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- About the Bulletin
- Introduction to Stony Brook
- Student Services
- Admissions
- Financial Information
- Scholarships and Awards
- Degree Requirements
- Academic Policies and Regulations
- Special Academic Programs
- Approved Programs
- Courses
- Supplement to the Bulletin - Fall 2000
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General education courses, the major, and electives are the three components of a university education. By completing a major, students learn to use the methods of a discipline to gain insight into its subject matter, about which they acquire some depth of knowledge. General education courses provide breadth of knowledge within a balanced liberal arts framework. Electives give students freedom to choose courses that enhance their educational goals beyond the basic requirements set by the faculty.
General education requirements help students to place the more specialized parts of their undergraduate study, their major and pre-professional training, in a cultural and historical context. They also develop the intellectual skills necessary to enhance learning during the university years and later. In this complex world, distant places and past history affect all human life. The knowledge of the variety, richness, and interdependence of the human experience that students gain during their undergraduate years will enrich their future professional and personal life. The person with a broad education in the arts and sciences and with well-developed communication and quantitative skills is most likely to flourish in changing times.
University Degree Requirements
Note: The Degree Audit Report and Tracking System (DARTS) provides a computer-generated report indicating each student’s progress toward fulfilling degree requirements. The report is designed to be a helpful advisory tool and is not an official evaluation of a student’s progress.
Credit Hour Requirement
- Bachelor of Arts degree: Completion of at least 120 hours of passing work.
Bachelor of Science degree: Completion of at least 120 credit hours of passing work.
Bachelor of Engineering degree: Completion of at least 128 credit hours.
Liberal Arts and Sciences Requirement
State education guidelines require students to complete a minimum number of credits in the liberal arts and sciences. Stony Brook degree requirements are structured so that students satisfy this requirement by completing the other requirements for the degree.
Residence Requirement
After the 57th credit, at least 36 credits must be earned at Stony Brook.
Notes:
- Special restrictions apply to students earning a Bachelor of Engineering degree. Refer to the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences chapter for details.
- Credits earned in Study Abroad programs—except those sponsored by Stony Brook—do not count toward residency.
- Credits earned in National Student Exchange programs do not count toward residency
A minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.00 is required for all academic work at Stony Brook. (Note: Grades from other institutions are not included in the Stony Brook g.p.a.)
Major Requirement
Each candidate for a degree must satisfy the requirements of a declared major. Major requirements are detailed in the “Approved Programs” section of this Bulletin. Students must officially declare a major by the end of the freshman year.
Upper-Division Credit Requirement
Each candidate must earn at least 39 credits in upper-division courses (numbered 300 and higher).
Some of these credits may be earned through courses transferred from other colleges and individually evaluated at Stony Brook as upper division. See “Transfer Credit Policies” in the chapter “Academic Policies and Regulations.”
General Education Requirement: Entry Skills and Diversified Education Curriculum
Candidates for degrees in the College of Arts and Sciences, the W. Averell Harriman School of Policy and Management, and the Marine Sciences Research Center must have satisfied Entry Skill 1 Basic Mathematics Competence, Entry Skill 2 Basic Writing Competence, Entry Skill 3 Elementary Foreign Language, and the Diversified Education Curriculum for these students detailed in this chapter.
Candidates for degrees in Applied Mathematics and Statistics, Computer Science, and Information Systems, and candidates for the Bachelor of Engineering degree must have satisfied Entry Skill 1 Basic Mathematics Competence, Entry Skill 2 Basic Writing Competence, and the Diversified Education Curriculum for these students detailed in this chapter.
Entry Skills
All students in the College of Arts and Sciences, W. Averell Harriman School of Policy and Management, and Marine Sciences Research Center are expected to show basic competence in mathematics, writing, and a foreign language. Students directly admitted to the majors in the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences (excluding business management) must show basic competence in mathematics and writing.
Skill 1: Basic Mathematics Competence
Students should be able to formulate and solve mathematical problems arising in their university work.
Basic Mathematics Competence may be satisfied before entering Stony Brook in either of the following ways:
- By having passed, while in high school, the New York State Regents Examination in Sequential Mathematics III with a score of at least 75.
- By having achieved a score of 525 or higher on the SAT II in mathematics; or a score of 560 or higher on the mathematics portion of the SAT I; or a score of 56 or higher on the mathematics portion of the PSAT; or a score of 23 or higher on the American College Testing (ACT) Test in Mathematics.
- By scoring at the appropriate level on a University placement test during their first year at Stony Brook. (This examination is offered during freshman and transfer orientations, in the first week of each semester, and before advance registration for the following semester.) Students who do not attain the proficiency-level score must enroll in the appropriate course during their first year on this campus.
- By earning a grade of C or higher in the remedial class MAP 103 or in a transferred course of at least three credits evaluated by Stony Brook as equivalent to MAP 103. Credit toward graduation will not be given for such transferred courses taken after matriculation.
- By obtaining at least three transfer credits or Challenge credit for any MAT or AMS course. Students who received transfer credit for such a course taken under the auspices of a college while they were in high school must attain the proficiency-level grade on a University placement test to satisfy this requirement, unless the course was taken on the campus of an accredited college and taught by a member of the college faculty.
- By passing with a grade of C or higher, while enrolled in a degree program at any two- or four-year college, any other mathematics course (excluding basic arithmetic, elementary algebra, and business or finance mathematics courses) of at least three credits counting toward graduation.
- By passing a Stony Brook course that meets the general education requirement in mathematics with a grade of C or higher.
- All entering students who have not achieved basic mathematics competence must satisfy the requirement in one of the following ways:
Skill 2: Basic Writing Competence
All entering students must take the University’s writing placement examination, a diagnostic placement test. This exam may be taken only once. Students satisfy Skill 2 by scoring level 3 or higher on the University’s writing placement examination or by having passed with a grade of C or higher a college composition course judged equivalent to WRT101 or 102 or 103 or by receiving a score of 3, 4, or 5 on the AP English exam. Students must begin satisfaction of writing competence in the first year and must take writing courses in sequence in successive semesters until the D.E.C. A English Composition requirement is satisfied.
Notes:
- College courses taken while the student was in high school can only be considered for equivalency to WRT 101 or 102 or 103 if taken on the college campus.
- Transfer students entering with an A.A. or A.S. degree from a SUNY or CUNY school do not automatically satisfy basic writing competence.
- Transfer students who have passed with a C or higher a course equivalent to WRT 101 or 102 or 103 need not take the placement examination.
Skill 3: Elementary Foreign Language Competence
Because of the increasing globalization of culture, society, and the economy, students should have an elementary knowledge of a foreign language.
Students achieve foreign language competence before entering Stony Brook by a third-year high school Regents examination score of 75 or higher or a score of 525 or higher on the SAT II in a foreign language. In the absence of a Regents score, a score of 75 or higher on the third-level high school language New York City Competency Test will satisfy the requirement. A third-year high school foreign language course passed with a grade of 85 or higher fulfills this requirement for those students whose high school does not offer the New York State Regents examination or its New York City equivalent. Stony Brook strongly recommends that students satisfy the requirement in high school. Students whose secondary school transcripts and transcripts from previously attended universities show a total of two years of formal language study in an institution where the language of instruction is other than English also have satisfied this requirement.
All entering students who have not achieved this entry-level foreign language competence may satisfy the requirement in one of the following ways:
- Enrolling in and passing with a letter grade of C or higher the second semester of an elementary foreign language course numbered 101 or 112 or enrolling in and passing a foreign language course at the intermediate level or higher.
- Obtaining equivalent transfer credit in a foreign language course with a grade of C or higher.
- Passing a Stony Brook Challenge examination in a foreign language course numbered 101 or numbered 112 or higher.
- Literature and culture courses taught in English translation under the auspices of the foreign language departments do not satisfy the elementary foreign language requirement.
- Students who received transfer credit for a foreign language course under the auspices of a college while in high school must attain the acceptable score on one of the standardized examinations listed above unless the course was taken on the campus of an accredited college and taught by a member of the college faculty.
- No credit is awarded for Stony Brook Challenge examinations taken to fulfill the elementary foreign language requirement unless the student meets the requirements outlined in “Guidelines for the Stony Brook Challenge Program,” available in the Academic Advising Center.
- Students who know a language not offered at Stony Brook may satisfy the elementary foreign language requirement through the Challenge Examination Program by meeting the “Guidelines for the Stony Brook Challenge Program,” although no credit will be awarded.
D.E.C. courses are shown in the course listings at the back of this Bulletin; the D.E.C. category letter (A through K) is tagged to the course number (e.g., WRT 103-A). Courses with a D.E.C. category tag that are taken for the major can also be used to satisfy the appropriate D.E.C. category.
Important notes:
- All courses offered to satisfy D.E.C. requirements must be taken for a letter grade. Courses taken for Pass/No Credit will not satisfy D.E.C. requirements.
- A course is assigned to one D.E.C. category only and will satisfy only the category to which it is assigned.
- If no letter tag appears after a course number, that course may not be used to satisfy any D.E.C. requirement.
- College courses taken while the student was in high school can only be evaluated for applicability to D.E.C. categories if the courses were taught on the college campus.
- AP, CLEP subject examinations, RCE, or Challenge credit, or other approved credit by examinations with appropriate scores, may be used to satisfy one course in each of the categories E, F, and G. Course credit by examination may not be used in any other category except AP credit for category C.
- Categories I and J may be satisfied by transfer in only two ways: 1) with one semester of an intermediate level or higher foreign language course appropriate to the category; 2) with six credits of college-level study abroad (with no more than three of these credits at the elementary level of the appropriate foreign language) in a geographic area applicable to the category.
University Skills
Use the lines provided under each category to work out how you will satisfy your D.E.C. requirements. The first group of requirements—D.E.C. categories A-D—focuses on ways of learning essential to the entire academic experience and subject matter intrinsic to liberal learning.
Category A
English Composition
2 courses
The ability to communicate effectively in written English is essential to success both in the University and in society. Students satisfy this requirement by passing WRT 101 Introductory Writing Workshop and WRT 102 Intermediate Writing Workshop A or WRT 103 Intermediate Writing Workshop B.
Notes:
- A score of 4 or 5 on the University's writing placement examination satisfies the first course of the two course requirement.
- Students must begin completion of D.E.C. A during their first year at Stony Brook and must take writing courses in sequence until the requirement is satisfied.
- All transfer and rematriculated students who have passed, with a grade of C or higher, a composition course judged equivalent to WRT 102 or WRT 103 will have satisfied this requirement.
- Once matriculated, the student must complete Category A at Stony Brook.
Category B
Interpreting Texts in the Humanities
1 course
Category B courses help students develop skills of interpretation and analysis that will enable them to examine subject matter critically, not only in the humanities, but in all other college courses.
Category C
Mathematical and Statistical Reasoning
1 course
Category C courses help students understand and use quantitative skills and ideas critical to higher education.
Note: A score of 4 or 5 on the AP mathematics examination satisfies category C.
Category D
Understanding the Fine and Performing Arts
1 course
Category D courses acquaint students with the works of creative artists and performers and their artistic medium, such as art, music, or theater. The basic terminology, analytical tools used to interpret one of the arts, and representative works in a particular field are examined. Such exposure is essential to intellectual growth and the development of a humanist foundation from which to approach other disciplines.
Disciplinary Diversity
The second group of requirements—D.E.C. categories E-G—exposes students to the modes of thinking, methods of study, and subject matter of major branches of knowledge—natural and physical sciences, social and behavioral sciences, and arts and humanities.
Category E
Natural Sciences
2 courses
Category E courses expand students’ knowledge about objects and processes observable in nature, whether animate as in the biological sciences, or inanimate as in the physical sciences of chemistry or physics.
Category F
Social and Behavioral Sciences
2 courses
Category F courses focus on individual and group behavior within society. These disciplines use methods such as historical analysis of documents, or survey and interview data, to observe and analyze human activity and society.
Category G
Humanities
2 courses
Category G courses examine disciplines and methods that express the way people view the human condition.
Expanding Perspectives and Cultural Awareness
The final group of requirements—D.E.C. categories H-K—challenges students to confront their own perceptions of the world and the people in it. Courses in these categories build on study in the earlier categories.
Category H
Implications of Science and Technology
1 course
Category H courses are designed to help students understand the social and global implications of science and technology and to examine examples of the impact of science, culture, and society on one another.
Category I
European Traditions
1 course
Category I courses consider the Western cultural tradition through specialized study of a European nation or area from one or more viewpoints (e.g., historical, artistic, social, political).
Category J
The World Beyond European Traditions
1 course
Category J courses increase students’ understanding of a nation, region, or culture that is significantly different from the United States and Europe in at least one respect.
Category K
American Pluralism
1 course
Category K courses apply a multicultural approach to study the diverse society of America. The focus may be on one group and its relation to the whole of U.S. society or on the interactions of several groups within our culture. Category K must be completed at Stony Brook.
D.E.C. Requirements for Students with Majors in Applied Mathematics and Statistics, Computer Science, Information Systems or Those Pursuing a Bachelor of Engineering Degree
University Skills
The first group of requirements—D.E.C. categories A-C—focuses on ways of learning essential to the entire academic experience and subject matter intrinsic to liberal learning.
Category A
English Composition
2 courses
The ability to communicate effectively in written English is essential to success both in the University and society. Students satisfy this requirement by passing WRT 101 Introductory Writing Workshop and WRT 102 Intermediate Writing Workshop A or WRT 103 Intermediate Writing Workshop B.
Notes:
- A score of 4 or 5 on the University's writing placement examination satisfies the first course of the two course requirement.
- Students must begin completion of D.E.C. A during their first year at Stony Brook and must take writing courses in sequence until the requirement is satisfied.
- All transfer and rematriculated students who have passed, with a grade of C or higher, a composition course judged equivalent to WRT 102 or WRT 103 will have satisfied this requirement.
- Once matriculated, the student must complete Category A at Stony Brook.
Category B
Interpreting Texts in the Humanities
1 course
Category B courses help students develop skills of interpretation and analysis that will enable them to examine subject matter critically, not only in the humanities, but in all other college courses.
Category C
Mathematical and Statistical Reasoning
1 course
Category C courses help students understand and use quantitative skills and ideas critical to higher education.
Note: A score of 4 or 5 on the AP mathematics examination satisfies category C.
Disciplinary Diversity
The second group of requirements—D.E.C. categories E-G—exposes students to the modes of thinking, methods of study, and subject matter of major branches of knowledge—natural and physical sciences, social and behavioral sciences, and arts and humanities.
Category E
Natural Sciences
2 courses
Category E courses expand students’ knowledge about objects and processes observable in nature, whether animate as in the biological sciences, or inanimate as in the physical sciences of chemistry or physics.
Category F
Social and Behavioral Sciences
1 course
Category F courses focus on individual and group behavior within society. These disciplines use methods such as historical analysis of documents, or survey and interview data, to observe and analyze human activity and society.
Category G
Humanities
1 course
Category G courses examine disciplines and methods that express the way people view the human condition.
Expanding Perspectives and Cultural Awareness
The final group of requirements—D.E.C. categories H-K—challenges students to confront their own perceptions of the world and the people in it. Courses in these categories build on study in the earlier categories.
In choosing courses to satisfy D.E.C. I and J, students should choose one with a humanities designator and one with a social and behavioral sciences designator.
Category H
Implications of Science and Technology
1 course
Category H courses are designed to help students understand the social and global implications of science and technology and to examine examples of the impact of science, culture, and society on one another.
Category I
European Traditions
1 course
Category I courses consider the Western cultural tradition through specialized study of a European nation or area from one or more viewpoints (e.g., historical, artistic, social, political).
Category J
The World Beyond European Traditions
1 course
Category J courses increase students’ understanding of a nation, region, or culture that is significantly different from the United States and Europe in at least one respect.
Note: B.E. degree students may petition the Undergraduate Student Office for permission to substitute a category K course for a category I or J course.
Category K
American Pluralism
1 course
Not required for students seeking the Bachelor of Engineering degree.
Category K courses apply a multicultural approach to study the diverse society of America. The focus may be on one group and its relation to the whole of U.S. society or on the interactions of several groups within our culture. Category K must be completed at Stony Brook.
