to explore the tension and cohesion between faith traditions and “reason traditions” in the contemporary world from a variety of disciplinary and thematic approaches.
This requirement may be satisfied by any course from the list of approved Faith and Reason courses. PHL 154 and THE 154 are pre-requisites to Faith and Reason courses.

This one-credit P/NP course raises awareness of racial and other forms of inequality in the U.S. and assists students in becoming more thoughtful and engaged citizens committed to fairness, equity, and the common good

GEP Art/Literature courses teach students to appreciate beauty and artistic or literary expression. The requirement may be satisfied by choosing one course from a designated list of courses offered by the following four departments: Art; English; Music, Theater, and Film; Langauges and Linguistics. Please note that some of these courses may have pre-requisites.

• In the Art Department, the Art/Literature requirement may be satisfied by any course offering three or more credits.
• In the Music, Theater and Film Department, the Art/Literature requirement may be satisfied by any course offering three or more credits.
• In the English Department, the Art/Literature requirement may be satisfied by any English literature course. Theory and writing courses do not fulfill this requirement unless noted.
• In the Department of Languages and Linguistics, the Art/Literature requirement may be satisfied by a set of specifically designated literature courses.

Mathematics (Beauty) courses provide an in-depth introduction to theoretical mathematics as a branch of pure science. This requirement may be satisfied by a Calculus I or higher level course (i.e., MAT 155 or higher) as well as by any course specified by the Mathematics Department as a Math Beauty course, including (but not limited to):

• MAT 130 Whole Truth about Whole Numbers
• MAT 131 Linear Methods
• MAT 132 Math of Games and Politics
• MAT 134 The Mathematics of Uncertainty: Counting Rules and Probability
• MAT 135 Sounding Number: Music and Math
• MAT 136 Mathematics and the Visual Arts
• MAT 137 Ethnomathematics
• MAT 138 Symmetry
• MAT 139 Math, Culture, and Society

Natural Science courses promote scientific literacy through the study of fundamental scientific principles and concepts, the method of scientific inquiry, and the role/application of science in everyday life. The Natural Science requirement is satisfied by one lab science course designed for science majors. Students also fulfill this requirement by taking a lab course designed for non-science majors, including:

• BIO 165/165L Exploring the Living World
• CHM 115/115L Chemistry in Daily Life
• ENV 106/106L Exploring the Earth
• PHY 113/113L Exploring the Physical World
• PHY 115/115L Investigations in Astronomy

More information about GEP lab science courses.

Students may take two, non-lab (three-credit) courses in order to fulfill the GEP Natural Science requirement for non-science majors.

Placements in language courses are based on the student’s high school record and score on the SJU placement test. A student must take the course(s) in which s/he was placed in order for those courses to satisfy the GEP language requirement. Level changes for foreign language classes will be considered only in extraordinary situations. If a student believes that they cannot successfully complete the course in which they were placed, the student in most instances will not be permitted to change to a lower level. The only alternative is for the student to begin a new language. Under the GEP, students may be placed in any of the following course combinations that fulfill the GEP non-native language Requirement:

• 101 – 102 Beginning I-II
• 102 Beginning II – 201 Intermediate I
• 201 – 202 Intermediate I- II
• 202 Intermediate II – 301 Conversation
• 301 Conversation (only one course required)
• 303 Conversation (only one course required – for Heritage Speakers, Spanish only)

Additional information about placement:

• Students who place in the 301/303 level of language (based on the placement test score) are required to take only one language course to fulfill the non-native language requirement.

Social/Behavioral Science courses allow students to understand and appreciate behavior at the individual, institutional, and/or societal levels. This requirement is satisfied by one GEP approved course from any of the following departments: Economics, Education, Political Science, Psychology, or Sociology. Please note that a number of majors require a specific course to fulfill the GEP social/behavioral science requirement. Students are advised to consult with their major department and/or review the SJU Undergraduate Catalog.

Philosophical Anthropology courses examine selected issues concerning the nature of personhood and the human condition. Moral Foundations (PHL 154) serves as the prerequisite to all Philosophical Anthropology courses. Examples of Philosophical Anthropology courses include (but are not limited to):

• PHL 250 Philosophy of Death
• PHL 252 Philosophy of Karl Marx
• PHL 254 Philosophy and the Democratic Body
• PHL 256 Freedom and Determinism
• PHL 257 Philosophy and Liberation
• PHL 258 The Authentic Self
• PHL 260 Philosophy of Human Nature
• PHL 262 Freedom, Citizenship, Culture
• PHL 264 Topics in Moral Psychology
• PHL 266 Religion and Philosophy In American Identity
• PHL 280 Life and Death
• PHL 288 Minds & Souls
• PHL 302 Philosophy of Race
• PHL 308 Asian Philosophies
• PHL 310 Philosophy of Art
• PHL 311 Philosophy of Law
• PHL 328 Philosophy and Evolution
• PHL 330 Social and Political Philosophy
• PHL 342 Dimensions of Freedom
• PHL 404 Love and Friendship in the Ancient World
• PHL 408 Augustine, Politics, and the Self
• PHL 412 Philosophy of Aquinas
   

An updated and complete list of philosophical anthropology courses is available at the Registration Help guide.

For some majors, a specific Philosophical Anthropology course may need to be taken to fulfill this requirement. Students are advised to consult with their major department and/or review the SJU Undergraduate Catalog.

Religious Difference courses require students to gain a critical understanding of one or more religious worldviews that differ from the Roman Catholic perspective studied in their Signature Core theology course. Students will either engage in in-depth study of a non-Christian religious tradition or take a comparative religions course that in some measure addresses the issue of religious diversity. Examples include (but are not limited to):

• THE 211/REL 211 Hebrew Bible
• THE 380 Interreligious Dialogue
• REL 101 Comparative Religion 
REL 212 Israelite Religion
REL 231 Judaism
• REL 241 Islam
• REL 251 Religions of Ancient India
• REL 261 Hinduism
• REL 270 Japanese Religions
• REL 271 African and Caribbean Religions
• REL 311 Comparative Religious Ethics
• REL 312 Spiritual Practices in Comparative Perspective
• REL 321 Religion and Law in the Ancient World
• REL 338 Christian and Jewish Responses to the Holocaust
• REL 341 The Qur’an and its Interpreters
• REL 342 Women in the Muslim Tradition
• REL 351 Indian Buddhism
• REL 352 Mahayana Buddhism
• REL 354 China and the Creation of East Asian Buddhism
• REL 355 Immortals, Ancestors, Ghosts and Gods
• REL 356 Death and the Afterlife in Chinese Religions
• REL 357 Food Practices and Chinese Religions
• REL 382 Women and Religion in the Ancient World
• REL 383 Ancient Greek Religions

Please note that a course taken to fulfill the Religious Difference Variable requirement cannot also satisfy the Diversity or Diversity/Globalization/Non-Western Area Studies overlay requirement or the Faith and Reason Signature Core requirement. However, a student may take a second Religious Difference course to fulfill the Diversity or Diversity/Globalization/Non-Western Area Studies overlay or Faith and Reason Signature Core requirement, provided that the course has been certified in one of the relevant areas.

ENG 101 The Craft of Language is a study of the power and use of words and of how words are put together in essay writing. This course fulfills the GEP Variable writing requirement. The Craft of Language is also a pre-requisite to the Signature Core course ENG 102 (Texts and Contexts) and to any writing-intensive course taken to satisfy the writing-intensive overlay requirement.

May be satisfied by a First Year Seminar, GEP variable course, ILC, major/minor course, or elective that is certified in this area.

Please note the following exception: A course taken to fulfill the GEP Variable Religious Difference requirement cannot also be used to fulfill the Diversity/Globalization/Non-Western Area Studies overlay. However, a student may take a second Religious Difference course to fulfill this overlay, provided that the Religious Difference course has been certified in the area.

May be satisfied by a First Year Seminar, GEP variable course, ILC, major/minor course, or elective that is certified in this area.

Please note the following exception: A course taken to fulfill the GEP Variable Religious Difference requirement cannot also be used to fulfill the Diversity/Globalization/Non-Western Area Studies overlay. However, a student may take a second Religious Difference course to fulfill this overlay, provided that the Religious Difference course has been certified in the area.

May be satisfied by a GEP variable course, ILC, major/minor course, or elective that is certified in this area.

• PHL 154 (Moral Foundations) is the pre-requisite to ethics-intensive courses.
• A First Year Seminar may not be certified as ethics intensive.

• May be satisfied by a GEP variable course, Faith and Reason course, ILC, major/minor course, or elective that is certified in this area.
• ENG 101 (Craft of Language) is the pre-requisite to writing-intensive courses.
• A First Year Seminar may not be certified as writing intensive.
• For the purpose of fulfilling the GEP requirements, a course is normally understood as a semester unit to which a value of three or more credits is assigned. However, a two-credit course may be certified as writing intensive if, according to the writing-intensive committee, the course meets the certification standards and the nature and amount of writing instruction, assignments and pedagogy would be sufficient for the writing-intensive aspect of a three-credit, writing-intensive course.