Comparing liberal studies requirements at Cornell

For Dept. of Architecture curriculum review to comply with NAAB "general studies" conditions for accreditation (see their 2004 Edition PDF). The relevant text is as follows:

• General Studies. "A professional degree program must include general studies in the arts, humanities, and sciences, either as an admission requirement or as part of the curriculum. It must ensure that students have the prerequisite general studies to undertake professional studies. The curriculum leading to the architecture degree must include at least 45 credit hours, or the quarter-hour equivalent, that must be outside architectural studies either as general studies or as electives with other than architectural content. For the M. Arch. and D. Arch., this calculation may include coursework taken at the undergraduate level."

  Note that the definition of "liberal studies" as having "other than architectural content" is clarified in the NAAB News: "...the requirement that course distribution be 60 percent professional studies and 40 percent general studies has been replaced with a requirement that each degree must include a minimum of 45 credits of coursework with no architectural content." [emphasis added]

• Electives. In addition, the NAAB document has further requirements that a "professional degree program must allow students to pursue their special interests. The curriculum must be flexible enough to allow students to complete minors or develop areas of concentration, inside or outside the program." Some examples of requirements for concentrations at Cornell: a French Studies concentration requires five courses, including the basic 200-level language prerequisite; five courses are also required for a concentration in archaeology.

Commentary on possible B.Arch. changes: Our current B.Arch. curriculum leaves us 12 credit hours short of satisfying NAAB requirements for liberal studies content. The four proposals shown below (A, B, C, D) deal with this 12 credit hour shortfall in different ways:

• Proposal "A" takes 12 credit hours from in-or-out-of-AA&P electives and puts them in the out-of-college (could be changed to "out-of-department") category. This is the "minimum" change scenario, since it leaves everything else as is.
• Proposal "B" makes major changes in liberal studies distribution requirements, but leaves architecture electives as is. It takes the 12 credit hours from the same place as Proposal "A" (in-or-out-of-AA&P) but distributes them into Science/Quantitative Reasoning and Humanities/Social Sciences rather than increasing the out-of-AAP elective pot. There are two other changes shown that are not intrinsic to the strategy: dividing the current 2 studio art courses into 1 studio art and 1 CRP elective; and eliminating the calculus requirement.
• Proposal "C" makes major changes in both liberal studies and architecture elective distribution requirements. It is identical to Proposal "B" as far as the liberal studies distribution goes; but differs in the way in which the "missing" 12 credits are obtained. Here, the 12 credits are gained by reducing the architecture elective distribution credits in all subject areas to 3 credits, and eliminating the required course in Arch.Culture&Society. By doing this, the "in-or-out-of-AA&P" electives remain unchanged from the current curriculum.
• Proposal "D" makes major changes in architecture distribution electives, with minimal changes in liberal studies distribution. Thus, it is identical in its liberal studies strategy to Proposal "A" and identical in its architecture distribution strategy to Proposal "C."

There are perhaps three main issues to be considered:

• Ability of architecture students to determine their non-architecture coursework with or without specific liberal studies distribution requirements.
• The ability of architecture students to create "concentrations" either or both within the department, and outside of the department.
• To what degree architecture elective distribution requirements are specified.

The various proposals can be characterized in terms of these issues:

• Proposal "A" maintains the non-interventionist strategy of our current curriculum with respect to liberal studies distribution, makes it easy to create a non-architecture concentration, and difficult to create a departmental concentration. Architecture electives are highly specified in the various subject areas.
• Proposal "B" creates a more normative liberal studies distribution, makes it possible to create a non-architecture concentration, and difficult to create a departmental concentration. Architecture electives are highly specified in the various subject areas.
• Proposal "C" creates a more normative liberal studies distribution, makes it possible to create a non-architecture concentration, and easy to create a departmental concentration. Architecture electives are minimally specified in the various subject areas.
• Proposal "D" maintains the non-interventionist strategy of our current curriculum with respect to liberal studies distribution, makes it easy to create a non-architecture concentration, and easy to create a departmental concentration. Architecture electives are minimally specified in the various subject areas.

Summary comparison: B.Arch. curricular options

* could be changed to "Out-of-department" elective.

** 4 credits of the humanities/social science category consist of two required courses: a 3-credit required course in Architecture, Culture, and Society taught within the architecture department, but with sufficient social science content to meet the NAAB criteria for an elective with "other than architecture content;" and the 1-credit AA&P course, The World We Make."

Summary comparison: number of "liberal studies distribution" courses across campus

A. Arts & Sciences (BA)

1. transfer/AP credit not permitted for "breadth" or distribution
2. cannot use FWS for any other college requirement
3. each distribution requirement must be satisfied by a separate course ("breadth" is not distribution, and can be satisfied by a single course)
4. can use major to satisfy breadth or distribution
5. distribution must be appropriate designated A&S courses

B. City and Regional Planning

C. Fine Arts (BFA)

D. Engineerings (BS)

E. Landscape architecture (BS, CALS)

F. Current architecture (B.ARCH.)

G. Architecture proposal "A" (minimum changes in architecture elective distribution; minimum changes in liberal studies distribution to meet NAAB req'ments)

H. Architecture proposal "B" (minimum changes in architecture elective distribution; major changes in liberal studies distribution to meet NAAB req'ments)

I. Architecture proposal "C" (major changes in architecture elective distribution; major changes in liberal studies distribution to meet NAAB req'ments)

J. Architecture proposal "D" (major changes in architecture elective distribution; minimum changes in liberal studies distribution to meet NAAB req'ments)

First posted 19 Sept. 2007 | Last updated 02 Nov. 2007