Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies Roadmap
120 Total Units Required
Minimum Number of Units in the Major: 42
This roadmap is a suggested plan of study and does not replace meeting with an advisor. Please note that students may need to adjust the actual sequence of courses based on course availability. Please consult an advisor in your major program for further guidance.
| First Semester | Units | |
|---|---|---|
| ENG 114 | Writing the First Year: Finding Your Voice (A2) 1 | 3 |
| GE Area A 2 | 3 | |
| GE Area B: Quantitative Reasoning (B4) 3 | 3 | |
| GE Area C | 3 | |
| SF State Studies or University Elective 4 | 3 | |
| Units | 15 | |
| Second Semester | ||
| GE Area A | 3 | |
| GE Area B: Physical Science (B1) and Laboratory Science (B3) 5 | 3-4 | |
| GE Area C | 3 | |
| GE Area E | 3 | |
| SF State Studies or University Elective 4 | 3 | |
| Units | 15-16 | |
| Third Semester | ||
| GE Area B: Life Science (B2) and Laboratory Science (B3) 5 | 3-4 | |
| GE Area C | 3 | |
| GE Area D | 3 | |
| SF State Studies or University Elective - Take Two 4 | 6 | |
| Units | 15-16 | |
| Fourth Semester | ||
| BIOL 100 | Human Biology (Hidden Prerequisite for BIOL 326, B2) | 3 |
or College-Level Biology Course (Hidden Prerequisite for many Life and Physical Sciences Courses) |
||
| GE Area D | 3 | |
| GE Area F ± | 3 | |
| U.S. and California Government | 3 | |
| Complementary Studies or SF State Studies or University Elective | 3 | |
| Units | 15 | |
| Fifth Semester | ||
| LS 300GW | Perspectives on Liberal Studies - GWAR (Major Core) | 3 |
| Literature and Culture (3 units) 6 | 3 | |
| Communication Studies (3-4 units) 7 | 3-4 | |
| Electives (12 units) - Take Two 8 | 6 | |
| Units | 15-16 | |
| Sixth Semester | ||
| Life Science (3 units) 9 | 3 | |
| Integrated Social Sciences (6 units) - Select Two 10 | 6 | |
| Interdisciplinary Humanities - Select One: | 3 | |
| Thought and Image: Humanities | ||
| Critical Animal Studies | ||
| Social Justice Themes in the Interdisciplinary Humanities | ||
| GE Area UD-B: Upper-Division Physical and/or Life Sciences | 3 | |
| Units | 15 | |
| Seventh Semester | ||
| Visual Studies - Select One: | 3 | |
| Comics and Culture (C2) | ||
| Thought and Image: Creative Arts | ||
| Social Movements & the Arts for Future Teachers (SJ) | ||
| Electives (12 units) - Take One 8 | 3 | |
| Physical Sciences (3 units) 11 | 3 | |
| GE Area UD-C: Upper-Division Arts and/or Humanities | 3 | |
| SF State Studies or University Elective 4 | 3 | |
| Units | 15 | |
| Eighth Semester | ||
| LS 690 | Liberal Studies Senior Seminar (Major Capstone) | 3 |
| Electives (12 units) - Take One 8 | 3 | |
| SF State Studies or University Elective 4 | 9 | |
| Units | 15 | |
| Total Units | 120-123 | |
- 1
ENG 114 can only be taken if you complete Directed Self-Placement (DSP) and select ENG 114; if you choose ENG 104/ENG 105 through DSP you will satisfy A2 upon successful completion of ENG 105 in the second semester; multilingual students may be advised into alternative English courses.
- 2
To avoid taking additional units, it is recommended that you meet the SF State Studies (AERM, GP, ES, SJ) requirements within your GE or major.
- 3
To determine the best B4 course option, students should complete the online advising activity at mathadvising.sfsu.edu. Questions? Contact Gator Smart Start.
- 4
Complementary Studies
Required of all candidates for the Bachelor of Arts degree in Liberal Studies are 12 units of Complementary Studies, which must come from courses bearing a prefix other than LS, and not cross-listed with LS. Complementary Studies for the Liberal Studies major can be satisfied via four possible routes:
- 12 units of a language
- 12 units towards completion of a minor or 2nd major or certificate. Suggested minors include: Education, Special Education, any minor in Ethnic Studies, American Studies, California Studies, Comics Studies, Counseling, Holistic Health, Health Education, Earth Sciences, Communication Studies, any minor in Modern Languages (Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Persian, Russian), Humanities, Math, History, Global Peace Studies, Criminal Justice Studies, Women and Gender Studies
- Any 12 units outside of LS prefix and not cross-listed with LS
- Study Abroad
Students who have earned AA-T or AS-T degrees and are pursuing a similar B.A. degree at SF State are required to fulfill the Complementary Studies requirement as defined by the major department. Students should consult with a major advisor about how transfer units and/or SF State units can best be applied to this requirement to ensure degree completion within 60 units.
- 5
Consider taking a class combined with a laboratory or a separate lab to fulfill B3 if not already satisfied.
- 6
Literature and Culture (3 units)
Select One:
AA S 322 Chinese American Language and Literature (3 units) (UD-C, AERM, SJ)
AA S 332 Japanese American Art and Literature (3 units) (UD-C, AERM, SJ)
AA S 352 Filipina/o American Literature, Art, and Culture (3 units) (UD-C, AERM, GP, SJ)
AA S 372 Vietnamese American Literature (3 units) (UD-C, AERM)
AA S 512 Asian American Children's/Adolescent Literature (3 units) (UD-C, AERM, SJ)
AFRS 645 Literature of the Harlem Renaissance (3 units) (UD-C, AERM, GP, SJ)
CWL 440 "Typical American": Narratives of Multiculturalism in the Americas from 1492 to the Present (3 units) (UD-C, GP)
CWL 450 Literary Crossings (3 units) (UD-C, GP)
E ED 681 Teaching Language and Literature with Elementary and Middle School Students (3 units) (UD-C)
ENG 451/JS 451/CWL 451 Jewish Literature of the Americas (3 units) (UD-C, AERM, GP)
ENG 526 Age of the American Renaissance: 1830-1860 (3 units) (UD-C, AERM, SJ)
ENG 533/JS 437/CWL 437 Holocaust and Literature (3 units) (UD-C, GP)
ENG 535 Literature and Ecology (3 units) (UD-C, ES)
ENG 546/JS 546/WGS 546 20th Century American Jewish Women Writers (3 units) (UD-C, AERM, GP)
ENG 601 Literature and Psychology (3 units) (UD-C)
ENG 602 Literature, Identity, Society: Theoretical Approaches to Identity and Cultural Critique (3 units) (UD-C, AERM)
ENG 655 Literature and the Adolescent Reader (3 units) (AERM)
LS 450 Banned! Contested Protest Literature in Schools (3 units)
LTNS 560 Contemporary Latina/o Literature (3 units) (UD-C, AERM, GP, SJ)
WGS 541 Women Writers and Social Change (3 units) (UD-C, AERM, GP, SJ)
WGS 551/SXS 551 Queer Literatures and Media (3 units) (UD-C, AERM, GP, SJ)
- 7
Communication Studies (3-4 units)
Select One:
COMM 551 Persuasion (4 units)
COMM 552 Performance and Feminism (4 units)
COMM 553 Performance and Identity (4 units)
COMM 554 Performance of Children's Literature (4 units)
COMM 559 Theory and Practice in Advanced Public Speaking (4 units)
LS 403/COMM 557 Performance and Pedagogy of the Oppressed for Educators (3 units)
- 8
Electives (12 units)
Choose one of the following options, in consultation with an advisor:
A. Complete at least 12 units that are part of a minor, certificate, or another major on campus. Suggested minors include Education, Special Education, any minor in Ethnic Studies, American Studies, California Studies, Comics Studies, Counseling, Holistic Health, Health Education, Earth Sciences, Communication Studies, Modern Languages (Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Persian, Russian), Humanities, Math, History, Global Peace Studies, Criminal Justice Studies, and Women and Gender Studies. For double majoring, please consult a Liberal Studies adviser.
B. Complete 12 units of additional courses (not already counted for the core) outlined in the Teacher Preparation Emphasis. See program website or adviser for a list of courses to choose from.
C. In consultation with a Liberal Studies faculty advisor, design and complete a 12-unit elective pattern.
- 9
Life Sciences (3 units)
Select One:
BIOL 300 Nature Study (3 units) (UD-B, ES)
BIOL 310 Biology for Today's World (3 units) (UD-B, ES)
BIOL 313 Principles of Ecology (3 units)
BIOL 326 Disease! (3 units) (UD-B, GP)
LS 430 Future of the Forests (3 units) (UD-B, ES, GP)
- 10
Integrated Social Sciences (6 units)
Select Two:
LS 200/AMST 200 Self, Place, and Knowing: Introduction to Interdisciplinary Inquiry (3 units) (E)
LS 401 International Development and Resource Justice (3 units) (UD-D, ES, GP)
LS 402 Introduction to Human Rights Education for Teachers and Local Communities (3 units) (UD-D, GP, SJ)
LS 404 Social Science and Medicine (3 units) (UD-D, GP)- 11
Physical Sciences (3 units)
Select One:
ERTH 325 Geology of the National Parks (3 units) (UD-B, ES)
ERTH 335 Global Warming (3 units) (UD-B, ES, GP)
ERTH 365 Extreme Weather in a Warming World (3 units) (UD-B, ES, GP)
LS 209 Physical Sciences for Elementary School Teachers (3 units) (B3)
LS 310 Science and Culture for Future Elementary School Teachers (3 units) (UD-B)
- ±
Given catalog rights, fall 2023 transfer students do not need to complete an Area F course.