College Distribution Requirements
The UMass Dartmouth College of Arts & Sciences College Distribution Requirements have been updated effective Fall 2024. CAS students should check within their department or program to determine if their major requires particular courses within the distribution.
UMass Dartmouth College of Arts & Sciences Degree Requirement Overview - Fall 2024 Update
This is for representative purposes, please refer to the 2024-2025 UMassD official catalog for college requirements and visit your UMassD advisor and/or the STAR Center for further details on fulfilling the degree requirements for each major.
- For Biology, Chemistry and Math BS degrees, the new requirements mean that students in these majors can fulfill college requirements by completing University Studies and Major requirements. For other BS degrees, students will need to take at least 8 credits in STEM/Quantitative category to complete college requirements.
- For BA degrees, students may be required to take up to five fewer courses under the new requirements.
What do I need to do as a UMass Dartmouth CAS student?
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Returning students have the option to
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Remain on the former requirements (no action needed)
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Or choose to Opt-In to the new requirements
- Returning students should meet with their advisor and/or the STAR Center to make an informed decision about an Opt-In
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All current CAS students will receive a communication in the fall semester when the Opt-In Form is available
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Students starting in the Fall 2024 (first years and transfers) will be subject to the new CAS college requirements
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You do not need to take any action
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CAS College Distribution Requirements
| Degree |
Requirements prior to Fall 2024 |
Requirements effective Fall 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelor of Science (B.S.) |
Major Requirements University Studies CAS Requirements (with corresponding University Studies): Transition course (1E) - CAS 101/103 - 1 to 3 credits Critical Reading and Writing (ENL101 and ENL102) (1A and 1B) - 6 credits Literature (3A plus additional course) - 6 credits Science (2A and 2B) - 6 credits Humanities and Social Sciences - 18 total credits (at least 6 credits in each):
Mathematics (1D) - 3 credits (required by University studies but not CAS College Distribution Requirements) |
Major Requirements University Studies CAS Requirements (with corresponding University Studies): Transition course (1E) - CAS 101/103 - 1 to 3 credits Critical Reading and Writing (ENL101 and ENL102) (1A and 1B) - 6 credits Literature (3A) - 3 credits Science (2A and 2B) - 6 credits Humanities - 6 credits (may overlap with University Studies) Social Sciences - 6 credits (may overlap with University Studies) Mathematics (1D) - 3 credits STEM/Quantitative Science - 8 credits (may be filled with major requirements using courses outside of primary major, e.g. PHY 101 and 102 for a Mathematics B.S.) |
| Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) |
Major Requirements University Studies CAS Requirements: CAS 103 (also 1E) - 3 credits ENL 101 and 102 (1A, 1B) - 6 credits Literature (3A plus one more course)- 6 credits Natural Science (2A and 2B plus one more course) - 9 credits Humanities - 9 credits Social Science - 12 credits Global Language - 0-12 credits up to level 202 competency (Mathematics required in University Studies as 1D - 3 credits) |
Major Requirements University Studies CAS Requirements: CAS 103 (1E) - 3 credits ENL 101 and 102 (1A, 1B) - 6 credits Literature (3A) – 3 credits Natural Science (2A and 2B) - 6 credits Humanities - 9 credits (may overlap with University Studies) Social Sciences - 9 credits (may overlap with University Studies) Global Language – 0 to 6 credits up to level 102 competence Mathematics (1D) - 3 credits |
CAS College Distribution Requirements and University Studies
Although there is some overlap, the CAS Distribution Requirements are in addition to the University's Studies Program.
Important Notes
For both the BA and the BS requirements, the following rules for counting classes apply:
- Literature includes English literature, literature in a foreign language, or foreign literature in translation.
- Humanities must not be taken in a student’s major, and include literature in English, literature in a foreign language, or foreign literature in translation, and culture and civilization courses from the departments of Global Languages and Culture and Portuguese, as well as classes with any of the following prefixes: ARH, ENL, HST, MUS, PHL (excluding applied courses)
- Mathematics includes any classes with the MTH prefix (MTH 100 does not fulfill the requirement)
- Sciences include any courses with the following prefixes: BIO, CHM, DSC, MLS, PHY, and MAR110.
- Social sciences must not be taken in a student’s major field and include any classes with the following prefixes: CJS, ECO, PAD, POL, PSC, PSY, and SOA.
- Cross-listed inter-disciplinary courses will follow the disciplinary designation of the cross-list. For non-cross listed courses, the following rules apply:
- AGH, BLS, LCE, SUS, and WGS count as social science courses
- HLT, LAR and URB courses can count as either humanities or social sciences.
- LEG and REL courses count as humanities courses
- Cross-listed inter-disciplinary course examples:
- WGS courses cross-listed with ENL will count as Humanities
- WGS courses cross-listed with SOA will count as Social Science
- Transition courses include, but are not necessarily limited to, CAS101, CAS103, DSC101, HON101.
- STEM/Quantitative Science include any classes with the following prefixes: BIO, CHM, CIS, DAN, DSC, ENG, MAR, MLS, MTH, NUR, PHY. Courses can meet major requirements but must not have the same departmental designation as the major.