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Prospective, New & Transfer Students:
Advisement4u@citytech.cuny.edu

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General Education at City Tech

Beyond the specific requirements of their degree programs, City Tech students experience our signature General Education Common Core that encompasses the knowledge, skills, and values determined by the faculty to be essential for success in every degree program. Grounded in the liberal arts and sciences, and integrated into every major, Gen Ed at City Tech inspires students to make connections across disciplinary lines and enriches their understanding of the moral, civic, and creative dimensions of life. It is the foundation for our hallmark technological and professional programs of study.

City Tech's General Education Common Core enables students to meet CUNY’s Pathways requirements while also meeting the degree requirements of their programs. The requirements include specific classes, categories of classes, and overall requirements which vary by degree. You can find a searchable, sortable list of all of City Tech’s general education classes here: http://www.citytech.cuny.edu/advisement/liberal-arts-sciences.aspx.

Pathways Requirements

Pathways is the name of CUNY's general education categories that reinforce educational excellence while easing student transfer between CUNY colleges. The requirements under the Pathways Initiative apply to all new students, first-year and transfers, and to students readmitted after an absence longer than two semesters.

Note: Students who began taking courses before Fall 2013 and who are returning after an absence of more than one semester may consider it preferable to remain with the graduation and general education requirements in place at the time they first enrolled. To request permission to do so, please fill out the "Change of Catalog Year" form and follow all instructions. Cases will be decided individually, based on major and requirements.

In addition to specific required courses, there are several important requirements all students must meet overall to graduate. These include:

  • Total credits: at least 60 for an associate degree and at least 120 for a baccalaureate degree, although a program may require more if there are licensing or accreditation requirements. (Note: To earn academic honors, you must take a minimum number of credits on campus at City Tech: at least 34 credits for an associate degree, and at least 60 credits for a baccalaureate degree. E-permit classes do not count toward that total.)
  • Liberal arts (LA) credits:The liberal arts and sciences courses comprise the disciplines of the humanities, natural sciences and mathematics, and social science. The number of required liberal arts credits vary by degree and is listed on the degree checklist and viewable at the top of your degree audit in DegreeWorks. Liberal arts courses are identified here.
  • Advanced liberal arts (ALA) requirement: In meeting general education requirements overall, students must take at least one advanced liberal arts course or two sequential courses in a foreign language. An advanced liberal arts course meets the criteria above, is at the 2000 level or higher, and has a prerequisite in the same or a closely related discipline.
    Examples of advanced liberal arts courses include ECON 2505 (Prerequisite: ECON 1101 or ECON 1401), SOC 3301 (prerequisite: ECON 1101), and SOC 2403 (prerequisite: PSY 1101).
  • Writing Intensive (WI): Students must complete two courses designated Writing Intensive (WI) for the associate level, one from general education and one from the major; and two additional WI courses for the baccalaureate level, one from general education and one from the major. You can see at the top of your degree audit in DegreeWorks how many you have taken and how many you have to go. WI is specific to the section, and all qualifying sections are listed by semester here.

All degrees require 1-2 courses in English composition, one course in mathematics, and one course in science. See your degree checklist in the catalog for more information on how these categories apply to your degree.

Bachelor's degrees and AA and AS degrees require six flexible common core courses: at least one course in each of the five Flexible Core areas and an additional sixth course in one of them. Students can complete no more than two courses from any one area. AAS degrees may require fewer overall flexible core credits. See your degree checklist in the catalog for more information on how these categories apply to your degree.

All baccalaureate students starting at City Tech or transferring in with 30 or fewer credits, in addition to the Common and Flexible Core Courses, will also complete the following 12 credits:

  • One course in speech/oral communication (COM 1330 or higher)
  • One interdisciplinary (ID) course or seminar
  • Two additional liberal arts courses from outside the major. Note: If COM 1330 or higher already fills a category in the flexible common core, add a third liberal arts course

Students transferring in with a prior earned bachelor's degree are deemed to have automatically fulfilled the College Option.

Students transferring with an earned associate degree are required to take only 6 credits of the College Option:

  • One course in speech/oral communication (COM 1330 or higher) Note: If COM 1330 or higher already fills a category in the flexible common core, add an additional liberal arts course from outside the major
  • One interdisciplinary (ID) course or seminar

Students who transfer in more than 30 credits but do not have a prior degree must take 9 credits of the College Option:

  • One course in speech/oral communication (COM 1330 or higher) Note: If COM 1330 or higher already fills a category in the flexible common core, add an additional liberal arts course from outside the major
  • One interdisciplinary (ID) course or seminar
  • One additional liberal arts course from outside the major

Students may transfer College Option credits earned from other CUNY campuses to fulfill City Tech's College Option. City Tech may also transfer credits from non-CUNY campuses that have been evaluated as fulfilling the College Option requirements. Students earning a second bachelor's degree have no College Option requirement.

Double Duty Courses

Frequently, a course that is required for a major, like MAT 1275 College Algebra and Trigonometry or ECON 1101 Macroeconomics, will also satisfy a general education category. In that case, depending on the degree, students may be able to take additional electives.

How Credits Transfer

An important aspect of Pathways is to facilitate transfer among the institutions of CUNY. Here are the transfer guidelines established by the Pathways Initiative.

  • Courses passed for credit at any CUNY college will transfer for credit at any other CUNY college.
  • Courses that fulfill a Required Common Core requirement at any CUNY college will transfer for Required Common Core credit at any other CUNY college.
  • Courses that fulfill a Flexible Common Core requirement at any CUNY college will transfer for Flexible Common Core credit at any other CUNY college.
  • Courses that fulfill a College Option requirement at any CUNY college will transfer for College Option credit at any other CUNY college.
  • Courses that are designated as "Gateway" courses into a major will transfer for major credit at any other CUNY college that offers the major.

Transfer Explorer (T-Rex) is a web-based tool containing the most up-to-date information about how CUNY colleges transfer and apply credit for both CUNY and non-CUNY courses, as well as for other learning experiences, like exams and certifications. Whether you are planning to transfer within CUNY or simply to take a course at another CUNY college, make T-Rex your go-to resource. Visit the T-Rex Help Center to learn how to make the most of T-Rex.

If you want to appeal the Pathways category of a transferred course, please fill out the the "Transfer Appeal Form" and send it to email transfercreditappeal@citytech.cuny.edu. If this appeal does not resolve the issue, you can appeal directly to CUNY by clicking here.

Writing Intensive Credit for Transfer Students:

  • Students with a prior associate degree or 60 or more credits from an accredited institution will be given credit for two WI courses.
  • Students with a prior baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution will be given credit for all four WI courses.
  • Students who want to have courses taken at another college evaluated individually for WI credit should make a request via the Transfer Office (please make sure to have a course description and a course outline or syllabus as supporting evidence that the course is writing intensive).