General Education: The Cardinal Core Curriculum

The Cardinal Core Curriculum is SUNY Plattsburgh’s general education program for the 21st century citizen. This program provides students with a rigorous and robust liberal arts education, grounded in perspectives of diversity and social justice. Undergraduate baccalaureate students complete the Foundation, including a selected Cardinal Foundation Seminar, as well as lower-and upper-division coursework in six Cardinal Core Categories.

Cardinal Core Curriculum Learning Outcomes

The Cardinal Core Curriculum will guide the educational requirements for students who enter SUNY Plattsburgh as first year students, as well as students who transfer in with fewer than 24 credits, beginning in Fall 2021. Transfer students who transfer in with 24 credits or more will be responsible for completing only the SUNY-mandated general education requirements rather than the complete Cardinal Core Curriculum.

Students who enrolled in SUNY Plattsburgh for the first time prior to Fall 2021 will follow the previous General Education Program (GE5). Please consult with an academic advisor for questions related to general education and degree requirements.

Cardinal Core Curriculum

Foundation 6-14 Credits

The Foundation is a set of courses and/or competencies designed to introduce new college students to academic expectations at SUNY Plattsburgh. The keystone of the Foundation is the topical first-year course, the Cardinal Foundation Seminar. Here and in other Foundation courses, students begin to explore their roles and identities as members of a pluralistic society. The Foundation also prepares students with essential skills in written communication, mathematics competency, and information literacy.

Cardinal Foundation Seminar

Students explore interesting topics and are supported in the transition to college in the Cardinal Foundation Seminar. Designed to be taken by first year students.

CFS 1889 - Cardinal Foundation Seminar (3 cr.) - Various topics available

Writing

Students may complete the Directed Self Placement process to determine their pathway for meeting the Writing requirement. It is recommended that students meet the college writing requirement in the first year. Alternatively, students who have a high school average of 85% or higher may directly enroll in ENG 101 - College Writing II (3 to 4 cr.). Students who have a high school average of less than 85% may begin a two course pathway with ENG 100 - College Writing I (4 cr.).

ENG 101 - College Writing II (3 to 4 cr.)

Information Literacy

Students should take LIB 190 with ENG 101 during the first year; thereafter, it is recommended that LIB 190 be taken before or at the same time as ENG 101 . The Information Literacy Competency Exam meets the requirement but does not award credit, does not replace a previously earned grade in LIB190, and can only be attempted once per academic year.

Mathematics

To enroll in a math course other than MAT 101 , MAT 106 , MAT 108 , or a course in the Quantitative Reasoning category of the Cardinal Core Curriculum, students must first demonstrate competency in Mathematics. This can be accomplished by meeting one of the following:

SAT Mathematics score of at least 530
ACT Mathematics score of at least 21
High school overall grade average of 85% or higher
MAT 101 - Elementary College Mathematics (3 cr.) with a grade of C or better
MAT 106 - Quantitative Pathways I (3 cr.) and MAT 107 - Quantitative Pathways II (3 cr.)
MAT 108 - Statistical Pathways I (3 cr.) and MAT 109 - Statistical Pathways II (3 cr.)
Transfer credit for any mathematics course also offered by SUNY Plattsburgh
Mathematics Competency Exam passing score (0 cr.) - may be taken by any student who has not previously taken or currently enrolled in MAT 101, MAT 106 or MAT 108.

Cardinal Core Categories 27 Credits

The six Cardinal Core Categories provide students with the opportunity to explore a wide range of multi-disciplinary topics. Each course within the Categories addresses content knowledge, skills (including communication, critical thinking, discovery and inquiry, and quantitiative reasoning), and perspectives on responsibility in the areas of individual development, social justice, and global awareness.

Students must complete at least one course from each category, a minimum of 27 credits from among the categories, and at least six credits must be from upper division courses (300 or 400 level) in any category. No more than 3 courses with the same prefix (except for HON) may be used towards the Cardinal Core Categories.

Human Communities

Courses in this area promote a critical self-awareness of individuals’ roles and responsibilities within communities by examining how people interact with each other and in groups.

Individual Expression

Courses in this area encourage students to reflect on their roles within a diverse society through exploration of the multiple ways we reason, engage with, document, and creatively represent or express the range of human experience.

Natural World

Courses in this area explore the scientific concepts, models, and methods necessary to study natural phenomena that affect the global community.

Quantitative Reasoning

Courses in this area develop and utilize quantitative skills to address practical problems in order to better understand the world.

U.S. Identities

Courses in this area explore communities, histories, and institutions within the United States to engage students in critical examination of their roles in American society.

World Cultures

Courses in this area explore communities, histories, and institutions outside the United States to engage students in critical examination of their roles in a global society.