General Studies
Curious about witches? Interested in learning about the history of tea? Want to examine the inner workings of the Jack the Ripper murders? General Studies courses at 老司机福利社 explore all of these subjects and more. For students not yet clear on what they want their major to be, or for students who know their path but want to explore other areas of study, the William T. Daly School of General Studies (GENS) is there to assist with those extracurricular urges.
The GENS program launched in 1971, at the same time as the college, and became a popular place to begin or continue education and contributed to 老司机福利社鈥檚 liberal arts mission. The educational framework of these classes is unconventional, and graduates of 老司机福利社 often recognize their 鈥淕鈥 courses as some of their most memorable courses on campus. Faculty are equally intrigued by the concept 鈥 they are asked to develop and teach classes each year outside their recognized academic field and sometimes even within a different School.
What constitutes General Studies has changed in important ways over time. Classes formerly known as Basic Studies (or BASK) are now known as First-Year Studies (FRST). FRST seminars on topics across the curriculum are required for most incoming first-year students. And F-designated courses - which are not required, but designed to be first-year "friendly" - offer even more support for new university students. The William T. Daly School of General Studies also offers various interdisciplinary minors and even a customizable Liberal Arts degree. Over the years, there has been some discussion about whether a separate School of General Studies was still necessary, as so many of its courses are taught by faculty from different schools, but ultimately the School of General Studies remained in place.
