General Education Program Requirements

General Education: The Human Community is an essential part of every undergraduate degree program offered at JMU. Its learning outcomes are organized into five areas of study that we call clusters. Courses in each cluster have been designed by JMU faculty to meet the specific outcomes associated with that area. In order to graduate, each student must complete all five clusters, which typically comprise one-third of a student’s coursework, about 41 credit hours. Cluster Search Codes can be found HERE.

Below is a brief overview of the program’s requirements. For a cluster-by-cluster list of learning outcomes and courses, please click on the links at left.

Complete one course in each of the following areas:

• Critical Thinking
• Human Communication
• Writing

Complete the Madison Research Essentials Skills Test (MREST) - according to admit term requirements. Please see Information Literacy page for more information.

Complete one course in each of the following areas:

• Human Questions and Contexts
• Visual and Performing Arts
• Literature

Complete one course in each of the following areas:

• Quantitative Reasoning
• Physical Principles
• Natural Systems
• Lab Requirement

Complete one course in each of the following areas:

• The American Experience
• The Global Experience

Complete one course in each of the following areas:

• Wellness Domain
• Sociocultural Domain