Core Policies
Fulfilling Core Requirements
Students may not use a Core course to fulfill more than one Core requirement. However, students may use Core courses to fulfill requirements in majors or minors, depending on the expectations of the academic departments and programs.
Link Course Policy
One distinct element of the Integrative Core Curriculum is the requirement that students pass a linked pair of courses that examine similar concepts from different disciplinary perspectives. The linked pairs require a level of integration that distinguishes them from any other offerings. Students must pass both courses in the linked pair for Core fulfillment. Consequently, the University has a unique policy for how to resolve drops, withdrawals, and insufficient grades, which may occur in one or both linked classes. Specific guidelines are provided below.
Students who drop both courses during Add/Drop (Week #1) may retake the entire link without the submission of an academic petition. They also may take a different link to fulfill their Core requirement.
Students who withdraw from both courses after Add/Drop (Weeks #2-12), or who finish both courses with a C- or lower, may submit an academic petition for permission to retake the entire link. Students should see the University’s Course Attempt policy for further guidelines. Students who withdraw from both courses also may take a different link to fulfill their Core requirement.
Students who withdraw from one of the linked courses and remain in the other must obtain both instructors’ written permission (sent to Enrollment Services) to do so.
Students who withdraw or fail one of the linked courses and pass the other with a C or better may submit an academic petition for permission to repeat the entire link.* They also may take a different link for Core fulfillment. If the choice is to repeat the same link, the last passing grades will factor into the grade point average. Course credit will be awarded once, and all attempts remain on the transcript.
*This is an exception to the Course Attempt policy. It is an exception due to the unique integration of courses required in a linked-pair of classes.
Written Expression
Students must earn at least a C- in their foundational writing course (either course or course, which concludes the development writing sequence) in order to fulfill the Core requirement for written expression. Students who earn a grade below C- in these courses will be required to retake the course.
Students in the Honors Program can fulfill their Core written expression requirement by successfully completing (with a C- or above) course, the Honors Colloquium.
Language Requirement
Language Substitution
Non-traditional students and/or students approved by Student Accessibility Services for language substitution may fulfill the foreign language requirement by taking six hours of coursework (normally two courses) given in English, but only from the CMLC Department-approved list. The list includes any IC or CL courses and selected EN classes. Contact the Classical & Modern Languages & Cultures Department and Student Accessibility Services (sas@jcu.edu) for more information.
International Students
International students, those who are citizens of and who have lived for at least ten years in another country whose primary language is not English, are exempt from the language requirement.
Language Placement for Non-JCU Languages
Students who have learned a language for which there is no placement exam at JCU can demonstrate proficiency in that language by taking a nationally validated proficiency exam approved by the chair of the Classical & Modern Languages & Cultures Department. The student will bear the cost of taking the exam. Demonstration of proficiency at or above the intermediate-mid level in at least two skills (oral proficiency as well as writing or reading) will qualify the student for a waiver of the language requirement. This waiver only exempts the student from the language requirement; it does not grant the student academic credit.