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Arts and Sciences Core Curriculum Survey - 1997 - Student Comments

Question: "If you could change one thing about the Core/MAPS requirements, what would it be and how would you change it?"

[Student's major(s) listed before comment]


AMST

Because people are required to take them, many of the lower division literature
classes have a lot of people that do not care.



ANTH

Make it easier to get in to see an advisor.  This means realizing whether a
person needs extra help.



ANTH PHYS

More options in what to fulfill



ANTH SPAN

Make it possible for a student to petition to get certain requirements waived.



BCHM

I would take Ideals and Values out of the requirements or offer classes other
than sociology and conflict-related courses.



BCHM

I don't think that upper division writing should be required for students who 
can't get upper division writing in their major.



BCHM

I wouldn't have QRMS if you have to take math for your major.



BCHM

Mandatory public speaking class.



CHEM ENVS

Nothing.



COMM ADVT

Eliminate the Social Science MAPS requirement.  It is a redundant course.



COMM

Foreign language - reduce # of semesters



COMM

Math shouldn't be required for A&S students.  They [math mods] should be 
optional for someone who might be interested.



COMM

Not applicable.



ECON PSCI

The UWRP is a mockery.  A horrible requirement and department, that is.  The 
writing style forced on the students is detrimental.  Furthermore, the 
historical requirements are a huge waste of time.  I would change it by waiving 
it upon entrance, granted the student has completed the courses in high school.



ECON

No lower division writing - too big of a pain to test out of, but the class over
all  was useless.



ECON ENVS

Make classes more flexible as to filling the requirements



ECON

No upper division writing.  I think that the basics should be taught freshman 
year (ARSC 1100, for  example), then go on your own.



ECON IAFS

Not applicable.



ECON

Skip geography requirement for people who had half a year in high school.  Did 
much more for me than the one at UCB.



ENGL FILM

Cancel UWRP - all of them! Make entrance application essay more challenging.
Cancel QRMS, cut science in half, add creative arts requirements.



ENGL HIST

The 2-year Natural Science requirement to a 1-year requirement.



ENGL

Obviously.



ENGL

Make students take lower and upper writing as freshmen.  Expository writing
skills are needed through college - not 8 months before graduation.



ENGL

Not as many science hours.  



ENGL

Less science, no labs.



ENGL

No.



ENGL EDUC

No QRMS needed for English majors - who write all of the time anyway.



ENVS

Drop the MAPS requirement for geography.


ENVS

I would change requirements because a lot of classes I took didn't help me at 
all, they  just filled a requirement.  It took away from me being able to take 
other classes that I'd like better.  So  I'd make less Core.



ENVS

Make Core classes pass/fail.



ENVS

Foreign language requirement should be changed to 2 years.



EPOB

I think it's a fair amount of work and covers necessary areas.



EPOB

Geography requirement was too restrictive - (only two classes could fulfill this
requirement).



EPOB

I was able to overlap PHIL 3140 [Ideals & Values] with my EPOB major, both in
subject matter and credits.



EPOB

Less Core requirements.



EPOB

Some classes that are only for Core are not taken as seriously as they should be.



EPOB

Four years of foreign language and six credits of critical thinking.



GEOG

Ideals & Values, Critical Thinking and Cultural & Gender Diversity seem to
overlap a great deal.



GEOG

I would eliminate Core/MAPS.  If a student is mature enough to thoroughly
pursue a college education, then that student is mature enough to determine the
nature  and course of those studies.



GEOG

Take one class out of the science requirement - one non-sequence course.



GEOG

Be less anal about people who take geography in high school and let them bypass
the stupid MAPS requirement.



GEOG

I don't know.



HIST

UWRP as one class.



HIST

Get rid of the foreign language requirement in MAPS - what's with that?  I
enjoyed my language, but it shouldn't be required.



HIST ENGL

Cut back on science requirements, and I also don't understand why there are such
strict guidelines about how we choose to learn about literature or social 
science.



HIST

More sections for some of the Core classes.



HUMN

Less science, more FINE.



HUMN

I though QRMS was useless and a waste of my time.



IAFS

The writing classes need to be more interesting or at least not so deliberately
boring.



IAFS

Fewer science requirements.



IAFS PSCI

Get rid of it.  Change it by not making people take so many Core classes, thus
causing people to be in school for more than 4 years.  I also mean summer class
in  extra school time.



IAFS

UWRP requirement.



IAFS SPAN

Less emphasis on Natural Science.



IAFS PSCI

Get rid of the geography MAPS - Many high schools have geography in other
history classes that aren't titled geography, so no credit is given.



IAFS FREN

It needs to be more challenging like the core requirements of MIT or the 
University of Chicago.  I partied hard and yet received a B- as my lowest grade.



ITAL

Drop math mods.



JPNS ASIA

Really my experience with Core wasn't bad; I planned ahead of time.



KINE EPOB

Require more Core work.  Education could be more general in those aspects.



KINE

Drop Geography and foreign language.



KINE

I would add a physical education requirement.  Have a golf class, for example.



KINE

There are too many history-type classes (Historical, U.S. Context, Contemporary
Societies) - we  should have a choice of one or two of these.



KINE

Get rid of Cultural & Gender Diversity.  I felt like it was a ploy to "open" our
 minds, but  it didn't do  that!



KINE

I just think that my college education should have been more centered on letting
me  gain the knowledge that will most benefit my future.  Some requirements 
(i.e., Cultural &  Gender  Diversity)  actually could damage my future (grades)!



KINE

Cultural & Gender Diversity - not relevant to what I want to study.



LAMS

Natural Science - not so many.  Cultural & Gender Diversity more important in
today's society.



MCDB

No upper division Literature & the Arts.



MCDB

A better evaluation of transfer credit - meet with transfer students to discuss
classes taken that may fulfill requirements.



MCDB BCHM

Culture & Gender Diversity needs more classes to choose from (i.e., I'm not a
feminist, therefore my options are severely limited).



MCDB

Geography - No one takes this in high school so either the high schools should
require this or you shouldn't.



MCDB BCHM

I would like more flexibility in classes I can take.  I would have preferred, 
and benefited greatly, taking some computer and business classes.  Because of 
Core I didn't have time, although I would have benefited more from computer 
classes than Core.



MCDB

Eliminate Critical Thinking.



MCDB

I would abolish them and have a more centered learning.



MCDB

Be able to get more credit if comparable classes were taken in high school.



MCDB

Make it more specialized for different majors within A&S.



PSCI

GEOG 1982 was a nightmare! Boring and not as significant as it could be.



PSCI

Provide wider base of Core required classes with larger registration 
availability.



PSCI

The geography requirement - it is a difficult class to get in to and turned out
to be a pretty pointless class.  I have benefited for all of my Core except for 
the Geography course.



PSCI

Less Natural Science hours, less Literature & the Arts hours.  If someone really
cares, they can  major in it.



PSCI

I would get rid of the upper division writing requirement, especially if all 
that is offered  is UWRP.  Either that or have UWRP really teach something 
besides basic writing.



PSYC

Natural Science; I understand it's a necessity yet feel 13 hours is a bit much.
It  would be best to lower it to just a sequence and lab.



PSYC

More flexibility of when courses are offered.



PSYC

Cultural & Gender Diversity, Contemporary Societies and Ideals & Values
overlap quite a bit.



PSYC

The teacher makes a course - I would eliminate the teachers who do not care
about teaching and just wanted to get through the day.



PSYC

Offer more classes, or open more room in Core classes.



PSYC

Make UWRP courses smaller.  They are hard enough as they are.  There should
be 12 or less students, not 18 plus.



PSYC

Natural Science requirement: too much science required!



PSYC

Natural Science - should be easier to have classes transfer in, since we need so
many credits.



PSYC BCHM

Better categorizing for classes as to what Core requirements they might fulfill.
How:  work with  professors.



PSYC

Drop the Historical Context requirement.  It is redundant of what we learned in
high  school.



PSYC

Reduce the amount of classes needed; when there is no interest in the subject it
is much harder to want to learn.



PSYC

Inform high school students about MAPS.



PSYC ENGL

I would get rid of the QRMS requirement.



PSYC

I wouldn't change a thing.



PSYC

More!



RLST

Make at least two years of foreign language at the university level a 
requirement.



SLHS

Congratulations on accepting ASL as a foreign language.



SOCY

13 credits of natural science is unnecessary - 10 would suffice.



SOCY

Geography - most high schools don't offer it.



SOCY

MAPS should be able to complete before entering UCB, or should be exempted if 
not offered at high school.



SPAN ENVS

The Human Geography course is ridiculous.  I would do away with it.



SPAN

I would make more MAPS/Core classes available.  Students sometimes have trouble
getting into them.



WMST

I would make it easier to obtain the foreign language requirement and less
credits.



WMST

Minimize it.  This is college, not high school.  Math and science - please.  
You should offer physical education.  Those classes in which I had zero interest 
brought my GPA down.

Last revision 07/08/05