Free Electives

Free electives are those courses taken in addition to required courses to bring the total to the minimum number of credits required for graduation. Students use free electives to take additional work in the major, concentrate in a second field, or to explore particular interests. Students may take almost any course for which they have the prerequisites in the College of Liberal Arts and Science as a free elective, and they are encouraged to take advantage of the wide range of offerings in the professional schools and special programs at the College. The Professional Schools control their own class registrations and students should consult with the advisors in these schools to see if space is available and if they have the prerequisites for the courses in which they are interested. In many cases the focused training of both professional and technical personnel will be too highly specialized for inclusion in a broad liberal arts curriculum. A major department may approve courses in the professional schools for a given student’s major program. Only a maximum of 30 credits of free electives from the professional schools will be granted toward the CLAS degree requirements. In some cases, students may be able to transfer into CLAS fewer than 30 credits in order to fulfill New York State requirements:

B.A.: Total Credit Hours Required for Graduation: 120, at least 90 of which must be in the Liberal Arts and Sciences (RLA).

B.S.: Total Credit Hours Required for Graduation: 120, at least 60 of which must be in the Liberal Arts and Sciences (RLA).

BFA/BM: Total Credit Hours Required for Graduation: 120, at least 30 of which must be in the Liberal Arts and Sciences (RLA).