The Office: Charter/View

Welcome to the home page of the Office of Undergraduate Curricula at UNC Chapel Hill. This office has primary responsibility for monitoring and shaping all curricular changes in the General College and the College of Arts and Sciences. We receive all requests for new courses, revisions of existing courses, changes in existing curricula, proposals for new majors or minors, and proposals for new degree programs. The office also reviews all student petitions concerning General Education requirements. The Associate Dean has other duties as Director of Special Studies, and in that capacity reviews all proposals to receive credit for independent studies through the Special Studies program.

Although most students have little or no direct contact with the Office of Undergraduate Curricula, the work of the office has a shaping influence on the educational experience of UNC’s undergraduates. Every course offered in UNC’s General College and College of Arts and Sciences—First Year Seminars, survey classes, advanced lecture courses, labs, honors courses, research and capstone courses in all majors, etc.—has been reviewed and approved by the Administrative Boards of the General College and the College of A&S, which are chaired by the Associate Dean. All General Education courses follow guidelines established and enforced by the Administrative Boards and their Subcommittee on General Education. All approved Study Abroad programs have been reviewed by the Boards, and the establishment of—and any proposed change that would affect—every major and minor in the College is thoroughly reviewed, discussed, and approved by the members of the Boards. In short, every aspect of the curriculum pursued by a UNC undergraduate in the College of Arts and Sciences has been shaped in some way by the Office of Undergraduate Curricula. A student member always serves on the Subcommittee on General Education, and the Associate Dean is happy to meet with undergraduates who have questions or concerns about the structure of their curricula or the work of the Office.

In the Fall of 2006, the College implemented an extensively revised General Education curriculum. This website includes information about both the pre-2006 curriculum and the 2006 curriculum. The section devoted to the Making Connections (2006) Curriculum includes both information about new requirements and documents related to the recent history of curricular revision.

If you have a question or concern that is not addressed in the FAQ section or elsewhere on this website, please send your query to the Office’s Curriculum Coordinator.