General Studies, AA

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Contact Information

Dr. Frank Van Nuys
Department of Social Sciences
Classroom Building 305
(605) 394-2489
E-mail: Frank.VanNuys@sdsmt.edu

The Associate of Arts Degree in General Studies is a two-year degree program that provides a student the opportunity to complete a curriculum in traditional fields of study. The total semester credits required is 60. The curriculum offers a broad and varied background in general education as well as opportunities to explore a number of disciplines as a basis for entrance into a four-year degree program. Completion of the A.A. degree will fulfill the general education requirements for an associate degree at the state universities of South Dakota. Approved general education courses from other state universities may be used to satisfy the School of Mines general education requirements. The program of studies is as follows:

Associate of Arts Degree General Education Requirements

The AA degree requires 24 semester credits of general education coursework. Students are responsible for checking with their advisors for any program modifications that may occur after the publication of this catalog. For General Education courses that are not offered at SDSMT, please consult the General Education Requirements Checklist .

A. Written Communication (Goal 1)

A minimum of 6 semester hours is required. Courses offered at Mines include the following:

ENGL 101 Composition I Credits: (3-0) 3
ENGL 201 Composition II Credits: (3-0) 3
ENGL 279 Communication in the STEM Workplace Credits: (3-0) 3

B. Oral Communication (Goal 2)

A minimum of 3 semester hours is required. Courses offered at Mines include the following:

ENGL 279 Communication in the STEM Workplace Credits: (3-0) 3
ENGL 289 Explorations in STEM Communications Credits: (3-0) 3
SPCM 101 Fundamentals of Speech Credits: (3-0) 3

Note(s):

Students who intend to continue at or return to Mines for a BS degree are recommended to take a sequence of ENGL 101 , ENGL 279 , ENGL 289 to complete their Goals 1 and 2.

C. Social Sciences (Goal 3)

Courses in anthropology, economics, geography, history, political science, psychology, and sociology may be used. A minimum of 3 semester hours is required. Courses offered at Mines include the following:

ANTH 210 Cultural Anthropology Credits: (3-0) 3
HIST 151 United States History I Credits: (3-0) 3
HIST 152 United States History II Credits: (3-0) 3
POLS 100 American Government Credits: (3-0) 3
POLS 102 American Political Issues Credits: (3-0) 3
POLS 165 Political Ideologies Credits: (3-0) 3
POLS 250 Introduction to International Relations Credits: (3-0) 3
PSYC 101 General Psychology Credits: (3-0) 3
PSYC 102 Psychology of Personal Growth Credits: (3-0) 3
SOC 100 Introduction to Sociology Credits: (3-0) 3
SOC 150 Social Problems Credits: (3-0) 3
SOC 250 Courtship and Marriage Credits: (3-0) 3
SOC 285 Society and Technology Credits: (3-0) 3

Note(s):

Students who intend to continue at or return to SD Mines for B.S. degree should take a minimum of 6 semester hours in two different disciplines, with two different prefixes.

D. Arts and Humanities (Goal 4)

Courses in western civilization, literature, philosophy, religion, non-English languages, art, music, and theatre may be used. A minimum of 3 semester hours is required. Courses offered at Mines include the following:

ART 111/111L Drawing I Credits: (3-0) 3
ART 112/112L Drawing II Credits: (3-0) 3
ART 121 Design I 2D Credits: (3-0) 3
ARTH 211 History of World Art I Credits: (3-0) 3
ENGL 210 Introduction to Literature Credits: (3-0) 3
ENGL 212 World Literature II Credits: (3-0) 3
ENGL 221 British Literature I Credits: (3-0) 3
ENGL 222 British Literature II Credits: (3-0) 3
ENGL 241 American Literature I Credits: (3-0) 3
ENGL 242 American Literature II Credits: (3-0) 3
ENGL 250 Science Fiction Credits: (3-0) 3
GER 101 Introductory German I Credits: (4-0) 4 AND
GER 102 Introductory German II Credits: (4-0) 4
HIST 121 Western Civilization I Credits: (3-0) 3
HIST 122 Western Civilization II Credits: (3-0) 3
HUM 100 Introduction to Humanities Credits: (3-0) 3
HUM 200 Connections: Humanities & Technology Credits: (3-0) 3
HUM 250 Environmental Ethics and STEM Credits: (3-0) 3
MUS 117 Music in Performance I Credits: (1-0) 1
PHIL 100 Introduction to Philosophy Credits: (3-0) 3
PHIL 200 Introduction to Logic Credits: (3-0) 3
PHIL 220 Introduction to Ethics Credits: (3-0) 3
PHIL 233 Philosophy and Literature Credits: (3-0) 3
SPAN 101 Introductory Spanish I Credits: (4-0) 4 AND
SPAN 102 Introductory Spanish II Credits: (4-0) 4

Note(s):

ART and ARTH are considered the same prefix.

Students must complete three semesters/three credits in MUS 117 to earn Humanities general education credit.

Students who intend to continue at or return to SD Mines for B.S. degree should take a minimum of 6 semester hours in two different disciplines, with two different prefixes.

E. Mathematics (Goal 5)

A minimum of 3 semester hours of college algebra or a math course with college algebra as a prerequisite is required.

MATH 114 College Algebra Credits: (3-0) 3

F. Natural Sciences (Goal 6)

A minimum of 6 semester hours in the natural sciences is required plus one semester hour of laboratory (for an actual total of 7 credits in natural sciences). Courses in biology, chemistry, earth science, geology, and physics may be used. The following courses are offered at Mines:

BIOL 151 General Biology I Credits: (3-0) 3 AND
BIOL 151L General Biology I Lab Credits: (0-1) 1
BIOL 153 General Biology II Credits: (3-0) 3 AND
BIOL 153L General Biology II Lab Credits: (0-1) 1
CHEM 112 General Chemistry I Credits: (3-0) 3 AND
CHEM 112L General Chemistry I Lab Credits: (0-1) 1
CHEM 114 General Chemistry II Credits: (3-0) 3 AND
CHEM 114L General Chemistry II Lab Credits: (0-1) 1
GEOL 201 Physical Geology Credits: (3-0) 3 AND
GEOL 201L Physical Geology Laboratory Credits: (0-1) 1
PHYS 111 Introduction to Physics I Credits: (3-0) 3 AND
PHYS 111L Introduction to Physics I Laboratory Credits: (0-1) 1
PHYS 113 Introduction to Physics II Credits: (3-0) 3 AND
PHYS 113L Introduction to Physics II Laboratory Credits: (0-1) 1
PHYS 211 University Physics I Credits: (3-0) 3
PHYS 213 University Physics II Credits: (3-0) 3 AND
PHYS 213L University Physics II Laboratory Credits: (0-1) 1

Electives

Total semester credits required to graduate with the AA degree is 60. The number of elective credits will vary depending on the courses selected in humanities, social sciences, mathematics, and natural sciences. All elective courses must be approved by the student’s academic advisor.

Other Degree Requirements

Students must have achieved a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.00 in order to graduate with this degree.

After completion of 45 credit hours, students may register for up to nine hours of 300 level courses.

Students must meet the Institutional Credit Requirements, which include completion of a minimum of 15 credits from School of Mines. In addition, 8 of the last 15 credits counted toward the degree must be taken from School of Mines.

Students must be enrolled in at least one course during the semester of graduation.

This information and an A.A. worksheet may be found at: http://is.sdsmt.edu.