General Education Requirements

The Ohio State University is committed to educating students for life as well as for their future careers. The university's General Education (GE) requirements are a vital piece of their education that every undergraduate student at Ohio State shares, regardless of major. It is designed to enhance a student's technical training for a career in a specific field with other skills that will make them a well-rounded person. These include skills such as communication, critical analysis, and cultural awareness.

Beginning in Autumn 2022, the university will implement a new set of GE requirements for most new students. If you began your Ohio State undergraduate degree before Autumn 2022, you won't need to change your plans; your courses will still be offered and listed as "General Education - Legacy" courses.

The new GE is a coherent three-part program requiring 32 to 39 hours (reduced from 44 to 69 hours). The new GE consists of:

Bookend courses (2 hours) Students will take a launch seminar and a concluding reflection seminar to begin and end the GE program. For engineering students, the concluding reflection seminar is a part of your senior capstone design course and will not be a separate requirement.
Foundation courses (22-25 hours) -- Students will take one course in each of seven distinct disciplines.
Theme courses (8-12 hours) -- All students will take courses in the Citizenship for a Diverse and Just World Theme (4-6 hours) and in one additional Theme of their choosing:
- Lived Environments (4-6 hours)
- Sustainability (4-6 hours)
- Health and Well-being (4-6 hours)

Transfer students

Transfer students who have been working toward transitioning to Ohio State and will enter between the Autumn 2022 and Summer 2024 sessions may petition to participate in the Legacy (college-specific) GE. Students will need to work with their advisors to make this decision and file the petition to opt into the Legacy GE.

Benefits of the new GE

The new GE is an integrated, broad-based, core education that envelopes multiple disciplines, enhances a student's major program, and inspires critical thinking and innovation.

GE requirements gives students more flexibility to pursue electives, minors or second majors.
All undergraduate colleges will adhere strictly to the same GE model; there will no longer be college-specific GEs. This means students who change majors or add a second major won't find themselves trying to meet two different GE requirements.
The new GE defines clear learning objectives and recognizes that data analysis, technology and advanced writing are essential for a contemporary undergraduate education.
The new GE embeds assessment mechanisms to monitor effectiveness and student success. Consequently, the new GE will be reviewed regularly and updated as needed.
The new GE is a multiyear program in which courses build upon each other, rather than a menu of unconnected courses. It begins with an introductory seminar and concludes with a capstone in which students demonstrate how their thinking has evolved over the course of their undergraduate studies. Consequently, these Bookend courses give the program cohesiveness.

General Education Requirements