From the first day of my foray into NC State’s beginner French class, FL 101, I thought I was doomed. I’d only taken Spanish in high school, and having barely retained that, I knew French would be hard to learn, and boy, was I right. I wondered why as an English major, I needed to take French in the first place. I was annoyed that it was a requirement, but it was rewarding once I finally learned to greet people and give someone the time.
I scoffed when, as a transfer student, I looked at the general education requirements, and learned I would have to take an athletic course in order to graduate. As I’ve mentioned in a previous article, I am not naturally athletically inclined, but after running a 5K for a good cause this spring semester, I became excited by the prospect. It was when I was required to take a humanities course outside of my major that I fell in love with political science, something I would never have discovered otherwise.
As an English major, I have shaken my head many times when I realized that my course requirements wouldn’t just include my preference of writing and reading books. In fact, most people I know hate the fact that they are required to take courses outside of their major.
General education courses are a requirement at most universities, and NC State is no exception. If you asked most econ majors how they feel about writing papers on British literature, a lot of them may find it a waste of time. The same goes for a lot of people. I often hear other students remarking that general education courses are a waste of time and money.
I used to think the same thing, but I don’t anymore. I believe that it is a good thing that general education courses are a requirement at NC State, and that in the end, they can help students succeed.
Nearly every general education course that I’ve taken in college has taught me something new. They have expanded my knowledge on subjects I would have felt too daunted to explore on my own, and given me new perspective on the subjects I already cared about. I truly believe that general education courses are a good thing. They allow students to expand their knowledge, discover new passions, and develop as people.
A new class of freshman will soon be entering NC State in the fall, and most of them will have the same general education requirements. They will likely hear a chorus of people telling them these classes are a waste of time.
This isn’t accurate; according to a 2013 study conducted by the John W. Pope center for Higher Education Policy, “general education can be the most valuable part of a student’s college education. It emphasizes skills, knowledge, and reasoning that are applicable to all careers.”
In fact, according to the American Council of Trustees and Alumni or ACTA, colleges and universities should include a wide range of general education requirements in order to ensure student success. According to an article published in Forbes, the ACTA says that “colleges ought to cover these seven areas in their general education requirements: English composition, literature, foreign language, economics, college-level mathematics, and natural or physical science.”
If a certain subject isn’t a student’s favorite, it can seem annoying or even pointless to take a class on it, but the reality is that that this course can teach a student something new that they may have not considered.
In an opinion column published on the Huffington Post blog, writer Chuck Cohn writes that, “The purpose of a college education is to not only make our future professionals and leaders erudite in their intended fields of study, but to also make them well-rounded.” I believe that this is true. If I hadn’t been challenged to go outside of my comfort zone, like thousands of other NC State students, and millions across the country, I never would have learned from it. I am better for it.
General education courses are not just busy work we are forced to accomplish before we get to the “real” courses we will eventually take. GEP classes can help students expand what they already know, learn new things, discover new interests, and even discover a major they never considered. I encourage any student who thinks that our general education courses at NC State are a waste of time to think about where they would or wouldn’t be without them.
