There is no placement exam for Japanese. Incoming students should speak directly to Hiroko Hirakawa to determine the best placement.

5. Quantitative Literacy Guilford also has a Quantitative Literacy requirement. Students may satisfy it in several ways:

1. Earning a Math SAT score of 650 or higher

2. Receiving a score of 15 or below on the Guilford Quantitative Literacy test

3. Successfully completing GST 110, a 2 credit course that focuses on quantitative literacy or

4. Passing (D- or above) any mathematics course offered at Guilford or a transfer course equivalent.

II. Explorations

A. Breadth

To gain educational experiences in each of the five disciplinary divisions, students are required to take one “Breadth” course in each of these divisions. The following list identifies these disciplinary divisions, as well as the academic departments belonging to each (interdisciplinary programs like African American studies and environmental studies span the areas of study but are not primarily located in any one of them).

Not all courses taught in each of these divisions will satisfy this requirement. Those courses that do satisfy one of the Breadth requirements are so identified in individual course descriptions.

• Arts-Art, Music, Theatre Studies
• Business and Policy Studies-Accounting, Business, Computing Technology and Information Systems, Justice and Policy Studies, Sport Studies
• Humanities-English, Foreign Languages, History, Philosophy, Religious Studies
• Natural Sciences and Mathematics-Biology, Chemistry, Geology and Earth Sciences, Physics
• Social Science-Economics, Education Studies, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology and Anthropology

Minimum grade to satisfy the Breadth requirement: D- in each of the courses taken to satisfy this requirement.

B. Critical Perspectives

Additionally, each student must complete three specially designated “Critical Perspectives” courses. These three courses can double-count with Breadth courses, a Historical Perspectives course, major and minor courses or a capstone course. Those courses that will satisfy the Critical Perspectives requirement are so identified in individual course descriptions. Only courses so designated may be used to satisfy this requirement. The three categories are:

• Intercultural, which focuses on an approved course on Africa, Asia, Latin America or the Middle East.
• Social Justice/Environmental Responsibility, which focuses on race, class, gender, sexual orientation or the environment.
• Diversity in the U.S., which explores sub-cultures within the United States.

Minimum grade to satisfy the Critical Perspectives requirement: D- in each of the courses taken to satisfy one of the three requirements.

III. The Major

Each student must choose a major field of specialization. It is expected that students should declare a major online in the college’s BannerWeb system by the time they have earned 32 credit hours.

Students may pursue options outlined below, including disciplinary majors, double majors or interdisciplinary majors.

All majors require a minimum of 32 credit hours. Certain majors require a larger number of credit hours. See the major’s department in Chapter IV for all requirements for completing that major.  For a student to earn a major at Guilford, the student must complete at least half of the major credit requirements at Guilford. This requirement applies to each major a student earns. The minimum grade to satisfy the major is a C- in each of the courses required for the major, unless otherwise specified for professional licensure.

If a student returns to Guilford following graduation to complete a second major, but not a second degree, the designation of the original major will not be changed, but a notation will be made on the student’s academic transcript that the requirements for the second major have been met.

Accounting, African American studies, business, community and justice studies, computing technology and information systems, criminal justice, education (K-6), education (9-12), forensic accounting, history, political science and psychology may be completed through either daytime or evening classes.  Forensic biology is an evening major.

Disciplinary Majors

A disciplinary major is a major in a traditional academic discipline. A student selecting an disciplinary major completes a minimum of 32 credit hours (eight courses) in that field as specified by the program. At least half of the major must be completed at Guilford.

Interdisciplinary majors

An interdisciplinary major utilizes theoretical perspectives for analysis from more than one traditional academic discipline. A student selecting an interdisciplinary major completes a minimum of 32 credit hours (eight courses) as specified by the program. With the exception of integrative studies and peace and conflict studies, all interdisciplinary majors must also complete a second disciplinary major, which replaces the minor requirement. At least half of each major must be completed at Guilford.

Double Majors

A double major consist of two distinct majors, one of which must be a disciplinary major. To earn a double major, a student must complete all requirements for each of the two majors. With a double major, no minor is required for graduation. If these two majors offer different degrees (A.B., B.S., B.M., B.F.A.,), only one degree will be awarded to the student. The student will choose which degree is awarded. Both majors, however, will be listed on the student’s permanent academic transcript.

Students wishing to have more than one major must take a minimum of 32 credit hours in each major.  The 32 credit hours for each major must not overlap with the other major.

At least half of each majors must be earned at Guilford.

IV. The Minor

In addition to the major course work, each student who is not pursuing a double major, triple major, B.F.A. degree, or an integrative studies major must choose a minor. A minor is a focused collection of a minimum of 16 credit hours that either provide a second, mini-depth area or involve study related to the major. Students are free to take any minor so long as it does not have the same name as the major: thus an English major would not be able to use an English minor to satisfy the minor requirement. Minors may be either disciplinary or interdisciplinary.

• Minimum grade to satisfy the minor: D- in each of the courses required for the minor.

Students should declare a minor online in the BannerWeb system by the time they have earned 32 credit hours.

V. Capstone Interdisciplinary Studies (IDS)

Each student who has senior status (a minimum of 88 credits completed) must take an interdisciplinary studies (IDS) course with a 400-level prefix (e.g., IDS 402 Business Ethics). Students may take an IDS 400 class before they have earned 88 credit hours; however, under no circumstances will the course satisfy the IDS general education requirement if the student has not already completed  88 credit hours prior to the beginning of the course.  Also, students must complete their Historical Perspectives requirement before taking an IDS course.

The IDS course will allow students to draw upon the knowledge and skills gained from previous college work and explore issues that cross traditional disciplinary lines. Cross-disciplinary writing will be a principal focus.

The IDS may only double-count with Critical Perspectives, major or minor.

VI. Electives

Sufficient electives are needed to fill out the minimum of 128 credits needed for graduation. Electives may be taken in any department or field to supplement the student’s interests.

There are some limitations on the number of credit hours a student may earn in independent studies, internships and physical education classes. For detailed restrictions please refer to the sections on independent studies, internships and physical education classes.

Criteria and Process for Awarding Honorary Degrees at Guilford College

Background information
The Guilford College Bylaws state that “This authority [of the Board of Trustees], upon the recommendation of the president, shall include but not be limited to the following illustrative functions:…Approve all earned and honorary degrees as the faculty shall recommend.” (Section 2.2) This proposal establishes the criteria for honorary degrees and the process by which awardees would be recommended by the faculty and president.

The awarding of honorary degrees is a long standing tradition of many colleges and universities, including colleges founded by the Society of Friends. Earlham College, Haverford College and Swarthmore College all award honorary degrees, such as the Doctor of Laws, Doctor of Science, Doctor of Letters and Doctor of Humane Letters. Haverford and Swarthmore award them annually, but Earlham “reserves the privilege for individuals and times deemed by the faculty to be of particular importance.” Haverford has a tradition of selecting one Quaker recipient per year. Whittier College and Wilmington College also award honorary degrees.

The criteria and process described below have several similarities to those that Earlham and Whittier use to award honorary degrees. At Earlham, nominations originate with the teaching and administrative faculty, and are considered in turn by a) a committee consisting of “the President of the College, the Convener of Faculty Affairs Committee and the Chairman of the Board of Trustees;” b) the Faculty Affairs Committee and c) the faculty. Approved candidates are then presented to the board for approval. At Earlham, honorary degrees are intended to “reward distinguished achievement in the nation’s life by the conferring of honorary degrees on persons outside the college community” and “must be awarded sparingly.” Whittier awards honorary degrees for the purposes of “(1) recognizing scholarly, artistic, public, or civic achievement and (2) furthering the mission and goals of the college by enhancing the institution’s reputation and resources.” Nominations may be submitted by any member of the community. A subcommittee of the Faculty Affairs Committee considers the nominations and presents selected candidates to the faculty for approval. In consultation with the chair of the subcommittee, the president prioritizes the list, which includes all candidates who have been approved by the faculty over the previous five years. The president selects candidates to receive the honorary degree, with all selected candidates to be affirmed by the Board of Trustees.

Objective
The honorary degree is one of the highest recognitions any college can bestow and is therefore not lightly granted. It is intended to honor an individual who has a sustained record of achievements of lasting significance. Associating these honorees more closely with Guilford would raise the profile of the College, thereby benefitting admissions, overall engagement, and philanthropy.

The Doctor of Letters, Doctor of Humane Letters, or Doctor of Science would be awarded to individuals who meet the stated criteria. No more than one honorary degree would be awarded in any academic year.

Criteria
Persons nominated for consideration for honorary degrees should have made distinguished and broad contributions to society. These may be in the traditional areas of scholarship and creative arts, research and development, the learned professions, public service, philanthropy or business and industry. It would be desirable for these contributions to reflect all or most of Guilford’s core values (Community, Diversity, Equality, Excellence, Integrity, Justice, and Stewardship), with an emphasis on Excellence and Integrity. Contributions to society that reflect principled problem solving are also desirable.

It is desirable, but not required, that the people selected have had some connection with Guilford College and its mission. It is also desirable, but not required, that some recipients of an honorary degree be widely known by the general public.

The following persons ordinarily would not be eligible:

• Persons currently serving on the faculty or staff of the College

Process
Early in the academic year, but no later than September 15, the Office of the President will solicit confidential nominations for an honorary degree from faculty, staff, students, alumni, the Board of Trustees and the Board of Visitors. Nominations will be due on or before November 1. Those making and supporting nominations should be knowledgeable in the nominee’s field of accomplishment and therefore in a position to make an evaluation. Each nomination must be accompanied by a letter of nomination including a biographical sketch of the individual. Nominations may be co-sponsored by up to two individuals from the Guilford community. Nominations will be submitted to the Office of the President.

In any year in which nominations are received, the Clerk’s Committee will appoint an ad hoc Honorary Degree Committee, in consultation with the President, to review the nominations and supporting material. The committee may choose to seek additional information provided that the confidentiality of the process is preserved. The committee should consider any potential conflicts of interest for any of the nominees. No later than December 1, the committee will recommend to the faculty up to three nominees to receive an honorary degree. These nominations will be considered at the December faculty meeting, and the faculty may recommend that any or none of the nominees be awarded an honorary degree. Provided that the faculty recommend at least one nominee, and based on the faculty recommendation and any additional consultation, the President will recommend the person, if any, to receive an honorary degree. The President’s recommendation will be forwarded to the Board of Trustees for their review and approval. Honorary degrees will ordinarily be awarded at the opening academic convocation of the following academic year. The degree may be awarded at the spring commencement exercises on the recommendation of the Convocation and Celebrations Committee.

Accreditation & Affiliation

Guilford is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30330-4097; telephone number 404-679-4501; www.sacscoc.org) to award baccalaureate degrees. It is also affiliated with the Council on Post-secondary Education.

Guilford is on the list of colleges and universities approved by the American Medical Association, and the teacher education program is accredited by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education.

Credits earned at Guilford are accepted at face value in admission to graduate and professional schools and in certification of teaching.

Guilford holds membership in a number of organizations formed by colleges and universities: the Association of American Colleges and Universities, the American Council on Education, the Council of Independent Colleges, the North Carolina Adult Education Association, the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, the North Carolina Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, the North Carolina Honors Association, the National Collegiate Honors Council, the Friends Association for Higher Education, The College Board, and the North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities.

Guilford is listed in the Baccalaureate Colleges-Liberal Arts category by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.