Degree Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts
Credits: students must complete 120 academic credits, of which 100 must be taken in the College of Arts and Sciences at Cornell
Courses: students must complete 34 courses (consult Courses of Study for how courses are counted)
Residence: students must enroll in 8 full-time semesters, unless a student can meet the criteria to accelerate graduation (consult Courses of Study)
First-Year Writing Seminars: students must complete 2 courses
A five on either or both of the AP English exams exempts a student from one FWS
Foreign Language:
Option 1: completion of a course in a foreign language or any other course taught in a foreign language at Cornell’s 2000-level or above.
Option 2: completion of at least 11 Cornell credits of study in a single foreign language at Cornell (usually an introductory sequence)
Note: Students whose speaking, reading, and writing competence in a language other than English is at the same level we would expect our entering freshmen to have in English (as shown by completing high school in that language or by special examination here at Cornell) are exempt from the college’s language requirement.
Distribution Requirements -- 9 Cornell courses (may overlap with courses counting toward a major):
Physical and Biological Sciences (PBS) and Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning (MQR): students must complete 4 courses. Consult list of approved courses in Courses of Study:
- 2 PBS courses
- 1 MQR course
- 1 PBS or MQR course
Humanities and Social Sciences: students must complete 5 courses of three or more credits from at least four of the five following categories. No more than three of the five courses (including cross-listed courses) may be from the offerings of any one department.
- Cultural Analysis (CA-AS)
- Historical Analysis (HA-AS)
- Knowledge, Cognition & Moral Reasoning (KCM-AS)
- Literature & the Arts (LA-AS)
- Social & Behavioral Analysis (SBA-AS)
Breadth Requirements:
Geographical: students must complete at least 1 Arts and Sciences course that focuses on an area or a people other than those of the U.S., Canada, or Europe
Historical: students must complete at least 1 Arts and Sciences course that focuses on an historical period before the 20th century
Major: see individual department listings in Courses of Study for major requirements. Students must enroll in a major by the end of the sophomore year
Electives: students must complete 4 or 5 courses (at least 15 credits) not used to fulfill other requirements (other than breadth requirements) and not in the major field (unless a student has a second major)
Physical Education: students must complete 2 physical education courses and pass the Cornell swim test
For more detailed descriptions of each of these requirements, please consult the current Courses of Study.
Student Worksheet (PDF)
Students can monitor their progress towards completion of these requirements by consulting their DUST report.
