Liberal Arts & Sciences: Humanities & Social Science

Associate in Arts Degree

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Students in this program develop the skills of learning, thinking, and communicating for the purpose of deepening their knowledge of the humanities and broadening their knowledge of the other disciplines. In keeping with these aims, the students use writing as a means for thinking about and understanding subject matter. The program may serve as an initial preparation for entry into the professions, such as education and law. The complete program is available on the Utica and Rome campuses. Prerequisites for program acceptance are two high school mathematics courses or their equivalent, and one year of a laboratory science.

Goal 1 To develop a range of skills including critical thinking, problem solving and collaborative learning

  • Students will identify, analyze, and evaluate arguments as they occur in students’ own or other’s work.
  • Students will develop well-reasoned arguments.
  • Students will function productively in groups.

Goal 2 To promote support for an interest in diverse lifestyles and global cultures

  • Students will demonstrate knowledge and an understanding from an international perspective about the human condition.
  • Students will demonstrate openness toward diverse points of view when participating in classroom discussions.

Goa 3 To develop an understanding and proficiency in the intellectual skills in the use of language and visual communication

  • Students will demonstrate a proficiency in a foreign language.
  • Students will demonstrate knowledge of distinctive features of the culture(s) associated with the foreign language they are studying.
  • Students will demonstrate an ability to decode social cues.

Goal 4 To promote diversity awareness and a global view that incorporates broad acceptance of contrasting assumptions

  • Students will demonstrate an awareness of global: a) economic issues, b) historical perspectives, c) social issues, and/or d) environmental developments.

Goal 5 To provide opportunities for students to demonstrate a range of skills in written and oral proficiency along with an understanding of visual representation

  • Students will prepare and competently deliver oral proposals and reports.
  • Students will compose clear and coherent written reports and essays.
  • Students will use visual aids effectively in their reports and/or presentations.

Goal 6 To prepare the student to transfer to a four-year program in the social sciences or humanities or pursue employment in related fields

  • Graduates will transfer to a four-year institution with junior status
  • Before completing a degree, students may transfer general education courses towards upper level programs in other institutions.
  • Students who do not transfer will secure employment in a related field.

Goal 7 To create an opportunity for the student to gain depth in the humanities and breadth in other subject areas

  • Graduates will have taken sequences of courses in the humanities, such as languages, literature, and the arts.
  • Graduates will have taken courses in a variety of other subjects, such as social sciences, mathematics, and natural sciences.

Goal 8 To prepare students to demonstrate information literacy

  • Students will use traditional and contemporary information technology
  • Students will identify, access, and appropriately use authoritative sources of information

Total Credit Hours: 64

First Semester

This course is an opportunity for students to develop the skills necessary to be successful in college. Students learn the importance of the faculty-student and advisor-advisee relationship, develop time management techniques, apply effective study skill techniques, recognize the implications of living in a diverse society, utilize college resources, and explore career and transfer requirements. Collaborative projects are included. Students matriculated in a degree program must take this course in their first term of study.

This course focuses on several kinds of writing-self-expressive, informative, and argumentative/persuasive, and others. A minimum of five essay compositions are required. The course emphasizes the composition of clear, correct, and effective prose required in a variety of professions and occupations. Prerequisites: Appropriate high school GPA or placement test score or EN090 Basic Writing Skills or SL116 ESL4: Advanced Composition or SL145 ESOL Advanced Composition

This course introduces the nature and study of history, and covers the emergence and development of Eurasian civilization to about 1500 A.D. in the Near East, India, China, Europe, the Western Hemisphere, and Africa. Attention is given to religion in these civilizations and on the rise of the West to a position of world power during the Middle Ages.

(a) Mathematics Electives include: MA108 Concepts in Mathematics, MA110 Elementary Statistics, or higher, except MA171 and MA172.

(b) DEISJ Electives include: AN102 Cultural Anthropology, BM100 Introduction to Business, BM101, Survey of Economics, PY101 Intro to General Psychology, or SO101 Intro to Sociology.

(g) For students in this program, the world language consists of a six-hour sequence within the same language. Students who have completed four years of the same language in high school, have completed three years of the same language in high school with a grade of A or over 90%, or those with other appropriate language experience are exempt from this requirement. For those who are not exempt from the requirement, placement in language and level is determined at the beginning of the academic year. Those who are exempt must replace language credits with six credits of MVCC General Education electives.

Take any Physical Education course

Second Semester

This course encourages a deeper understanding of human nature and the human condition through the study of ideas and values expressed in imaginative literature. Emphasis is placed on the use and development of critical thinking and language skills. Library-oriented research is required. Prerequisite: EN101 English 1: Composition or EN105 English Composition for Speakers of Other Languages or EN106 English 1: Composition & Reading.

This course is concerned with civilizations and their influences on each other in the modern world. It traces the rise of the West to a position of world dominance and its impact on non-Western societies. Emphasis is placed on the major forces that have shaped the contemporary world - industrialization, urbanization, nationalism, militarism, imperialism, democracy, and communism.

This course introduces the history of art from prehistoric times through the Sixteenth Century. Topics include Classical, Medieval, Renaissance, and non-Western examples of painting, sculpture, and architecture. Art is studied within its cultural context with a focus on the interrelationship among the Arts. A field trip to an art exhibit is required. Prerequisite: EN101 English 1: Composition or EN105 English Composition for Speakers of Other Languages or EN106 English 1: Composition & Reading.

(c) Social Science Electives include: AN101 Biological Anthropology, BM101 Survey of Economics, GE101 Essentials of World Geography, PS101 American National Government, PY101 Introduction to General Psychology, SO101 Introduction to Sociology.

(g) For students in this program, the world language consists of a six-hour sequence within the same language. Students who have completed four years of the same language in high school, have completed three years of the same language in high school with a grade of A or over 90%, or those with other appropriate language experience are exempt from this requirement. For those who are not exempt from the requirement, placement in language and level is determined at the beginning of the academic year. Those who are exempt must replace language credits with six credits of MVCC General Education electives.

Take any Physical Education course

Third Semester

This course is an introduction to public speaking. It emphasizes the fundamentals of preparing, organizing, supporting, and delivering the speech based on factual material. It includes topic selection, audience analysis, fact vs. opinion, outlining, supporting material, and visual support. Informative, demonstrative, and persuasive speeches are presented. Elements of interpersonal communication, logic, and persuasion are discussed. Prerequisite: EN101 English 1: Composition or EN105 English Composition for Speakers of Other Languages or EN106 English 1: Composition & Reading.

This course introduces the history of art from the Seventeenth Century to the present. Topics include Baroque, Rococo, Neoclassicisms, Romanticism, Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, Twentieth-Century, and non-Western examples of painting, sculpture, and architecture. Art is studied within its cultural context with a focus on the interrelationship among the Arts. A field trip to an art exhibit is required. Prerequisite: EN101 English 1: Composition or EN105 English Composition for Speakers of Other Languages or EN106 English 1: Composition & Reading.

(d) General Education - Any course from the MVCC General Education Course List not already specified in the curriculum except MA171, MA172, or EN110.

(e) Restrictive Elective - Any 200-level course with a prefix of EN, HU, or HI, or Foreign Language course not already stipulated in the curriculum.

Take any GE Natural Science Elective

Take any Physical Education course

Fourth Semester

(d) General Education - Any course from the MVCC General Education Course List not already specified in the curriculum except MA171, MA172, or EN110.

(e) Restrictive Elective - Any 200-level course with a prefix of EN, HU, or HI, or Foreign Language course not already stipulated in the curriculum.

(e) Restrictive Elective - Any 200-level course with a prefix of EN, HU, or HI, or Foreign Language course not already stipulated in the curriculum.

(f) Select from SA300 Study Abroad, HU280 Introduction to Ethics, or HU295 Survey of Philosophy.

Take any History or Humanities Elective

Take any Physical Education course

(a) Mathematics Electives include: MA108 Concepts in Mathematics, MA110 Elementary Statistics, or higher, except MA171 and MA172.

(b) DEISJ Electives include: AN102 Cultural Anthropology, BM100 Introduction to Business, BM101, Survey of Economics, PY101 Intro to General Psychology, or SO101 Intro to Sociology.

(c) Social Science Electives include: AN101 Biological Anthropology, BM101 Survey of Economics, GE101 Essentials of World Geography, PS101 American National Government, PY101 Introduction to General Psychology, SO101 Introduction to Sociology.

(d) General Education - Any course from the MVCC General Education Course List not already specified in the curriculum except MA171, MA172, or EN110.

(e) Restrictive Elective - Any 200-level course with a prefix of EN, HU, or HI, or Foreign Language course not already stipulated in the curriculum.

(f) Select from SA300 Study Abroad, HU280 Introduction to Ethics, or HU295 Survey of Philosophy.

(g) For students in this program, the world language consists of a six-hour sequence within the same language. Students who have completed four years of the same language in high school, have completed three years of the same language in high school with a grade of A or over 90%, or those with other appropriate language experience are exempt from this requirement. For those who are not exempt from the requirement, placement in language and level is determined at the beginning of the academic year. Those who are exempt must replace language credits with six credits of MVCC General Education electives.