General Education at Pensacola State College provides the student with a broad range of knowledge and skills that have enduring value, no matter what path in life a student pursues. The foundation built through the general education courses prepares individuals not only for a baccalaureate or associate degree but for lifelong learning as well.
All baccalaureate and associate degree programs at the College include a general education component, which is a substantial part of each degree. Thirty-six credit hours of general education courses are required in the Dr. Marjan Mazza Bachelor of Applied Science in Business and Management, the Bachelor of Applied Science in Cybersecurity, the Bachelor of Science in Nursing, and the Associate in Arts degree. Associate in Science degrees require a minimum of 15 college credit hours of general education courses.
The general education requirements at Pensacola State College are designed to ensure breadth of knowledge. Coursework in Communications, Humanities, Mathematics, Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences is required. No course in the general education program may narrowly focus on skills, techniques, or procedures specific to a particular occupation or profession; instead, general education courses serve as an introduction to a wide range of knowledge and a broad overview of various disciplines and subject matters.
Each student who completes the general education program at Pensacola State College will have achieved the following outcomes:
General Education Requirements
The student seeking a baccalaureate or the Associate in Arts degree must complete 36 college credit hours of General Education Coursework as indicated in the following table.
| General Education Category |
College Credits Required |
| Communications |
6 cc |
| Humanities |
6 cc |
| Mathematics |
6 cc |
| Natural Sciences |
6 cc |
| Social Sciences |
6 cc |
| General Education Electives |
6 cc |
Communications (6 cc)
Required core course
Required general education course
Communications electives
| CGS 1570 | Computer Concepts and Applications | 3 cc |
| LIS 2005 | Information and Internet Research | 3 cc |
| MMC 2000 | Survey of Mass Communication | 3 cc |
| SPC 1608 | Public Speaking | 3 cc |
| SPC 2300 | Interpersonal Communication | 3 cc |
Humanities (6 cc)
Choose one core course.
Choose one literature course.
| AML 2010 | American Literature to 1870 | 3 cc |
| AML 2020 | American Literature from 1870 | 3 cc |
| AML 2600 | Introduction to African American Literature | 3 cc |
| ENL 2012 | English Literature to 1800 | 3 cc |
| ENL 2022 | English Literature from 1800 | 3 cc |
| LIT 2000 | Introduction to Literature | 3 cc |
| LIT 2090 | Contemporary Literature | 3 cc |
| LIT 2110 | World Literature to 1650 | 3 cc |
| LIT 2120 | World Literature from 1650 | 3 cc |
Humanities electives
Mathematics (6 cc)
A student who is required to complete developmental or intermediate algebra before enrolling in a higher level mathematics course is strongly encouraged to enroll in such courses during the first term at Pensacola State College.
Choose two courses.
Mathematics elective
Natural Sciences (6 cc)
Choose one core course, either biological science or physical science.
If a biological science is chosen from the core, the second natural sciences course must be a physical science course (elective or core). If a physical science is chosen from the core, the second natural sciences course must be a biological science course (elective or core).
Biological Sciences core courses
| BSC 1005 | Introduction to Biology | 3 cc |
| BSC 1010 | Principles of Biology | 3 cc |
| BSC 2085 | Human Anatomy and Physiology I | 3 cc |
| EVR 2001 | Introduction to Environmental Science | 3 cc |
Biological Sciences electives
Physical Sciences core courses
Physical Sciences electives
Social Sciences (6 cc)
Choose one core course.
Choose one course from the Social Sciences core or below.
| AMH 2010 | American History to 1877 | 3 cc |
| AMH 2091 | African-American History and Culture | 3 cc |
| ANT 2410 | Cultural Anthropology | 3 cc |
| CCJ 1020 | Introduction to the Criminal Justice System | 3 cc |
| DEP 2004 | Human Growth and Development | 3 cc |
| EUH 1000 | European History I | 3 cc |
| EUH 1001 | European History II | 3 cc |
| EUH 2010 | A History of Greece and Rome | 3 cc |
| GEA 2000 | World Regional Geography | 3 cc |
| HLP 1081 | Concepts of Life Fitness | 3 cc |
| INR 2002 | Introduction to International Relations | 3 cc |
General Education Electives (6 cc)
Each student must choose any two additional general education courses from the general education courses listed.
General Education (Baccalaureate Programs and Associate in Arts Program)
Minimum Grades
The student in an Associate in Arts (AA) degree program must maintain an overall GPA of 2.0 or higher and must earn a minimum grade of C or better in each course meeting a general education writing emphasis requirement and in each mathematics course meeting the general education requirement. An overall GPA includes the Pensacola State College cumulative GPA as well as any transfer courses earned prior to enrollment at Pensacola State College.
Non-Traditional Credits
An AA student may not earn more than 15 credit hours of the general education coursework through non-traditional credits. Non-traditional credits include the following: credits earned through CLEP, departmental exemption examination, Prior Learning Assessment (PLA), and all other credits described in Non-Traditional Credits section.
Civic Literacy Requirement
Each student who initially enters a Florida College System institution in the 2022-2023 school year, and thereafter, who anticipates earning an associate in arts degree, associate in science degree, or a baccalaureate degree, must demonstrate competency in civic literacy.
This civic literacy requirement may be met by successfully completing a) and b) prior to graduation:
- Successfully passing either POS 2041 American Government or AMH 2020 American History from 1877
- Achieving the standard score on one of the following assessments:
AP Government and Politics: United States – a score of 3 or above
AP United States History – a score of 4 or above
CLEP: American Government – a score of 50 or above
Florida Civic Literacy Examination – a score of 60 or above
Foreign Language Requirement
A student who is enrolling in college for the first time (not a transfer student) in Fall 2014, or thereafter, and anticipates earning a baccalaureate degree or an Associate in Arts degree must meet the foreign language requirement. The foreign language requirement may be met with two years of the same foreign language in high school, two terms of the same foreign language in college, the second term of a freshman-level foreign language course, or appropriate scores on an external test for a foreign language.
An alternate method for students to demonstrate equivalent foreign language competence is by credit awarded on the basis of scores on the foreign language subject matter examinations in the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) as indicated in 6A-10.024(5)(b), F.A.C., which shall count toward the eight to ten term hours. The examination, minimum scores for awarding credit, and maximum credit to be awarded are as follows:
| Examination |
Minimum Score |
Credit Awarded |
| French |
59 |
6 cc |
| |
|
|
| German |
60 |
6 cc |
| |
|
|
| Spanish |
63 |
6 cc |
A student who received an Associate in Arts degree prior to September 1, 1989, or who enrolled in a program of studies leading to an Associate in Arts degree from a Florida state college prior to August 1, 1989, and has maintained continuous enrollment shall be exempt from this admissions requirement. Any lower division student admitted without meeting the foreign language requirement must earn such credits prior to admission to the upper division of a state university. Any Associate in Arts degree graduate from a public community college admitted without meeting the foreign language requirement must earn such credits prior to graduation from a state university.
College-Level Communication and Computation Skills
Per Florida Administrative Code 6A-10.030, prior to receipt of an Associate in Arts degree or prior to entry into the upper division of a public university or college, a student must successfully complete, with a grade of C or higher, the following: 6 semester credit hours of English coursework (ENC 1101 and ENC 1102) and 6 semester credit hours of additional coursework in which the student is required to demonstrate college-level writing skills through multiple assignments. PSC designates such courses Writing Emphasis courses. In addition, a student must complete 6 semester credit hours of mathematics coursework at the level of college algebra or higher. The College-Level Communication and Computation Skills requirement was formerly referred to as the Gordon Rule.
Writing Emphasis Courses