Five Core Courses

1. GSTR 110:  Writing Seminar I: Critical Thinking in the Liberal Arts
   This course is designed to help students with transitions from their past experiences to the challenges of college academic life and culture, also emphasizing writing, reasoning, and learning as foundations for continuing academic success in General Education and beyond.  Each section of the course involves explicit, continuing attention to writing, reasoning, research, and reflective engagement with various texts, written and non-written. All sections initially address with students questions about the nature of education, liberal arts education, and links to lifelong learning and living.  Taken in the first term of the freshman year.
2. GSTR 210:  Writing Seminar II: Identity and Diversity in the United States
   This course is designed to develop and build upon the reasoning, writing, research, and learning emphases of GSTR 110, while engaging all students on issues close to the historic mission of the College - race, gender, Appalachia, and class. Each section initially explores the story of Berea, including as it relates to the unifying themes of GSTR 210.  Each section of the course involves explicit, continuing attention to writing, reasoning, research, and reflective engagement with various texts, including instruction in the processes of producing a research paper.  Prerequisite:  GSTR 110.
3. GSTR 310: Understandings of Christianity
   This course invites students to imagine and consider Christianity from stances both inside and outside the faith, from the vantage of various disciplines, as an instance of the general phenomenon of religion, and as a way of understanding life's purpose and meaning that remains important for many around the world.  All sections explore together some historical understandings of Christianity, and then individual sections each explore a selected contemporary issue in light of historical and biblical perspectives.   Each section applies and builds on the reasoning, research, and writing emphases of GSTR 110 and 210.  Prerequisite:  GSTR 210 and sophomore standing.
4. GSTR 332: Scientific Knowledge and Inquiry
   This course invites all students to explore a variety of scientific disciplines in order to understand what science is, does, and tells us about the natural world around us. Employing an integrative approach to the natural sciences, the course emphasizes the historical development of laws, models, and theories, as well as basic scientific literacy important to contemporary concerns.  Each section of the course includes inquiry-based learning (lab) experiences.  Prerequisite:  GSTR 210, Practical Reasoning with Quantitative Emphasis (PRQ), and sophomore standing.
5. GSTR 410: Senior Seminar in Contemporary Global Issues
   As a capstone experience for General Education, GSTR 410 invites students to synthesize and integrate their learning by using their developing abilities to reason, research, and communicate to investigate aspects of a significant issue for the world today.  Each section explores a topic determined by the instructors, and each section is structured to model broadly multi-disciplinary approaches needed to understand complex problems.  Each section involves faculty working closely with students’ independent research leading to presentation of a project to others in the course.  Prerequisite:  GSTR 310, 332, and senior standing.

Six Perspective Areas

1. The African Americans’, Appalachians’, Women’s Perspective is intended to help students develop an understanding and appreciation of diversity through the study of one or more of those groups central to Berea’s Commitments:  African Americans, Appalachians, and/or Women.
2. The Arts Perspective is intended to help students develop an understanding and appreciation of artistic form and creation through the study and/or practice of the visual arts, creative writing, literature, music, dance, and/or theatre.
3. The International Perspective is intended to help students develop an understanding and appreciation of world citizenship through the study of world cultures or languages. 
4. The Religion Perspective is intended to help students develop an understanding and appreciation of the role of religion in human experience through the study of one or more major religious traditions, institutions, or ideas. 
5. The Social Science Perspective is intended to help students develop a scientific understanding of human behavior at the individual, group, or community level.
6. The Western History Perspective is intended to help students develop an understanding and appreciation of history as a way of knowing through the study of one or more major traditions, institutions, events, or achievements of Western Civilization.

The Practical Reasoning requirement is met through the satisfactory completion of two courses, at least one of which must be firmly grounded in math or statistics.  Courses meeting this requirement are intended to help students to be able to discern connections, consider alternatives, and think about topics and issues from multiple perspectives.

Active Learning Experience

Active Learning Experiences (ALEs) are opportunities for students to explore interconnections among various venues for learning—courses, labor, service, research, internships, etc.  All ALEs must include (a) learning through sustained, continual engagement in, reflection on, and assessment of experiences; (b) the use of knowledge, imagination, and judgment to address questions in novel contexts; and (c) the exploration of connections between theory and practice, and between learning in courses and from experiences outside the classroom.

Active Learning Experience credit may be earned by completing

• an approved service-learning course
• an approved internship
• an approved labor project
• an approved short term travel course
• structured reflection as part of KIIS or other international study program (This is not automatic; it requires completion of a journal that will be reviewed by the Director of the International Center)
• designated nursing clinicals
• designated education practicums,
• participation in a theatre lab production
• UGR 010 or UGR 020 undergraduate research projects
• approved independent or team-initiated studies

Lifetime Health and Fitness (1 course credit)

Berea College offers courses, programs, and facilities intended to promote the wellness and personal well being of students and employees. Every student is required to take PEH 100, a 1/2-credit course, usually taken in the first year, two 1/4-credit courses chosen from the 200-level PED activity courses (from two different areas). If the student's swimming skills are below the minimal safety/survival levels at the conclusion of PEH 100, one of the two subsequent courses must be PED 200.

Required Competency in Mathematics

MAT 010 and/or 011-012: Developmental Mathematics 1 & 2, if required.

Writing Competency Requirement

The Writing Competency Requirement (WCR) is designed to insure that students receive the feedback and support they need to write effectively at the college level.  The WCR and the two first-year writing seminars signal the central importance of writing to higher education.  The three together are designed to insure that  students have a strong foundation in written communication that will contribute to their success in whatever program of study they pursue at Berea.   GSTR 110: Writing Seminar I: Critical Thinking in the Liberal Arts and GSTR 210: Writing Seminar II: Identity and Diversity in the United States focus on the writing process, while the Writing Competency Examination (WCE) asks students to demonstrate basic writing competence in a timed situation.  Writing Competency Examinations will be evaluated on the basis of their focus, development, coherence, language use, and grammar.  Students who have not satisfied the requirement through testing by the end of their second semester are required to enroll in GST 150: College Composition or, for international students, ENG 104: Advanced ESL.  All students are required to have satisfied the Writing Competency Requirement by the end of their fourth regular term. 

21 Courses Required Outside the Major