Pope Center analyzes general education classes at NC State University
Not the best bang for students’ bucks!
RALEIGH, May 9, 2014—John W. Pope Center for Higher Education Policy policy analyst Jay Schalin has critiqued another North Carolina flagship university–this time NC State University. In 2013, he coauthored a similar report on UNC-Chapel Hill with Jenna Ashley Robinson.
A general education program should, according to Schalin, “emphasize(s) skills, knowledge, and reasoning that are applicable to all careers.” But insted of a “core” education, students at NC State must select from 714 courses.
Some of those courses are:
- BIO 233 Human-Animal Interactions
- ENG 377 Fantasy
- HI 412 The Sexes and Society in Early Modern Europe
- HON 341 Time Travel
- PB 219 Plants in Folklore, Myth, and Religion
- USC 100 Transition into a Diverse Community
The Pope Center recommends restricting the number of courses and focusing on broader, more fundamental topics.
The John W. Pope Center for Higher Education Policy is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Raleigh, North Carolina. Its mission is to improve higher education in North Carolina and the nation. The center aims to increase the diversity of ideas discussed on campus, improve student learning, and lower the cost of education to both students and taxpayers.
For additional information, visit www.popecenter.org
To read the report in its entirety, go to http://www.popecenter.org/inquiry_papers/.
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