Mission and Competencies
Florida Poly’s general education program remains consistent with the University’s mission statement to “Serve students and industry through excellence in education, discovery and application of engineering and applied sciences.” The University’s mission is advanced by a general education program that requires students to develop a breadth of knowledge and skills in foundational disciplines of mathematics and sciences that form the bedrock of their majors, but also to develop the communication and critical thinking skills that are essential for ensuring that concepts and solutions take root in society. The general education program further advances the goals of the University’s STEM curriculum by providing a foundation in the arts, humanities, and social sciences, giving students valuable context for understanding how knowledge is created, meaning interpreted, and by fostering intellectual curiosity and life-long learning in preparation for engagement in professional and civic life. The University recognizes that tomorrow’s leaders must be technically proficient, ethically-minded, and possess effective communication skills to affect positive and lasting change in the world.
The University’s General Education Program centers around coursework in broad, disciplinary areas that advance competencies:
Communication
Students will demonstrate the ability to communicate effectively and to analyze communication critically in both oral and written mediums. Students who complete the communication skills requirement will be able to:
- Analyze, interpret, evaluate, and synthesize information to support an argument or conclusion.
- Choose a topic and develop it for a specific audience, purpose, and context.
- Employ the conventions of standard American English.
- Identify and apply standards of academic integrity, including the use, attribution, and documentation of source material in an appropriate style.
Arts & Humanities
Through study and practice in the Arts and Humanities, students will learn how questions are posed and how insights and creative responses to them are formulated. Students will
- Demonstrate critical thinking grounded in well-founded interpretive theory and methods and broad, cultural literacy.
- Interpret and explain theories and methods behind forms of human expression.
- Consider the multidirectional impacts between individuals, cultures, and the institutions and technologies they create.
- Acquire competence in reflecting critically on the human condition.
Social Sciences
Students will understand how questions about individuals and social groups are posed and addressed through research, experimentation, and analysis in the Social and Behavioral Sciences. Students who complete their studies in Social and Behavioral Sciences will be able to:
- Apply appropriate disciplinary methods and theories to the analysis of psychological, social, cultural, political, and economic issues or problems.
- Describe how political, social, cultural, and economic institutions influence human behavior.
- Describe how individuals interact and behave in political, social, economic, and psychological environments.
Mathematics
Students will develop mathematical skills that are crucial to success in all STEM fields. Students who complete the core mathematics requirements will be able to:
- Demonstrate fluency in mathematical concepts.
- Interpret quantitative data to derive logical conclusions.
- Determine appropriate mathematical and computation models and methods in problem-solving.
- Apply appropriate mathematical and computational models and methods in problem-solving to produce valid results.
Natural Sciences
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the scientific method and use it to explain the natural world. Students who complete the Scientific Reasoning Requirement will be able to:
- Identify and explain fundamental concepts, principles, and processes about the natural world.
- Critically examine and evaluate scientific observation, hypothesis, and model construction.
- Apply appropriate scientific models and methods in defining and solving problems.
(see also FLDOE-General Education)
General Education Digital Badge Series:
Section 1007.25, Florida Statutes, was revised in 2021 to create the General Education Digital Badge Series. Career readiness competencies are evaluated for alignment with general education student learning outcomes. At the time of publication, staff from the Division of Florida College and Office of the Board of Governors identified the first digital badge with the anticipation of creating four additional badges for a total of five badges, mirroring the five General Education Core areas.
Fundamentals of Written Communication: Beginning in Fall 2022, Florida public postsecondary institutions will offer students a “Fundamentals of Written Communication” digital badge upon successful completion with a grade of “C” or better of ENC 1101 or a course with an “ENC” prefix for which ENC 1101 is an immediate prerequisite. By earning this badge, students document their personal communication skills including effective reading, writing, speaking, listening, and nonverbal communication skills. This badge will convey to future employers that students have acquired vital skills needed for professional success.
Requirements
Each undergraduate degree program requires the successful completion of a general education component at the collegiate level. The University’s general education courses support and enhance the core STEM learning and competencies at the institution, providing students with breadth of knowledge, critical thinking and writing skills, and other proficiencies.
In accordance with Section 1007.25 of the Florida Statutes and the recommendations of Faculty Committees, Florida Polytechnic University students complete 36 credit hours of General Education Program coursework within the subject areas of communication, humanities, mathematics, social sciences, and natural sciences. Each student must complete at least one approved course in each subject area.
Approved courses for each area are listed below. Where applicable, courses taken to meet state common prerequisites for a program also may be used to fulfill General Education requirements. All first-time-in-college students are expected to take ENC 1101 (Composition I) during their first semester at Florida Polytechnic.
In compliance with State Board of Education Rule 6A-10.024, a transfer student who has successfully completed the General Education requirements for any public university or community college in Florida prior to enrolling as a degree-seeking student at Florida Polytechnic University, and has this completion noted on the official transcript, shall be considered to have satisfied the General Education requirements at Florida Polytechnic. All other transfer students are expected to complete the Florida Polytechnic General Education Program. Transfer students’ transcripts will be evaluated to determine course equivalencies and fulfillment of Florida Polytechnic’s General Education requirements.
All courses listed are approved for meeting General Education requirements. Courses marked with (W) can be used to satisfy a portion of the Florida college-level writing requirement, and all mathematics courses can be used to satisfy a portion of the computation requirement (State Board of Education Rule 6A-10.030).
**Course offering frequency subject to change**
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