Pope Center analyzes general education classes at NC State University

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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