You will start your core curriculum journey by learning how to ask good questions and how to explore them in different disciplines. You will start to think about what questions really interest you. Perhaps 'What makes a meaningful life?', 'What role should morality play in business and politics?', or 'How should humans treat the environment?' In your first year, you will take the following courses (keep in mind that depending on your major, you may not be able to take all these courses in the first year):

• Two University Writing courses
• Perspective-Enduring Question First Year Seminar & ACS 101: Academic and College Success or ACS 090: Academic and College Success for Transfer Students 
• Five more Perspective-Enduring Questions courses (P-EQs)

As you continue on your core journey, you will begin to explore. In consultation with your Professors and Advisor you will decide on a question that you would like to pursue in your Integrative Studies. You'll also want to explore one or more Experiential Learning Pathways. Here's what you'll take as you explore (potentially in your second year dependent upon major):

• Two more Perspectives-Enduring Questions courses
• Two Integrative Studies Courses
• One Experiential Learning Pathway
• A Health & Wellness course

In your third year is your time to integrate. After taking (or at the same time as) your third and last Integrative Studies course, you sign up for the Core Milestone Experience. Here you'll look at all the artifacts and reflections you archived in Google Drive from your P-EQ courses, IS courses, Experiential Learning. You'll sign up for:

• Your third Integrative Studies course
• The Core Milestone Experience
• Maybe another Experiential Learning Pathway

In your final year is when you will apply you knowledge. If there are parts of the Core Curriculum that you still need to complete, you can do it now. But ideally, this is when you apply the skills and knowledge that you gained through the Core in your major area of study. Also, you may want to sign up for another Experiential Learning Pathway to see how what you have learned in the classroom can be applied to your career and/or graduate goals.

Note: Transfer students will take Academic and College Success for Transfer Students (ACS 090) (0 credits) in place of ACS 101.

Note: One of these courses will be a First Year Seminar.

One of your Perspectives-Enduring Questions courses taken your first semester (you can request which one) will be a smaller seminar that includes strategies to develop speaking skills, extra focus on how the course fits into the larger structure of the core, and a community building activity to get to know your classmates and professor.

ACS 101: First-year students work together to build community, discuss the transition to Nazareth, and hone study and time-management skills. Learn more about ACS class.

ACS 090: All transfer students take this non-credit, six week course. This course is designed to assist transfer students in making a successful transition to Nazareth University. It focuses on providing resources, fostering important relationships, and helping students to understand university policies and procedures.

You take two writing classes because crafting sound, persuasive arguments for different audiences is a critical skill:

• Exposition (ENGW 101)
• Argument and Research (ENGW 102)

You choose one course from each of eight liberal arts subject areas. Each course introduces you to the subject through exploring a perspectives enduring question.

Three upper-level courses of your choosing help you explore the question YOU want to explore. How do you pick your three "IS" courses? Find out more here.

As part of our mission, Nazareth University recognizes that a diverse and inclusive campus fosters a healthy and engaged learning community and prepares our students to successfully navigate and positively contribute to an increasingly diverse society. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) course offerings reflect the university’s commitment to this aspect of our mission. DEIB-designated courses address the lived experiences of historically under-represented populations along the spectrum and at the intersections of diverse identities. DEIB courses intentionally employ pedagogies and methodologies that foster an inclusive classroom environment that explores the need for systemic change. Every student (starting with the 2023-2024 freshman class) is required to take one upper level 3.0 credit DEIB course. The DEIB course may be one of the three Integrative Studies (IS) courses.

Some examples of DEIB Courses offered at Nazareth University:

HIS/PSC 348 History of Latin@s in the US

SOC 321 Environmental Sociology & Ecological Justice

SWK 324 Cultural Diversity

A hands-on learning experience that allows you to apply what you’re learning in your Integrative Studies and your major courses. See Experiential Learning details.

Select from a variety of health and wellness courses, such as yoga, dance, CPR training, health psychology, juggling, or horseback riding.  You can also participate in a sports team.

The seminar where you put it all together: You reflect on and integrate your learning, and you create a project to showcase your Integrative Studies to your classmates.

Core Milestone Experience resources »