University Catalog

UNIVERSITY STUDIES - UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM

The University Studies degree is designed for students who have investigated different majors and now want to utilize the courses taken to complete a bachelor’s degree. For students seeking options beyond the traditional university majors, the program features a breadth of study in a range of academic disciplines that prepares you for a variety of career paths. When you earn a University Studies degree, you will graduate with a broad-based education in a primary and secondary content area with courses taken from various departments.

What can University Studies do for you?

• Utilize coursework already taken to help you graduate faster.

• Provide a foundation to begin your career.

• Re-focus your academic goals.

• Provide options for applying your existing hours toward a degree.

• Hone your skills in important areas such as communication, critical thinking, project management, and problem solving.

• Make you a more appealing candidate to potential employers.

Who should apply?

• Former students who want to return to UT Arlington and complete their degrees.

• Transfer students who have more than 60 hours and are unsure about what major to pursue or who want to accelerate their graduation but have numerous hours that don't easily apply to a major.

• UT Arlington students unable meet the academic requirements to enter or graduate from another major.

• Please Note: The Bachelor of Science in University Studies is not open to students who have already earned an undergraduate bachelor’s degree or who wish to pursue a double or dual major.  In addition, students completing a University Studies degree are not able to declare minors.  Students seeking a second bachelor’s degree should select another major area for the continuation of their studies.

What are the program requirements?

• You must have 60 or more credit hours to be admitted to the program.

• No minimum GPA is required for admittance to the program; however, you must have a 2.0 GPA to graduate.

• You must complete a free online application  to be admitted to the program.

• Once admitted, you must complete 24 hours from a primary and 21 hours from a secondary content area for a total of 45 hours. Hours earned before entering the program can be used to satisfy degree requirements after consulting with a University Studies advisor.

• At least 18 hours of the content areas must be 3000/4000 level courses; 12 hours from the primary content area and 6 hours from the secondary content area.

• Of the total 45 hours, no more than 15 hours may have the same course prefix.

• Courses completed as part of the core curriculum may not be used to satisfy the content area requirements.

You may choose your primary and secondary areas from the following:

• AREA I: Art, Media, Humanities

• AREA II: Business, Community Studies, Social Science

• AREA III: Engineering, Health & Wellness, Physical Science

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN UNIVERSITY STUDIES

To earn a Bachelor of Science in University Studies, you must complete 120 credit hours and have a 2.0 cumulative grade-point average upon completing the course requirements. Of the 120 total hours, you must complete at least 36 advanced credit hours (3000- and 4000-level courses). You must also meet the residency requirements for completing a degree at UT Arlington.

The three curriculum areas for each University Studies Degree are Major Content, Core Curriculum, and Electives.

MAJOR CONTENT

• Comprised of 2 content areas - 24 hours for the primary content area and 21 hours for the secondary content area. The primary and secondary content areas will be selected by the student with a University Studies advisor for a total of 45 hours.

  • Primary Content Area - at least 12 of the 24 hours required for must be advanced (3000-4000 level) courses.

  • Secondary Content Area - at least 6 of the 21 hours required for must be advanced (3000-4000 level) courses.

• For each content area selected, students may only take courses from the approved department prefixes listed below. Some departments have prerequistes and/or restrictions on the courses that can be taken.
  Please note: No more than 15 hours can come from the same department prefix within the 45 hours of the Major Content.

Content Area Choices

AREA I: Art, Media, Humanities

ARCH, ART, BCMN, CHIN, CLAS, COMM, COMS, CTEC, DNCE, ENGL, FREN, GERM, GREK, HIST, HUMA, INTD, JOUR, LATN, LING, MODL, MUSI, PHIL, PORT, PREL, RUSS, SPAN, THEA

AREA II: Business, Community Studies, Social Science

ACCT, ANTH, BCOM, BEEP, BLAW, BSTAT ECON, CRCJ, CRCJ, ECED, EDML, EDUC, FINA, GEOG, INSU INSY, LIST, MANA, MARK, OPMA, POLS, PSYC, REAE, SOCI, SOCW, SOCW, URPA, URPA

AREA III: Engineering, Health & Wellness, Physical Science

BE, BIOL, CE, CHEM, CSE, EE, ENGR, GEOL, HEED, IE, KINE, MAE, MATH, MSE, NE, NURS, PHYS, SCIE,

CORE CURRICULUM

The UT Arlington Core Curriculum is comprised of the following component areas:

• Communication

• Mathematics

• Life and Physical Sciences

• Language, Philosophy and Culture

• Creative Arts

• American History

• Government/Political Science

• Social and Behavioral Sciences

• Foundation Area Option

Click here for the requirements and approved courses

Core Objectives

• Critical Thinking Skills - to include creative thinking, innovation, inquiry, and analysis, evaluation and synthesis of information

• Communication Skills - to include effective development, interpretation and expression of ideas through written, oral and visual communication

• Empirical and Quantitative Skills - to include the manipulation and analysis of numerical data or observable facts resulting in informed conclusions

• Teamwork - to include the ability to consider different points of view and to work effectively with others to support a shared purpose or goal

• Personal Responsibility - to include the ability to connect choices, actions and consequences to ethical decision-making

• Social Responsibility: to include intercultural competence, knowledge of civic responsibility, and the ability to engage effectively in regional, national, and global communities

ELECTIVES

Students must complete a sufficient number of electives to fulfill the 120 hours required for the degree as well as 36 hours of advanced (3000-4000 level) coursework required. No more than 4 hours of EXSA or DNCA courses can be counted toward the electives.  In addition, no more than 15 hours of coursework transferred in as WECM may be used toward electives in the University Studies degree.

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN UNIVERSITY STUDIES - TECHNICAL PATHWAYS Program

This degree enables working professionals to complete the BS in University Studies. Admission is limited to students transferring credit from approved programs at select community college and technical institute partners. A list of approved programs may be found here.

Degree requirements are identical to the general BS in University Studies degree, but approved technical credits may be used to satisfy requirements.   Approved core curriculum courses may also be applied. Please consult the list of approved technical pathways for more information.