General Education at Brooklyn College

General education at Brooklyn College fosters foundational knowledge and skills in the liberal arts and sciences, gained through the Core Curriculum, and develops liberal competencies, including writing, speech, and a foreign language.  Students are encouraged to complete most of the general education requirements during their first 60 credits of study, ensuring exposure to broad areas of academic inquiry, which complement and provide context for focused study in the major.

In designing the general education program, the Brooklyn College faculty endeavored to create a community of shared knowledge, skills, and habits of mind that unite, reflect, and celebrate our richly diverse campus. Through the general education experience, study in a major field, and electives, the College seeks to prepare our students for rewarding careers, productive citizenship, and lifelong learning.

The Core Curriculum

The Core Curriculum is required for all candidates for a baccalaureate degree. Students must satisfy a total of 11 Core Courses across three groups—Arts and Literatures, Philosophical and Social Inquiry, and Scientific Inquiry—organized into lower- and upper-tiers.  The lower-tier courses are foundational; the upper-tier aims to be integrative, innovative, and to allow students to pursue more in-depth study.  Transfer students may be exempted from some or all lower-tier Core Curriculum courses; all students must complete two upper-tier Core courses in residence.

The Core Curriculum is unified by ten common goals, which amount to a practical philosophy of liberal education in our time.

Liberal Competencies

Writing, foreign language study, and speech are central to Brooklyn’s general education philosophy. All students must satisfy English Composition 1 and 2, level three or higher in a foreign language, and screening by the Speech Communication Arts and Sciences Department.

Course Descriptions and Frequently Asked Questions

More information about general education and the Core Curriculum can be found here.