Associate of Arts Degree (AAG)

Program Overview

The Associate of Arts degree is designed to prepare students for transfer to most four-year colleges or universities and is the equivalent of the freshman and sophomore years of a Bachelor of Arts degree program which includes programs such as English, history, social sciences, business, and other areas of study.

For students who may have not yet decided upon an interest in one area of study, the Associate of Arts degree provides a broad knowledge of liberal arts. A range of liberal arts elective courses across disciplines provides flexibility in choosing transferrable courses.

The Associate of Arts degree requires a minimum of 62 semester credit hours for graduation. These hours are composed of a minimum of 47 hours of general education courses selected within categories and enough electives to complete the 62-hour requirement. Please see the “Suggested Course Sequence.” In the future, Belmont College will have concentrations available, and, in that case, a minimum of 12 semester credit hours in the concentration will be required plus enough electives to complete the 62-hour requirement.

Please see the Associate of Arts “Course Elective Information” on the following page to select electives across the categories. Please also consult the general education page in this catalog for information about the status of courses meeting the state-wide transfer module requirements and/or the state-wide transfer assurance guides. Please note: some courses were still under review when the catalog went to press and may have earned official transfer status.

Students are encouraged to ask for updates on the status of courses and to discuss their transfer intentions with a representative of the College academic advising team early in their Belmont experience to ensure that the correct courses are selected to meet the specific requirements of the receiving college or university.

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Program Outcomes

Interdisciplinary learning is the fundamental strength and value of a liberal arts education. The formulation of outcomes is based on recognition of the transformative potential of higher education in the liberal arts and an appreciation of how the knowledge gained (in particular, human understanding) leads to actions. Outcomes will be assessed in the Associate of Arts degree through a process that will allow students to achieve individualized goals in keeping with their chosen interdisciplinary path of study.  Students will:

1. Pursue Knowledge: Students learn through discipline-specific and interdisciplinary discovery processes, think critically, and synthesize resulting knowledge.
2. Understand Self: Students achieve self-understanding as conscious and engaged human beings in relation to others and develop a realistic understanding of life and its opportunities.
3. Integrate Socially: Students develop a defined sense of human community, take responsibility for their roles, and integrate successfully in collaborative environments.
4. Demonstrate Open-Mindedness: Students cultivate intellectual curiosity, flexibility in thinking, problem solving strategies, and a broad critical perspective that values diversity of thought.
5. Be Globally Responsible: Students recognize the interdependence of global forces and local contexts, becoming culturally proficient citizens sensitive to the issues of diverse cultures.
6. Behave Ethically: Students form personal values based on belief in the worth and dignity of human beings, apply ethical principles in making decisions, and accept the social consequences of actions.
7. Communicate Effectively: Students demonstrate the abilities to read and listen with understanding and express complex ideas in spoken and written forms.

FYE1110

First Year Experience is required for all students to take in year 1, fall semester. Students must receive a passing grade.

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Class Sequence