General Education

Methodist University’s general education curriculum consists of two components: the Life on Purpose core, and liberal arts distribution requirements. The mission of the Life on Purpose core is to provide all undergraduate students with a common academic experience that cultivates an evolving sense of purpose, understood as a deeply fulfilling pursuit that contributes to their community.

After completing the Methodist University general education curriculum, students will be able to:

  1. Make connections between contexts, apply concepts from one discipline to another, and collaborate with people from various perspectives.
  2. Think critically and produce reasoned and researched judgments amid uncertain circumstances.
  3. Communicate effectively in a variety of rhetorical situations, modes, media, and languages.

Methodist University does not restrict the multiple use of courses to fulfill undergraduate general education, major, minor, and concentration program requirements.

General Education Core Requirements

The General Education core requirements consist of 39 credits, distributed as follows:

Life on Purpose

9 credits

VOC 1100 Vocation & The Good Life (3)
VOC 1200 Curiosity & Investigation (3)
VOC 2100 Calling & Community (3)

Transfer credit accepted at the time of initial enrollment is used to determine how many required VOC (Vocational Discernment) courses must be successfully completed. Students with 12-23 hours of accepted transfer credit must only successfully complete any two VOC courses; students with 24-47 hours of accepted transfer credit must only successfully complete any one VOC course; students with 48 or more hours of accepted transfer credit are exempt from the Life on Purpose Core requirement. Credit hours earned by AP, IB, CLEP, DSST, and ACTFL are excluded from the exemption.

Liberal Arts Distribution Requirements

First Year Writing

6 credits

ENG 1010 Composition (3) ENG 1040 Composition & Rhetoric (3)

Information Literacy

3 credits

Select one of the following courses:

BUS 1700 Computer Business Applications (3)
CSC 1000 Computer Literacy: Introduction to Computers & Information Technology (3)
DSC 1020 Introduction to Statistical Reasoning (3)

Fine Arts

3 credits

Select one 3-credit course with the following prefix: AGD, ARH, ART, MUS, OR

ENG 2240 Creative Writing (3) ENG 3240 Advanced Creative Writing (3)

Students may successfully complete multiple semesters of credit-bearing music performance ensembles that add up to 3 credits to fulfill this requirement.

Additional Requirements

18 credits

History (3 credits)
Select one 3-credit HIS course		 **Religion, Ethics & Meaning (3 credits)
Select one 3-credit REM course
*Literature (3 credits)
Select one 3-credit Literature course		 Mathematics (3 credits)
MAT 1050 College Algebra or higher
Natural Science (3 credits)
Select one BIO, CHE, GSC, PHY, or SCI course with a lab component		 Social Science (3 credits)
Select one 3-credit  ECO, PSC, PSY, or SOC course

*Courses that fulfill the Literature requirement are denoted with (LIT) throughout the catalog.

**A 3-credit Religion (REL) or Philosophy (PHI) course may be used to fulfill the Religion, Ethics, and Meaning requirement. Certain Logic courses accepted in transfer may be used to fulfill the REM requirement.

Additional General Education Curriculum Guidance

Undergraduate students who have completed some, but not all, of the previous Interdisciplinary Studies general education sequence requirements (FYS 1100, IDS 2100, MUJ 1100, MUJ 2200, MUJ 3300) will complete them as follows:

  • Any undergraduate student who successfully completed a minimum of 3 credits of any combination of Interdisciplinary Studies coursework (FYS 1100, IDS 2100, MUJ 1100, MUJ 2200, MUJ 3300) in residence prior to academic year 2025-26 will have met the previous Interdisciplinary Studies requirement and the new Life on Purpose Core.
  • Any undergraduate student who successfully completed 0-2 credits of any combination of Interdisciplinary Studies coursework (FYS 1100, IDS 2100, MUJ 1100, MUJ 2200, MUJ 3300) in residence prior to academic year 2025-26 must successfully complete one 3-credit VOC course (VOC 1100, VOC 1200, or VOC 2100) to fulfill the previous Interdisciplinary Studies requirement or the new Life on Purpose Core.
  • Any undergraduate student may apply 1 credit from one successfully completed Honors Reading Seminar course (HON) toward fulfillment of the Interdisciplinary Studies requirement or the new Life on Purpose Core
  • Any undergraduate student with a designated catalog year prior to academic year 2025-26 who was previously waived from the MUJ sequence (MUJ 1100, MUJ 2200, MUJ 3300) based on accepted transfer credit or because they met the requisite age requirement (21 or above) at the time of initial enrollment; will maintain their original waiver and receive an additional waiver extended to the entire Interdisciplinary Studies requirement (MUJ 1100, MUJ 2200, MUJ 3300, IDS 2100). Students in this category will not be required to complete any VOC courses.
  • MU Online undergraduate students with a designated catalog year prior to academic year 2025-26, will receive a waiver for IDS 2100 if they have earned at least one additional credit hour in any other General Education curriculum requirement area, including through accepted transfer credits.

Undergraduate students with a catalog year prior to academic year 2025-26 will have met the Library Competency requirement through successful completion of ENG 1040 in residence or through accepted transfer credit.