Distribution Requirements (for students matriculated in Fall 2020 and later)

In the College of Arts and Sciences  

Students must complete a minimum of 8 courses to fulfill all 10 distribution categories below. How an individual course is categorized is indicated with the appropriate abbreviation in its course description.

It is important to recognize that only courses with the proper designation in the Courses of Study can be used toward fulfilling the distribution requirements in Arts and Sciences. Some topics courses and courses offered through the Society for the Humanities, among others, do not count toward distribution. Unless otherwise specified, variable credit courses, including independent study courses, may not be used for distribution credit.

Note: students who were admitted for Fall 2020 and matriculated early in Summer 2020 are under this set of requirements.

Policies on Applying Cornell and Non-Cornell Courses and Credits to Distribution Requirements

Restrictions on Applying AP/Test Credit and Courses from Other Institutions to the Distribution Requirements

• Students may not apply AP/test credit or transfer credit from another institution to the distribution requirements.
• Students who transfer to the college from another institution are under the above rules for advanced placement credit, but are eligible to have credit for post–high school course work taken during regular full-time semesters (not summer terms) at their previous institution count toward all distribution requirements. Transfer students receive a detailed credit evaluation when they are accepted for admission.

Restrictions on Applying Cornell Courses to the Distribution Requirements

• First-year writing seminars and ENGL 2880 or ENGL 2890 taken to satisfy a first-year writing seminar requirement may not count toward any other college requirement.
• Only courses with the proper designation in the Courses of Study can be used toward fulfilling the distribution requirements in Arts and Sciences.
• Students may not petition to change the category of any given course, nor may any faculty member change the category of a course for an individual student. Faculty members wishing to change the category for a course in which they are the primary instructor must petition the Educational Policy Committee for a change in category. If granted, the new category must be applied to the course as a whole and not for an individual student.

Courses That May Fulfill More Than One Requirement

A course may fulfill more than one college requirement in any of the following situations:

• A course may be used to fulfill distribution and a major requirement (except if prohibited by one of the restrictions noted on applying AP/test credit, transfer credit, and Cornell courses to distribution requirements).
• A course may satisfy a maximum of two distribution categories. Students can only double-count distribution requirements on a maximum of two courses.
• A one-semester course in foreign literature (not language) or culture that is acceptable for certifying option 1 in that language may also be applied to the relevant distribution requirement.
• Courses may count toward any other requirement except first-year writing seminars.

Arts & Sciences Distribution Requirement Categories: (for students matriculated Fall 2020 and later)

1. Arts, Literature, and Culture (ALC-AS)
2. Biological Sciences (BIO-AS)
3. Ethics and the Mind (ETM-AS)
4. Global Citizenship (GLC-AS)
5. Historical Analysis (HST-AS)
6. Physical Sciences (PHS-AS)
7. Social Difference (SCD-AS)
8. Social Sciences (SSC-AS)
9. Statistics and Data Science (SDS-AS)
10. Symbolic and Mathematical Reasoning (SMR-AS)

Distribution Requirement Definitions

Arts, Literature, and Culture (ALC-AS)

Courses in this area examine arts, literature, and culture in various contexts. Students gain insights into the interplay of individual or collaborative creativity and social practice, and understand the complexities of the expression of the human condition. Topics include the analysis of artworks and literary texts, and the belief systems of social groups, cultures, and civilizations; they also focus on artistic expression itself (in creative writing, performing arts, and media such as film and video).

Biological Sciences (BIO-AS)

Courses in this area focus on understanding a wide range of life forms, from single cells to plants, animals, and their ecosystems. Topics include the molecular and biochemical makeup of life, the sub-cellular, cellular and organismal structures of life, and the evolutionary relatedness of all life forms. Students learn to describe how organisms are connected to each other and to their physical environment. Many courses address how genetic information is expressed from DNA, and how this expression leads to complex function and behavior.  

Ethics and the Mind (ETM-AS)

Courses in this area investigate the human mind and its capacities, ranging from cognitive faculties shared by humans and animals such as perception, to language and abstract reasoning, to the ability to form and justify ethical values. Courses investigating the mind may use the methodologies of psychology, linguistics, or philosophy. Those focusing on ethics explore ways of reflecting on questions that concern the nature of justice, the good life, or human values in general. Many courses combine these topics and methodologies.

Global Citizenship (GLC-AS)

Courses in this area examine the history, culture, politics, religion, and social relations of peoples in different parts of the world, as well as their interactions. They encourage students to think broadly about the global community and their place within it, beyond the boundaries of their particular national or cultural group, and cultivate skills of intercultural engagement that are vital to their role as global citizens. These courses introduce students to global challenges such as war and peace, social and economic inequalities, international migration, and environmental sustainability, and encourage students to think critically about international responses to these challenges. 

Historical Analysis (HST-AS)

Courses in this area train students in the analysis of documentary, material, and oral evidence about social phenomena, institutions, events and ideas of the past.  Students learn to evaluate and critically assess differing analyses and interpretations of former times so that they may acquire a better understanding of the origins and evolution of the present. Questions addressed in HA courses include why and under what circumstances changes have occurred in how people have interacted with one another and with the environments in which they live.

Physical Sciences (PHS-AS)

Courses satisfying this requirement provide an appreciation of how science generates and categorizes enduring knowledge of our physical world. This includes the physics, chemistry, and technology involved, of everything from light, to atoms, DNA molecules, Earth science, our Solar system, and to the Cosmos. These courses expose students to both the process and some of the substance of science. By learning the universal aspects of scientific enquiry, students will be better equipped to form opinions on scientific issues that affect the world.

Social Difference (SCD-AS)

Courses in this area examine social differences relevant to the human experience.  Social categories include class, race, ethnicity, indigeneity, nationality, language, religion, gender, sexuality, and ability as objects of study.  Students develop a deeper understanding of these categories and their intersections. Topics may include: how hierarchies in power and status shape social differences; how social, economic and political systems can impact the interpretation of social differences; and how differences attributed to various groups are explained.

Social Sciences (SSC-AS)

Courses in this area examine social, economic, political, psychological, demographic, linguistic, and relational processes. Topics include understanding how different social contexts, for example neighborhoods, families, markets, networks, or political organizations, shape social life. Students learn to identify, describe, and explain the causes and consequences of social phenomena using quantitative and/or qualitative evidence based on systematic observation of the social world. They also learn to link evidence to theory through rigorous and transparent reasoning, and/or reflect critically on the concepts through which people make sense of the social world.

Statistics and Data Science (SDS-AS)

Courses in this area develop data literacy, essential to be an informed citizen in today’s world. Students learn and apply statistical and computational techniques to effectively collect, visualize, analyze and interpret data, and present conclusions. Applications span a wide variety of contexts: providing a better understanding of the communities in which we live, guiding and enriching our lives, and driving forward scientific inquiry. Students gain an appreciation of how to ask the right questions, and how statistics can depend on the context, assumptions, and limitations of data.

Symbolic and Mathematical Reasoning (SMR-AS)

Courses satisfying this requirement help students develop the skills to solve problems through understanding abstract, logical relationships. Such skills include mathematical analysis of patterns and phenomena, modeling natural and technological systems, and creating algorithms essential to computation. These courses explore specific quantitative and symbolic methods, strategies for applying logical reasoning in diverse areas, and the intrinsic elegance of mathematics.