Here is a summary of degree requirements at some colleges that are commonly named when “open curriculum” is mentioned on these forums:
College Major Writing Quant Foreign Dept Div General
Lang Limit Limit Educ
Amherst Yes 3% first year seminar
Bennington Indiv Yes Yes "Plan" approved by advising must include breadth; field work
Brown Yes 7% 13% H/SS for ABET majors
Evergreen State
BA program No
BS program No 40% in NS including 27% upper division
Grinnell Yes <39% <75% 3% first year tutorial
Hamilton Yes 9% 3% <=50% physical education
Hampshire Indiv 13% total in 4 out of 5 areas
New College FL Yes 3% 3% 25% total including at least 3% in each of H, SS, NS
New School
Eugene Lang Yes 6% 3% first year advising, 6% University Lecture
NYU Gallatin Indiv 3% 3% 21% seminars, 6% H, 6% SS, 9% history/culture
Oberlin Yes 6% 6% 6% each of H, SS, NS
Redlands
Johnson Center must get faculty approval for individualized open curriculum option
Rochester Yes 6% 9% each of H, SS, NS; 16% H/SS for ABET majors
Smith Yes 3% <=50% 13% total in 4 H/SS categories for ABET majors
Vassar Yes 3% 3% 6% <=50% <=75%
Wake Forest must get faculty approval for individualized open curriculum option
Wesleyan Yes <=50%
Percentages are percent of total credits for the bachelor's degree.
Students are assumed to enter without advanced credit or placement.
Students with advanced credit or placement may not need to take all requirements.
H = humanities
SS = social science
NS = natural science
"ABET majors" = ABET-accredited engineering majors
"Quant" = math or quantitative reasoning requirement
"Dept Limit" = limitation on credits from any one department
"Div Limit" = limitation on credits from any one division (H, SS, or NS)
"General Educ" = general education (some may be fulfilled by student's major)
College Major Writing Quant Foreign Dept Div<br>
Lang Limit Limit
Amherst Yes<br>
3% first year seminar
Bennington Indiv Yes Yes<br>
"Plan" approved by advising must include breadth; field work
Brown Yes 7%<br>
13% H/SS for ABET majors
Evergreen State
BA program No
BS program No<br>
40% in NS including 27% upper division
Grinnell Yes <39% <75%<br>
3% first year tutorial
Hamilton Yes 9% 3% <=50%<br>
physical education
Hampshire Indiv<br>
13% total in 4 out of 5 areas
New College FL Yes 3% 3%<br>
25% total including at least 3% in each of H, SS, NS
New School
Eugene Lang Yes 6%<br>
3% first year advising, 6% University Lecture
NYU Gallatin Indiv 3% 3%<br>
21% seminars, 6% H, 6% SS,
9% history/culture
Oberlin Yes 6% 6%<br>
6% each of H, SS, NS
Redlands
Johnson Center<br>
must get faculty approval for individualized open curriculum option
Rochester Yes 6%<br>
9% each of H, SS, NS; 16% H/SS for ABET majors
Smith Yes 3% <=50%<br>
13% total in 4 H/SS categories for ABET majors
Vassar Yes 3% 3% 6% <=50% <=75%
Wake Forest<br>
must get faculty approval for individualized open curriculum option
Wesleyan Yes <=50%
Percentages are percent of total credits for the bachelor's degree.
Students are assumed to enter without advanced credit or placement.
Students with advanced credit or placement may not need to take all requirements.
H = humanities
SS = social science
NS = natural science
"ABET majors" = ABET-accredited engineering majors
"Quant" = math or quantitative reasoning requirement
"Dept Limit" = limitation on credits from any one department
"Div Limit" = limitation on credits from any one division (H, SS, or NS)
"General Educ" = general education (some may be fulfilled by student's major)
When we were looking at Wesleyan- which we all loved and think is one of the best colleges- we found its claim of an “open” curriculum to ring a little hollow. Here is what their website says:
So, basically, it is not fully “open” if you want to get honors (and how many of the highly ambitious kids who get into a college like Wes would arrive at college saying, ‘Oh, I don’t plan to get honors’?!!), but rather has distribution requirements that look just like those of Williams and many other similar colleges. Are those distribution requirements onerous? Probably not, to most people. But still not as “open” as the above chart makes it sound…
Just adding to my post above, here is another link to Wesleyan’s website about general education requirements, for the university overall as opposed to linked to majors:
Wesleyan honors and some majors noted. Though the optional honors GEs in question look similar in volume to Rochester, which seems to be seen as “open curriculum” on these forums for some reason.
Posters often recommend schools with minor requirements because colleges aren’t clumped into curricular categories; they exist on a spectrum. Some are much closer to an open curriculum than others.
One can certainly quibble about the degree to which a college curriculum is open, but most students prefer more options than Brown, Amherst, and Evergreen State.
Interesting to me that every single one of these (except Evergeen State?) has something beyond the major required, even if just one semester long class (the 3% schools).
Yes, Evergreen State’s BA program is completely open; the only requirement to graduate is completion of 180 quarter credit units (= 120 semester credit units): https://www.evergreen.edu/registration/degrees
College Major All Dept Div Wri Mat Hum Soc Nat FL Other
GE Limit Limit Sci Sci
Amherst Yes 3% 3% first year seminar
Bennington Indiv "Plan" approved by advising must include breadth; field work
Brown Yes 7% 7%
ABET majors Yes 20% 7% 13% H/SS
Evergreen State
BA program No
BS program No 40% 40% 40% NS must include 27% upper division
Grinnell Yes <39% <75%
Hamilton Yes <=50% 9% 3% physical education
Hampshire Indiv 13% 13% total in 4 out of 5 areas
New College FL Yes 25% 3% 3% 3% 3% 25% total including 3% in each of H, SS, NS including math course
New School
Eugene Lang Yes 15% 6% 3% first year advising, 6% University Lecture
NYU Gallatin Indiv 50% 3% 6% 6% 3% 21% seminars, 9% history and culture
Oberlin Yes 31% 6% 6% 6% 6% 6%
Redlands
Johnson Center must apply for faculty approval for individualized open curriculum option
Rochester Yes 34% 6% 9% 9% 9%
ABET majors Yes 22% 6% 16% H/SS
Smith
general Yes 3% <=50% 3%
Latin Honors Yes 28% <=50% 3% 3% 6% 3% 3% 6% 3% history
ABET majors Yes 22% <=50% 3% 6% 3% 6% 3% history
Vassar Yes 13% <=50% <=75% 3% 3% 6%
Wake Forest must apply for faculty approval for individualized open curriculum option
Wesleyan
general Yes <=50%
Honors Yes 28% <=50% 9% 9% 9%
Percentages are percent of total credits for the bachelor's degree.
Students are assumed to enter without advanced credit or placement.
Students with advanced credit or placement may not need to take all requirements.
ABET majors = ABET-accredited engineering majors
Major = whether a major is required
All GE = all general education requirements; may overlap with major
Dept Limit = limitation on credits from any one department
Div Limit = limitation on credits from any one division (H, SS, or NS)
Wri = writing requirement
Mat = math or quantitative reasoning requirement
H or Hum = humanities
SS or SocSci = social science
NS or NatSci = natural science
FL = foreign language
Other = any other general education requirement
Colleges with notably flexible curricula often enlace the freedom from structure with perhaps more important academic aspects. Most courses will be made available to most students at the most truly open of these schools, and choice of major will not be restricted. By this associated criterion, then, some “less-open” colleges may actually be desirably open, while even some of the “open” colleges listed above may be undesirably restrictive for some students in some instances.
College Major All Dept Div Wri Mat Hum Soc Nat FL Other
GE Limit Limit Sci Sci
Amherst Yes 3% 3% first year seminar
Bennington Indiv "Plan" approved by advising must include breadth; field work
Brown
general Yes 7% 7%<br>
ABET majors Yes 20% 7% 13% H/SS
Evergreen State
BA program No 0%
BS program No 40% 40% 40% NS must include 27% upper division
Grinnell Yes 3% <39% <75% 3% first year tutorial
Hamilton Yes 13% <=50% 9% 3% physical education
Hampshire Indiv 13% 13% total in 4 out of 5 areas
New College FL Yes 25% 3% 3% 3% 3% 25% total including 3% in each of H, SS, NS including math course
New School
Eugene Lang Yes 15% 6% 3% first year advising, 6% University Lecture
NYU Gallatin Indiv 50% 3% 6% 6% 3% 21% seminars, 9% history and culture
Oberlin Yes 31% 6% 6% 6% 6% 6%
Redlands
Johnson Center must apply for faculty approval for individualized open curriculum option
Rochester Yes 34% 6% 9% 9% 9%
ABET majors Yes 22% 6% 16% H/SS
Smith
general Yes 3% <=50% 3%
Latin Honors Yes 28% <=50% 3% 3% 6% 3% 3% 6% 3% history
ABET majors Yes 22% <=50% 3% 6% 3% 6% 3% history
Vassar Yes 13% <=50% <=75% 3% 3% 6%
Wake Forest must apply for faculty approval for individualized open curriculum option
Wesleyan
general Yes <=50%
Honors Yes 28% <=50% 9% 9% 9%
Percentages are percent of total credits for the bachelor's degree.
Students are assumed to enter without advanced credit or placement.
Students with advanced credit or placement may not need to take all requirements.
ABET majors = ABET-accredited engineering majors
Major = whether a major is required
All GE = all general education requirements; may overlap with major
Dept Limit = limitation on credits from any one department
Div Limit = limitation on credits from any one division (H, SS, or NS)
Wri = writing requirement
Mat = math or quantitative reasoning requirement
H or Hum = humanities
SS or SocSci = social science
NS or NatSci = natural science
FL = foreign language
Other = any other general education requirement