Adult students, 24 years of age or older, may earn the Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies (LS) degree by completing a broad, liberal arts-based curriculum. A minimum of 120 semester hours is required for the LS degree. Courses in this program are scheduled online to facilitate attendance by those having other full-time responsibilities. The Liberal Studies program was approved to be an accelerated degree program for adults with an alternative core curriculum that includes the minimum required hours with a different distribution of required classes. Students benefit from a wide scope of special topic seminar classes that are student driven. These classes explore events and attitudes through critical thinking and interaction with other adult students. Students less than 24 years of age at the time of admission may be accepted at the discretion of the Assistant Dean of University College.

Students begin by enrolling in general education courses and completing College Composition I and II. In conjunction with individual advising, students are introduced to research in the liberal studies by emphasizing processes that build effective critical thinking and writing as foundations. Students progress to topical seminars that utilize the foundational skills developed earlier in the program. Students choose a concentration related to an area that meets their professional or personal goals. Students take an active role in determining the direction and content of their learning. This program can also serve as a degree completion option for those with existing college credit.

Graduates apply the broad educational value of the Liberal Studies program to employment opportunities in all business, industry, and service sectors. Many choose to pursue advanced degrees in law, health, and other areas of special interest.

Online Option

The Liberal Studies (LS) program seminars can be completed entirely online. Minimum computer skills are advised for online courses, such as internet navigation, Blackboard, email, and basic knowledge of Microsoft Office.

Admission requirements for the Liberal Studies (LS) program are as follows:

New Students - must be 24 years of age or older, and have either a high school grade point average of 2.0 or a 19 on the ACT.

Transfer Students - must be 24 years of age or older and have a cumulative college grade point average of 2.0 or higher from all post- secondary institutions or be Active Military/Veteran.

Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies

• 120 semester-hours for graduation
• Ability to substitute CLEP for UT Core requirements
• Required Concentration and Senior Capstone
• Includes 30 hours residency requirement prior to graduation at The University of Toledo per Academic Policy 3364-71-10
• A cumulative 2.0 GPA is required for graduation, along with 2.0 in UToledo Core classes.

CLEP SCORES for Liberal Studies (LS) Degree:

Students may have the potential to take the College Level Examination Program (CLEP). These examinations are given to establish competency in the UT Core discipline areas of mathematics, humanities, and social sciences. These three discipline areas are required for graduation. The required UT Core credit hours and the regulations for the CLEP exams for this program are as follows:

1. Students earning a CLEP exam score (http://www.utoledo.edu/ offices/registrar/student_records/clep_exams.html) below the required minimum, or those choosing not to take the math CLEP exam, must earn a minimum of 3 semester hours of credit in a math UT Core course. A minimum of 9 semester hours each of credit in UT Core courses in the areas of the humanities, social science, and natural science are required. Independent studies may not be substituted for any UT Core course;
2. Students who take any introductory courses in these three discipline areas after entry into the Adult Liberal Studies program forfeit their right to apply CLEP credit in that discipline toward their Liberal Studies degree. In addition, passing scores on the UT Core courses are required as prerequisites to enroll in the Liberal Studies topical seminars. Therefore, students are encouraged to take the CLEP exams early in their academic endeavors;
3. Students who have taken course work in any of these discipline areas prior to entry into the Adult Liberal Studies program, and subsequently earn CLEP credit, cannot have credit for both count toward meeting UT Core requirements;
4. Students earning the required minimum CLEP score will have 10 semester hours of credit posted to their transcripts; and
5. Students earning a CLEP exam score within five points of the required minimum score may retake the exam after a period of six months.

Topical Seminars

These seminars are upper-division courses in the social sciences (ALS 3040), humanities (ALS 3050) and natural sciences (ALS 3060) that change each semester. Each student will complete two seminars from each of the three areas. Students may then choose to complete an additional three ALS seminars, or select 12 hours of course work (four classes) at the 3000-4000 level that support their academic interests. No more than ten ALS seminars will be counted toward fulfillment of graduation requirements. The final requirement of the Liberal Studies program is completion of the AL 4950 Senior Capstone class. Students are responsible for fulfilling the program’s prerequisites and should seek an academic advisor’s guidance before enrolling in courses. Students who enroll in a topical seminar without the required prerequisites may be administratively dropped from the course. Students must complete a minimum of 30 semester hours of credit as a University College degree program student.

Prerequisites for the Topical Seminars

1. Earned credits in College Composition I and II by taking and passing the courses or earning credit through PLA; and
2. Completion of a minimum of 9 credit hours in the discipline area of the topical seminar or passing the CLEP examination in the discipline of the seminar.
3. Sixty semester hours of earned credit or permission of the instructor.

Electives

Students are to establish an emphasis area that ties together their educational interests and/or career aspirations. The objective of these courses should be academic investigation and should focus on sound educational goals. Students should seek the advice of an academic advisor in drafting their elective course components.

Area of Concentration

Students are required to complete a minimum of three classes (9 hours) that are associated with an area of academic investigation or a knowledge base that is related in theoretical content to support the Senior Capstone.

Senior Capstone

AL 3500, Fundamentals of Interdisciplinary Research, is the prerequisite to AL 4950 and focuses on developing the research skills needed for successful completion of the Senior Capstone.

AL 4950, Senior Capstone, is the final requirement of the LS program. It is a 4 credit hour project undertaken with a faculty member who serves as the capstone advisor. Students should seek the advice of an academic advisor and must turn in the appropriate paperwork before enrolling in this final requirement. Students are expected to integrate their respective thesis themes with their concentration courses.

Liberal Studies Plan of Study

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
UToledo Core
One Math course or CLEP Test		3
English Comp I		3
English Comp II		3
University College Core
AL 3500	Fundamentals of Interdisciplinary Research	3
Arts/Humanities Core or CLEP		9-10
Social Sciences Core or CLEP		9-10
Natural Sciences Core or CLEP		9-10
BUAD 1020	Micro-Computer Applications In Business	3
or CMPT 1100	Microsoft Office Applications
Liberal Studies Core
Two classes in each seminar area		24
ALS 3040	Topical Seminar: Social Sciences
ALS 3050	Topical Seminar: Humanities
ALS 3060	Topical Seminar: Natural Sciences
Three additional ALS seminars or four classes at the 3000-4000 level		12
Three concentration classes		9
AL 4950	Senior Capstone	4
Electives 1
Select 26 – 29 hours of electives in consultation with adviser		26-29

Total Hours                                                                                                120

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Many of these may be fulfilled by transfer credit if applicable.

The Liberal Studies Honors program provides a valuable foundation of writing and research for students who want to be admitted into advanced graduate or professional programs or for those wanting a stimulating learning experience. Any student qualifying for College Honors in Liberal Studies needs to complete 27-33 Honors hours with a final 3.3 GPA or better to graduate with College Honors.

• PLO 1. Upon successful completion of this program LS students will be able to create an original multimedia project based on research in one of three areas of concentration: humanities, social sciences, or natural sciences. \\n (The research project will incorporate developing research ideas, \\n producing a thesis statement, composing a proposal, creating a \\n schedule, evaluating sources, properly using APA citation style, compiling an annotated bibliography and designing and sharing with colleagues a \\n multimedia presentation of their research.)\\n
• PLO 2. Upon successful completion of this program LS students will be able to analyze assumptions, evaluate connecting explanations and establish the relevance of positions taken.
• PLO 3. Upon successful completion of this program LS students will be able to use appropriate, relevant and compelling content to illustrate and integrate central concepts.
• PLO 4. Upon successful completion of this program LS students will be able to investigate the significance and limitations of selected data, apply research methods and present research findings that demonstrate mastery of a selected subject area.