Pathways at Baruch: The Flexible Core
Flexible Core is made up of six liberal arts and sciences courses, with at least one course from each of the following five areas and no more than two courses from any one department, discipline, or interdisciplinary field. Each area of study of the Flexible Core has learning goals.
Any transfer student with concerns about how completed courses have been evaluated for Pathways credit may initiate the Pathways transfer credit appeal process.
Please note that some departments offer courses in more than one area:
- ANT and SOC courses are offered by the Department of Sociology and Anthropology
- ART, MSC, and THE courses are offered by the Department of Fine and Performing Arts
- BLS and LTS (formerly HSP) courses are offered by the Department of Black and Latino Studies
- BIO, ENV, CHM, and PHY courses are offered by the Department of Natural Science
- within the Pathways flexible core, POL and PAF (formerly PUB) are considered to be a single field
At Baruch, the courses that satisfy the Flexible Core are:
World Cultures and Global Issues (at least one course required)
| ANT 1001 | Introduction to Cultural Anthropology |
| HIS 1001 | Themes in Global History to 1500 C.E. |
| HIS 1003 | Themes in Global History Since 1500 C.E. |
| LTS 1003 | Latin America: An Institutional and Cultural Survey |
| POL 2001 | United States in an Age of Globalization |
| POL 2260 | Introduction to Comparative Government |
U.S. Experience in its Diversity (at least one course required)
| BLS 1003 | Evolution and Expressions of Racism |
| HIS 1000 | Themes in American History |
| HIS 1005 | Modern American History |
| PAF 1250 | Citizenship and Public Affairs |
| POL 1101 | American Government: Practices and Values |
| POL 2332 | American Political Thought |
Note: HIS 1004 History of American Civilization I is no longer offered at Baruch, but it does appear on students’ transfer evaluations. This course may be used to satisfy the U.S. Experience in its Diversity requirement of the Pathways curriculum without appeal.
Creative Expression (at least one course required)
| ART 1000 | Introduction to Design and Visual Communications |
| ART 1011 | Art History Survey I |
| ART 1012 | Art History Survey II |
| MSC 1003 | Music and Civilization |
| MSC 1005 | Principles of Music |
| THE 1041 | Introduction to the Theatre Arts |
The Individual and Society (at least one course required)
| PHI 1500 | Major Issues in Philosophy |
| PHI 1600 | Logic and Moral Reason |
| PHI 1700 | Global Ethics |
| SOC 1005 | Introduction to Sociology |
Scientific World (at least one course required)
NEW effective Spring 2024: Students are not required to take matching sets of lecture and lab courses as co-requisites. Students may select one course from the Scientific World list and one course from the Life and Physical Sciences list. These courses may be in different disciplines (BIO, CHM, ENV, etc.), and they may be taken in different semesters.
- Students who have satisfied neither the Scientific World nor the Life and Physical Sciences requirement at the time they entered Baruch must take courses offered by the Department of Natural Sciences to satisfy these Pathways Common Core requirements.
- Students who enter Baruch with a Life and Physical Sciences course may take PSY 1001 or a science lecture course offered by the Department of Natural Sciences to satisfy the Scientific World requirement.
- Please see below for notes on STEM Variant courses (for science majors and minors)
NEW effective Fall 2024: Students may select one course from the Life and Physical Sciences list and ANY course from the Scientific World list.
| BIO 1011 | Fundamentals of Biology: Human Biology Lecture |
| BIO 1015 | Fundamentals of Biology: Genetics, Evolution, and Ecology Lecture |
| CHM 1003 | Fundamentals of Chemistry |
| ENV 1003 | Fundamentals of Ecology |
| PHY 2002 | Fundamentals of Physics: Theory and Practice |
| PSY 1001 | General Psychology
(See below for restrictions on the use of PSY 1001 to satisfy the Scientific World requirement.) |
Notes:
- The following courses are no longer offered at Baruch but do appear on students’ transfer evaluations. Any of these courses may be used to satisfy the Scientific World or the Life and Physical Sciences requirement of the Pathways curriculum without appeal: BIO 1003, BIO 1005, CHM 1000, ENV 1020, ENV 1021, and PHY 1003.
- One course may not be used to satisfy both requirements.
Additional note on PSY 1001 for Scientific World (effective through Summer 2024):
- PSY 1001 may be used to satisfy the Scientific World requirement only under the following circumstances:
- A freshman or transfer student enters Baruch with AP, College Now, or regular transfer credit for a Life and Physical Sciences course.
- A freshman or transfer student enters Baruch with AP, College Now, or regular transfer credit for PSY 1001
- A student completes a STEM Variant course (BIO 2010, CHM 2003, PHY 2003, or PHY 3010) at Baruch, or has previously completed a Tier II science course (BIO 1003, BIO 1005, CHM 1000, ENV 1020, ENV 1021, and PHY 1003) at Baruch.
Stem Variant Courses
The following courses may be used to satisfy either the Scientific World or the Life and Physical Sciences requirement (one course may not satisfy both requirements).
Students who wish to pursue a major or minor in the Natural Sciences should satisfy the Pathways science requirements with STEM Variant courses.
| BIO 2010 | Principles of Biology I |
| CHM 2003 | General Chemistry I |
| PHY 2003 | General Physics I |
| PHY 3010 | Quantitative Physics I |
