General Education Requirements (Pathways)

In order to graduate, all students are required to complete the following:

1. General Education Requirements

2. Major-field courses

3. Free-elective courses

General Education Requirements (Pathways)

All students entering City College, whether as freshmen or transfers, in Fall 2013 and later must meet Pathways General Education requirements to qualify for a degree. 

Pathways General Education Requirements at City College consist of:

I. The Common Core (30 credits)

A. Required (Fixed) Common Core (12 credits / 4 courses)

1. English Composition (2 courses)

   English Composition 1

   English Composition 2

2. Mathematical and Quantitative Reasoning (1 course)

3. Life and Physical Sciences (1 course)

B. Flexible Common Core (18 credits / 6 courses)

Students will complete at least one course in each of the five Flexible Core areas and an additional sixth course in one of them. Students can complete no more than two courses from any one discipline or interdisciplinary field.

Flexible core areas are:

1. World Cultures and Global Issues

2. U.S. Experience in Its Diversity

3. Creative Expression

4. Individual and Society

5. Scientific World

Once a student has met a Common Core area requirement at one CUNY college, that requirement will be met at any other CUNY college. Transfer students from institutions other than CUNY will have their transcripts evaluated and will be given credit for General Education courses taken at the previous institution as appropriate.

II. Additional City College Requirements (College Option, 12 credits)

These requirements vary depending on the degree being pursued. See General Education Requirements (Pathways) for CLAS students, below for more details. Transfer students need to take 6 to 12 College Option credits depending on how many credits they have at the time of transfer. See General Education Requirements (Pathways) for Transfer Students, below, for more details.

General Education Requirements (Pathways) for CLAS Students

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)

I. Common Core

II. Additional City College Requirements (12 crs) (College Option)

*There are several ways to fulfill the language requirement: four years of the same foreign language in high school; exemption via placement exam; or AP exam/IB equivalencies. Check with your academic advisor and the Department of Classical and Modern Languages and Literatures' section in this bulletin.

**Students are advised to complete this requirement after having completed 30 credits and before having completed 60.

Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.)

I. Common Core

II. Additional City College Requirements (12 crs) (College Option)

*There are several ways to fulfill the language requirement: two years of the same foreign language in high school; exemption via placement exam; or AP exam/IB equivalencies. Check with your academic advisor and the Department of Classical and Modern Languages and Literatures' section in this bulletin.

**Students are advised to complete this requirement after having completed 30 credits and before having completed 60.

Bachelor of Science (B.S.)

I. Common Core

II. Additional City College Requirements (12 crs)

*There are several ways to fulfill the language requirement. Check with your academic advisor: Two years of the same foreign language in high school; exemption via placement exam; or AP exam/IB equivalencies. Check with your academic advisor and the Department of Classical and Modern Languages and Literatures' section in this bulletin.

**Students are advised to complete this requirement after having completed 30 credits and before having completed 60.

Because many Common Core and College Option courses can simultaneously count toward the satisfaction of major requirements for specific majors, students who have chosen or have a specific major in mind, should consult specific departmental pages of this bulletin and meet with an advisor to see which choices will help them complete their degrees most efficiently.

Students in the Spitzer School of Architecture, CUNY School of Medicine, the Grove School of Engineering, the School of Education, the Center for Worker Education, The Macaulay Honors College at City College, and the City College Honors Program should consult the relevant pages of this bulletin and see an academic advisor for specific Pathways coursework requirements and recommendations.

General Education Requirements (Pathways) for Transfer Students

All transfer students are required to complete the 30-credit Common Core through coursework at City College, another college, or some combination of these.

In addition, all associate’s degree students, including A.A.S. students, who transfer to baccalaureate programs will be required to complete additional General Education coursework at City College as follows:

1. Students who transfer with 30 or fewer total credits from any college will be required to earn 12 credits from City College’s additional General Education requirements.

2. Students without an associate’s degree who transfer with more than 30 credits from any college will be required to earn 9 credits from City College’s additional General Education requirements.

3. Students who transfer with an associate’s degree from any college will be required to earn 6 credits from City College’s additional General Education requirements called College Option.