English Composition

Satisfactory proficiency in the use of written English is required of all University undergraduates. In order to assure such proficiency, each undergraduate student must earn credit for Composition I during the freshman year by completing Rhetoric 105, or Rhetoric 100 and 101 and 102, or Rhetoric 103 and 104, or Rhetoric 108, or ESL 114 and 115, or Speech Communications 111 and 112, and Advanced Composition (formerly referred to as Composition II) soon after by completing one of the courses on the approved course list (http://courses.uiuc.edu/gened). FAA curricula require courses that appear on the approved list. Transfer credit for equivalent Composition I courses will be accepted. (Students should consult with the College Office of Undergraduate Academic Affairs to verify satisfactory completion of the University Composition requirement.) Foreign students should refer to "Admission of International Students, English Competence Requirement" in the Programs of Study catalog.

Foreign Language Requirement

There are three different types of foreign language requirements:

• An admission requirement,
• A general education requirement that must be completed before a student can graduate, and
• Coursework specified by the student’s major or minor (e.g., art history, music history and vocal music performance all have additional foreign language requirements).

One year of high school foreign language is equivalent to one semester of college foreign language.

Admission Requirement: All curricula in the College of Fine and Applied Arts have a two year foreign language requirement for admission. Students who are admitted with a foreign language deficiency may use the credit-no credit option to fulfill the admission deficiency.

General Education Requirement: Effective for all entering freshmen in Fall 2000 and later, the foreign language requirement must be completed for graduation. This requirement may be satisfied by:

1. Successfully completing a third semester college foreign language;
2. Having taken three years of the same foreign language in high school; or
3. Demonstrating proficiency at the third semester level in a language proficiency examination approved by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the appropriate department.

Foreign language classes taken to complete the General Education Requirement must be taken for a grade.

Continuation of Foreign Language Study: If you enter UIUC without three years of one foreign language in high school you must take a foreign language placement test to determine the course in which you should enroll. However you will not be allowed to earn credit in a language course that is more than two levels below your expected placement. For example, if you completed three years of French in high school you would normally place into French 104. If instead you placed into French 101 you would NOT receive credit when you complete French 101, and the course would NOT fulfill the foreign language requirement. However, you would get credit for French 102 when you complete French 102. The general education foreign language requirement would ONLY be fulfilled upon the completion of French 103.

Proficiency Credit in Foreign Language: If you take a proficiency examination approved by the college and the appropriate foreign language department and receive credit at the third-semester level or better, you may also meet the general education foreign language requirement. You can apply up to 10 hours (third- and fourth-level only) of basic language proficiency credit toward your graduation from FAA. You may also receive additional proficiency credit for advanced language courses that emphasize literary and linguistic study.

Proficiency credit is only awarded for languages that are taught on the Urbana campus. However, you can still meet the general education foreign language requirement using an alternate language if you demonstrate the appropriate achievement level in one of three ways:

1. Certification by an authorized faculty member on the Urbana campus.
2. Certification by an authorized faculty member on the Chicago campus, where reciprocal agreements have been arranged through the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
3. Credit awarded through other recognized programs, such as approved study abroad, advanced placement, or international baccalaureate.

For the first two options, third-semester proficiency is determined by testing fluency and comprehension in reading, writing, listening, and speaking. If you show proficiency at this level, the general education requirement for three courses will be met, but no college credit will be granted because these are not taught on the Urbana campus.

Mathematics

If proficiency credit is approved by the University through any of the national testing associations, such credit will be noted on the credit evaluation sheet received with the Permit to Enter the University. Proficiency credit will not be duplicated. Registration in any course which duplicates credit received for a specific subject, will invalidate this exam based proficiency credit.

Due to the quantitative reasoning I & II requirements in the General Education requirements, all entering freshmen must take the mathematics placement examination prior to their first registration and must register at the course level recommended by the test results. Some FAA curricula require courses that appear on the Quantitative Reasoning list. Algebra and/or trigonometry will not be used to satisfy the Quantitative Reasoning requirement nor can they be used to satisfy Architecture degree requirements.

Mathematics placement and registration problems can admittedly be quite confusing; therefore, students and their advisers are strongly urged to refer to the Timetable, Programs of Study catalog , the College Office of Undergraduate Academic Affairs, or the Mathematics Department Academic Adviser.

Electives & General Education

The purpose of the general education requirement of the University is to involve the student in the study of basic principles and methodologies of specific disciplines within the Humanities and the Arts, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Cultural Studies, English Composition, Quantitative Reasoning, Natural Science and Technology and Language (Foreign Language). Students should be aware that additional categories may be phased in and would be required for freshmen entering after implementation occurs. Additional General Education requirements may include: three additional hours each in Humanities and the Arts, Social and Behavioral Science, and Natural Science and Technology.

Often, students view general education as a requirement to get out of the way as quickly and as easily as possible. This is a mistake on the part of the students who deny themselves the opportunity to expand their knowledge.

Electives can take two forms in most curricula in FAA. One type is a Professional elective, which may be from an approved list such as in Landscape Architecture (Supporting Electives), Urban and Regional Planning (Planning Electives), Art and Design curricula (Art electives, or non-required art courses), and Architecture (non-required architecture courses and related professional disciplines). The other type of elective is a "free choice" elective that is usually outside the discipline the student is following. This type elective is referred to as an Open Elective by the FAA college office and the automated degree audit system (DARS), but also may appear as "Elective"," or "General elective" in FAA unit publications. See the approved FAA list of Elective Areas in Appendix A.

Specific Curricular Requirements

For information about curricular requirements, please refer to the individual curricular outlines in the College of Fine and Applied Arts section of the Programs of Study catalog. Consult departmental offices or the College Office of Undergraduate Academic Affairs for possible curriculum revisions made after publication of the Programs of Study catalog.

Teacher Education (Teacher Education Majors Only)

General Education.
The Council on Teacher Education has adopted a common general education core for all undergraduate students pursuing certification in secondary (grades six through twelve) and special (grades kindergarten through twelve) programs. Students are required to complete the course work specified in the council plan. Courses within the teaching major or minor may be used to satisfy general education requirements, provided they appear on the Council list of approved courses, which is available from advisors, college offices, and the council office. Students should consult with their advisors to determine the appropriate course work to satisfy the requirements. Students will be expected to complete the requirements approved by the Council on Teach Education:

Students are advised that certification requirements may be altered at any time by the State Teacher Certification Board or the legislature. The general education requirements for Art Education are presently under review. In such cases, entering students may be compelled to satisfy the new requirements to qualify for the University's recommendation for certification. The requirements in effect when a student begins a program are considered to be the requirements for the student's degree.

Requirements for Art Education and Music Education may vary.

Continuation in Teacher Education

To be eligible for continuation in teacher education, candidates must have UIUC and cumulative grade-point averages of 2.5 (A=4.0) or higher. The Council on Teacher Education reviews each student's academic progress every semester. Students who do not meet the grade-point average criteria will receive warning letters from the Council advising them that their entry into student teaching and their receiving recommendations for certification from the University are at risk. Students will be directed to their college deans for more information.

Residence Requirements

Each candidate for a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign must earn at least sixty semester hours of University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign credit, of which at least twenty one hours must be 300- or 400-level courses at a University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus location. (For further information, see the Student Code Residence Status Regulations.) In order to ensure professional competence of its graduates, the College of Fine and applied Arts requires that students take required senior courses in their major field of study in residence at the University of Illinois at Urbana.

Scholastic Requirements for Graduation

All candidates for a degree must have at least a 2.0 (C) average on all University of Illinois credits counted for graduation and at least a 2.0 average on the combined transfer and University of Illinois credits counted for graduation. However the College of Fine & Applied Arts has minimum cumulative GPA requirements for many degrees that are higher than the University minimum (see chart below).

A DARS audit is an unofficial audit of your degree progress that reflects courses currently in-progress. Visit the website of the Office of the Registrar to generate an audit. Although the College of Fine and Applied Arts makes every effort to verify the accuracy of the student-generated DARS report, it is an advisory tool only. If there are any inconsistencies in the audit or if you have questions regarding your academic progress, contact the admissions/records supervisor in the Undergraduate Academic Affairs Office immediately. Ultimately, the responsibility for the preparation of a sound program, both academically and procedurally, lies with you. That is why you are expected to consult with your academic advisor and admissions/records supervisor on a regular basis.

Minimum GPA Requirements for College Units

How Curricular Requirements are Established

Both students and faculty are encouraged to evaluate existing curricular requirements continuously and to recommend changes for improvement. Proposals for curricular changes can be originated by any student or faculty member of the College. These proposals should be referred to the administrator of the department concerned for forwarding to department and college curriculum committees.

Any talk that you may hear of a new curricular change from either a student or faculty member should always be considered as just a rumor until it has been officially approved. The college office maintains accurate records on the status of all curricular proposals.