Important Curriculum Changes and Reminders
Updated March 2013
A. GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS
1. First Year Composition Requirement (all degrees)
Beginning with the Fall 2011 semester, the new composition sequence is: WRIT 100 or WRIT 101 in the fall semester,
and WRIT 102 or LIBA 102 in the spring semester. Students must pass either WRIT 100 or WRIT 101 before attempting
102. WRIT 100 and WRIT 101 fulfill the same requirement for first semester writing, previously filled by English 101.
Students may take either 100 or 101, but not both. Both 100 and 101 teach the same new learning outcomes: learning a
writing process, engaging in exploration and argumentation, writing for a variety of purposes and audiences, conducting
research, and producing writing free of serious grammatical errors. These courses usually include three written essays, an
in-class writing assignment, and a multimodal project, collected in an ePortfolio. Although students in 100 write one less
essay than students in 101, the main difference between 100 and 101 is class size: WRIT 100 is limited to 15 students who
have more one-on-one conferencing with their teacher. WRIT 102 teaches the same outcomes as 100/101, but with an
emphasis on research and information literacy. The readings in these courses are now themed: students can choose from
Writing about Literature, Writing about Business, Writing about Sustainability, Writing about Food, and Writing about
Pop Culture.
Catalog Descriptions:
WRIT 100. INTRODUCTION TO COLLEGE WRITING. Prepares students to write in college by focusing on writing as process for
a variety of contexts and audiences. Develops information literacy, awareness of conventions, skills of inquiry, exploration, and
argumentation. Includes frequent conferencing with instructors and multimodal writing presented in ePortfolios. Students may not
receive credit for both WRIT 100 and WRIT 101. (3)
WRIT 101. FIRST-YEAR WRITING I. Prepares students to write in college by focusing on writing as process for a variety of
contexts and audiences. Develops information literacy, awareness of conventions, skills of inquiry, exploration, and argumentation.
Includes multimodal writing presented in ePortfolios.. Students may not receive credit for both WRIT 100 and WRIT 101. (3)
WRIT 102. FIRST-YEAR WRITING II. Writing processes, skills of inquiry, exploration, and argumentation, with special emphasis
on research, information literacy, and writing for a variety of contexts and audiences. Includes multimodal writing presented in
ePortfolios. Prerequisite: Writ 100 or Writ 101. (3)
LIBA 102: FIRST-YEAR SEMINAR. Students build on the formats and expectations of college readers established in WRIT 100 or
101, expanding writing processes, skills of inquiry, exploration, and argumentation. Special emphasis on research, information
literacy, and writing for a variety of contexts and audiences. Includes multimodal writing in ePortfolios. Taught in seminar format and
organized around one disciplinary research theme. For detailed course descriptions, please visit the Center for Writing and Rhetoric
http://www.olemiss.edu/cwr/liba102des.html Prerequisite: WRIT 100 or 101.
Writ 250 and 302 will not satisfy credit towards the composition requirement. They can be used for elective
credit only.
2. Humanities Lower Division Requirement (B.A. degree only)
The applicable gender studies courses are G St 103, 201, 301, 333. In addition, gender studies courses that are cross-listed
with African American studies, classical civilization, English, modern languages, philosophy, or religion courses will
satisfy this requirement.
3. Modern or Ancient Language Requirement (B.A. or B.S. degrees)
a. Language training from the Department of Modern Languages or the Department of Classics will fulfill the
requirement to pass 6 hours at the 200-level or higher in one language.
b. Please be aware that in some exceptional cases, entering students are able to start their language training at a
more advanced level than the 100 or 200-level courses. Advisors should speak with a language coordinator in the
Department of Modern Languages or the chair in the Department of Classics.
c. With approval from the Department of Modern Languages, students may use languages other than those above
to satisfy the language requirement by taking courses through study abroad or at another university. Before, students were
limited to those languages taught on our campus to fulfill this requirement. Under this rule change, American Sign
Language will be allowed, which will be taught beginning in Fall 2013 by the UM Department of Communication
Sciences and Disorders – ASL 101, 102, 201, 202. College students must complete ASL 201 and 202 to satisfy the
language requirement.
d. Speakers of languages other than English may present documentation to the Department of Modern Languages
showing that they studied in high school in that language and will thus fulfill the language requirement. Before, foreign
students were required to follow the same language requirement as domestic students. While they are allowed to opt out
of the language requirement through this type of documentation (i.e. they still may enroll in a third language study or
enroll in classes in their native language at or beyond the 300-level), this is now an option.
e. Online and independent study courses are now allowed to complete the language requirement. There are a
couple of cautions for advisors. The successful completion rate on independent study courses is rather low. And, there
will be limited online availability for language courses from UM. Students must have prior permission from the dean’s
office to take courses from another university while enrolled at UM.
4. Suggested Student Placement in Mathematics Courses
The Department of Mathematics suggests that students who have a mathematics ACT sub-score of 25 or higher (or the
SAT equivalent) should not be placed in MATH 121, but rather take MATH 125, 261, or 267. In addition, students who
do not plan to advance to calculus courses may be better served by taking the MATH 115: Elementary Statistics course
instead of MATH 121: College Algebra.
After completing MATH 261 with a C or higher, students may not receive credit for MATH 121, 125, or 267.
5. Natural Science Lower Division Requirement
Students who wish to use astronomy courses to satisfy the B.A. in Liberal Arts general education requirement for natural
science must be aware that they will not receive credit for both ASTR 101 and ASTR 103. Similarly, a student will not
receive credit for both ASTR 101 and ASTR 104.
Likewise, students may not receive credit for taking both GEOL 101 and GEOL 104.
6. Social Science and Humanities Requirement (B.S. degree only)
Beginning with the Fall 2012, the requirement for 12 hours of social science and humanities will specify that at least 6
hours must be chosen from the social sciences, which consist of anthropology, economics, political science, psychology,
and sociology courses.
B. PROGRAMS OF STUDY IN THE COLLEGE
MINORS
1. A minor in Korean was created by the Department of Modern Languages and will become effective for Fall 2013.
2. The minor in Renaissance and Early Modern Studies will be deleted as of Fall 2013.
3. Approved Minors Outside of the College for the B.A. degree
There are only a few minors offered from departments outside of the College that are approved for students completing
the B.A. degree, including Accountancy, Business Administration, Education, Engineering, Intelligence and Security
Studies, Journalism, and Park and Recreation Management.
Beginning in the Fall 2012, the minor in Education will be available. It consists of EDFD 209 (Foundations in
Education); EDSP 308 (Introduction to Special Education); EDAV 427 (Educational Technology); and 9 additional hours
of education courses at the 300-level or higher. Issues in K-12 education related to pedagogy, child development,
philosophy, and foundations are focus areas of this minor.
4. Majors and Minors in the Same Department
Except for the B.A. in African American Studies, International Studies, Liberal Studies, and Southern Studies, students
who complete the B.A. degree in the College of Liberal Arts must complete a minor course of study (or a second major).
In a department that offers multiple areas of study, a student may complete the minor course of study (or complete a
second major) in the same department as the one in which the student takes his or her major. The one exception is the
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.
5. Approved Optional Minor for the B.S. Degree
Beginning with the Fall 2012 semester, students have the option of formally declaring a minor course of study with their
Bachelor of Science degree, which will appear on the student’s transcript. The minors to select from are the same as those
available to the students pursuing the Bachelor of Arts degree. Required hours completed in the “Related Subjects”
category for the B.S. degree can be counted as hours towards this optional minor.
C. MULTIPLE MAJORS AND BACHELOR’S DEGREES…..AND (not) DOUBLE COUNTING COURSES
Beginning with the Fall 2013 semester, the University has a new policy on multiple majors and degrees. Students who
wish to receive a second bachelor’s degree can only do so if the second degree is of a different degree type, such as a B.A.
in History and a B.B.A. in Marketing or a B.A. in Classics and a B.S. in Biology. Students who wish to complete the
majors in English and History, for example, may only receive one degree – the B.A. Both majors will show up on the
transcript but the student will only receive one diploma. Note that students will no longer be allowed to earn both the
B.A. and B.S. in the same discipline, such as the B.A. and B.S. in Biological Science or the B.A. and B.S. in Chemistry.
The College of Liberal Arts recently clarified its rule that the same course may not count towards two majors, or for the
majors for two degrees, or for a major and a minor. No double counting a course under those circumstances. However, a
course may double count between a general education requirement and either the major or the minor.
D. MINIMUM GRADE OF C REQUIREMENTS FOR MAJORS/MINORS
Some majors and/or minors in the College require a minimum grade of C in those department courses used to satisfy
graduation requirements for the major or minor. This rule is made effective beginning in a particular semester (indicated
below in parenthesis) for all majors and/or minors regardless of when the student first enrolled at the University. Please
be aware that grades of C- will not fulfill this requirement.
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African American Studies major (Spring 2005)
Art major for the B.F.A. degree (Fall 1980)
Biology major for the B.A. and B.S. degrees (Fall 2001)
Classics major and minor for the B.A. degree (Fall 2013)
Gender Studies minor (Fall 2006)
History major and minor (Fall 2003)
International Studies major and minor (Fall 2006)
Liberal Studies for the B.A. degree (Fall 2001)
Mathematics major for the B.A. and B.S. degrees (Fall 1995)
Modern Languages majors in Chinese, French, German, Linguistics and Spanish; and minors in Arabic, Chinese,
French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish (Fall 2007)
Music major for the B.A. and B.M. degrees (Fall 2000)
Philosophy major and minor (Fall 2004)
Political Science major and minor (Fall 2006)
Religious Studies major and minor (Spring 2009)
Theatre Arts major for the B.A. and B.F.A. degrees and the minor (Spring 2001)
E. UNIVERSITY CLASS ATTENDANCE POLICY
Students who do not attend the first day of a class may be removed from the class roll. The rule is as follows:
"Students must attend the first meeting of every course for which they are registered, unless they obtain
prior departmental approval. Without such approval, a student who is absent from the first class meeting
may be dropped from that class by the dean of the school or college with the responsibility for the
course."
It is the student's responsibility to contact the department office prior to the first day of class to request permission to be
absent. Each department will decide whether to enforce this policy. Therefore, students must not depend upon the
department dropping a class from their schedule if they do not attend the first day.
F. ACADEMIC RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS
A reminder of a university-wide regulation: At least 25 percent of the semester credit hours required for an undergraduate
degree (31 hours for a 124 hour degree) must be taken in residence. At least 30 semester hours of residence credit must
be taken in the College of Liberal Arts for those degrees offered in the College. Hours from courses offered through the
College that are taken before and after a student declares the major in the College may be used to satisfy this 30-hour
residence requirement.
G. COLLEGE ADMISSION POLICY
The College of Liberal Arts has approved a College-wide admission policy that will begin with the Fall 2013 semester.
Here is the approved catalog language.
“UM students having completed at least one academic semester (12 hours) who wish to transfer into the
College of Liberal Arts must have at least a 2.0 overall GPA. Transfer students must have at least a 2.0
transfer GPA in order to be admitted to the College of Liberal Arts. Students who have completed prior
work at UM must have a 2.0 GPA on all work attempted at the University (resident GPA) as well as on
all work attempted at other institutions (overall GPA) in order to declare a major within the College of
Liberal Arts.”
In response to this new policy, the Provost’s office created a UM-wide “undecided” category for all freshmen and
sophomores. Students who used to be “Liberal Arts Undecided” will simply be categorized as “Undecided” and will still
be advised by the Academic Support Center. With this new admission policy, undecided students or those enrolled within
other schools must have at least a 2.0 in order to declare a major within the College.