Overview
The general education (GE) requirements provide opportunities for students to develop their writing, speaking, analytical, and interpretive skills, and to familiarize themselves with important divisions of knowledge. Individual departments determine which courses meet the general education requirements in their fields of study. Normally general education requirements are completed at Claremont McKenna College. Students must obtain approval from the appropriate department chair to use a non-CMC course or a substitute course toward a general education requirement. Courses taken to fulfill general education, major, and sequence requirements must be taken for a letter grade.
Students entering the College as first year, first-time degree seeking students may not complete more than 4 general education requirements through transfer credit, including summer school, Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) examinations, study abroad, etc. Transfer students must consult the Registrar if they wish to complete any general education requirements off campus after enrolling at CMC.
Core General Education Requirements
All students, irrespective of their major field(s) of study, must complete CMC’s core general education requirements.
First-Year Humanities Seminar
All CMC students are required to take the foundational course FHS010 CM . The courses of the FHS program give new students an introduction to some of the questions fundamental to individuals in their relationship to society and the world. Sections are offered by faculty members teaching in the different disciplines at CMC. Students must complete this course at CMC during the first or second semester in residence at the College. Click for information and sample topics .
First-Year Writing Seminar
This one-semester requirement is met by completing FWS010 CM , and must be taken during the first year. Students who earn a score of 5 on one of the English Advanced Placement (AP) exams may seek permission from the chair of the literature department to take another CMC literature course numbered 60 or higher to fulfill this requirement. Students who receive approval to substitute another course for FWS may not double count it for any other general education or major requirement. Click for information and sample topics .
Foreign Language
This requirement is met by passing the third college semester of a foreign language. The foreign language requirement can also be completed by earning a score of 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement (AP) examination or a score of 6 or 7 on a Higher Level International Baccalaureate (IB) examination in a foreign language. Students cannot complete the foreign literature requirement through tests or competency.
All new students, except for students who have provided the registrar with official copies of appropriate AP or IB test scores, take a language placement examination designed by the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures prior to registration. Students who through this examination are placed in the fourth semester (or higher) of a foreign language will have completed the foreign language requirement. These students are encouraged, but not required, to continue their language study. The placement exam is only given to new students prior to enrollment at CMC. Students who have studied a foreign language not offered at The Claremont Colleges should contact the chair of the department to arrange for testing.
Students with demonstrated native proficiency in a language which is not offered for testing at The Claremont Colleges may satisfy the foreign language requirement by one of the following methods:
- Graduation from high school where the primary language of instruction was a language other than English. (For Chinese, graduation from middle school is acceptable.)
- Successful completion of the 10th-year exam in Hindi or another language of the Indian Subcontinent
- A certified statement from a tenured modern or classical language faculty member from another regionally accredited American college or university which attests to the student’s ability to read, write, and speak a non-English language with native proficiency.
Students seeking to satisfy their foreign language General Education Requirement by examination or demonstration of native proficiency must provide appropriate original documentation to the CMC Registrar’s Office within one year of matriculation to CMC.
Lab Science
All CMC students must complete one lab science course to fulfill the Lab Science requirement.
Every CMC student in the classes of 2028 and 2029 must complete SCI010L CM offered by the Kravis Department of Integrated Sciences by the end of the second year at CMC.
For students in the classes of 2026 and 2027 (including transfer students), please see the Kravis Department of Integrated Sciences FAQ for additional information about satisfying the Lab Science requirement.
Mathematics/Computer Science
Any course offered by the CMC Department of Mathematical Sciences may satisfy the general education requirement. Any computer science course or calculus course offered at the other undergraduate Claremont Colleges may also satisfy the general education requirement.
Students may take a pre-calculus course either in Claremont or off-campus for credit towards graduation but not for the general education requirement in mathematics. All new students will have the opportunity to attend a mathematics and computer science information session prior to registration in the fall.
Physical Education
The College requires all students to complete three semesters of physical education. Two seasons of participation in a team or club sport will also fulfill the physical education requirement. All students are expected to complete this requirement during their first two years, except for those excused by the Chair of the Department of Physical Education for medical reasons or because of prior military service. Students must register for activities and sports in order for them to count towards fulfillment of the requirement.
Senior Thesis
All CMC students must complete a senior thesis in the senior year. The senior thesis should serve as a capstone experience to a student’s undergraduate education. Students must complete a senior thesis in at least one of their majors, under supervision of a faculty reader who teaches within that major, unless granted a special exception. CMC students with an off-campus major may register for a senior thesis in that major under the appropriate course number at the major’s sponsoring college in lieu of the senior thesis at CMC. If the off-campus major does not offer a senior thesis under its own course number, students must register for the senior thesis at CMC. Students who have a CMC major and an off-campus major may choose to complete the senior thesis in one or both majors. For full senior thesis policy information, see Senior Thesis Requirement .
Humanities General Education Requirement
All students, irrespective of their major field(s) of study, must complete at least one course in 2 of the following 4 fields in the humanities: foreign literature, literature, philosophy, or religious studies. General education requirements in the humanities must be met by courses outside a student’s major field(s) of study.
Students majoring in one of these fields must complete courses in 3 of the 4 fields (i.e., 2 general education requirements outside of the major together with courses in the major field). Students majoring in 2 of the 4 fields in the humanities also must complete courses in 3 of the 4 fields. In practice, they are allowed to double count only one course for both a major requirement and a general education requirement.
Students with individualized or interdisciplinary majors at CMC must complete at least a total of 6 general education requirements in the humanities and social sciences.
Students with the Integrated Sciences Major or an off-campus major must complete at least 3 CMC social science general education courses and at least 2 CMC humanities general education courses.
- Foreign Literature: The foreign literature requirement may be satisfied by the 4th semester of a European or classical language, the 5th semester of Korean or Arabic, or the 6th semester of Chinese or Japanese.
- Literature: Any CMC literature course satisfies the humanities general education requirement in literature.
- Philosophy: All CMC philosophy courses numbered 59 and below satisfy the College’s general education requirement in philosophy. These courses vary in content. They may have a broad or narrow focus, and they may concentrate on the history of philosophy or specific philosophical topics. However, all general education courses have the following in common:
- They teach philosophical methods, including the skills of interpreting and evaluating arguments in a rigorous fashion;
- They apply these philosophical methods to multiple questions, problems, and topics; and they show how the methods can be applied to further topics outside the class;
- They discuss the value of applying philosophical methods to problems of all sorts. In particular, they discuss the way in which critical enquiry helps us find the truth, understand our own way of seeing the world, and engage in thoughtful deliberation with others.
With the approval of the department chair, students who take a First-Year Humanities Seminar ( FHS010 CM ) taught by a member of the Department of Philosophy may satisfy the general education requirement in philosophy with any CMC philosophy other than PHIL095 CM - Fundamentals of Logic or PHIL198 CM - Advanced Seminar in Philosophy .
- Religious Studies: Any CMC religious studies course numbered 180 or below satisfies the humanities general education requirement in religious studies.
Social Science General Education Requirement
All students, irrespective of their major field(s) of study, must complete at least one designated course in 3 of the following 4 fields in the social sciences: economics, government, history, and psychology. General education requirements in the social sciences must be met by courses outside a student’s major field(s) of study.
Students majoring in one or more of these fields must complete an appropriate course in each of the 4 fields.
Students with individualized or interdisciplinary majors at CMC must complete at least a total of 6 general education requirements in the humanities and social sciences.
Students with the Integrated Sciences Major or an off-campus major must complete at least 3 CMC social science general education courses and at least 2 CMC humanities general education courses.
- Economics: ECON050 CM satisfies the social science general education requirement in economics.
- Government: GOVT020 CM satisfies the social science general education requirement in government.
- History: Any CMC history course satisfies the social science general education requirement in history.
- Psychology: Any CMC psychology course numbered under 100 satisfies the social science general education requirement in psychology.
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