Associate of Arts, AA

The AA degree program requires the successful completion of the following:

• Core Requirements: 12-16 courses, 43-60 credits
• Minimum Total Credits Required for Degree Conferral: 64 credits

First-Year Experience: 1 course, 1 credit

Students with 15+ transfer credits of college or university work are exempt.

Choose one of the following to be completed during the first semester of matriculation:

CAS-101

Strategies of Success

1

First-Year Seminar: 1 course, 4 credits

Students with 15+ transfer credits of college or university work are exempt. Please note that not all courses are offered each semester. Students should contact their advisor to learn about current course offerings.

Choose one First-Year Seminar course from those listed below:

SF-101	Fixing the World- Energy and Water: The Science of Solutions	4
SF-116	Enlightened Insanity	4
SF-126	The Boston Theatre Scene: the Inside Experience	4
SF-132	The Beatles: Here, There and Everywhere	4
SF-151	Getting Over It: Dealing With the Aftermath of Group Conflict/Mass Atrocity	4
SF-156	The Mask Behind the Face	4
SF-174	Tragedy and Literature	4
SF-178	Sacred Hoops and Sneaker Pimps: Understanding the American Hoop Dream	4
SF-182	Heroes, Antiheroes and Outsiders: Reading the Graphic Novel	4
SF-183	Politics, Power and the Media	4
SF-189	American Gothic: Edgar Allan Poe, Flannery O'Connor and Annie Proulx	4
SF-191	Film Adaptation	4
SF-1129	Beacon Hill: Fact, Fiction, and Fantasy	4
SF-1134	The Meaning of Life	4
SF-1141	Classical Civilizations: Pathways to Wisdom	4
SF-1143	In the First-Person: Storytelling in the 21st Century	4
SF-1148	Brave New Worlds	4
SF-1161	The Playwright and the Stage	4
SF-1162	Space Missions: From Moon to Mars and Beyond	4
SF-1165	History of Boston	4
SF-1166	Cinema-Monde: Global Challenges on Film	4
SF-1167	Fantasy Fiction: Imaginary Worlds	4
SF-1169	Immortality: Real and Imagined	4
SF-1172	The United States Mexican Border	4
SF-1173	Understanding the Vast Sweep of Chinese Culture	4
SF-1176	What Is a Fact?	4
SF-1179	Writing Stories of Self in Society	4
SF-1180	Nasty Women in American Literature	4
SF-1181	Mad Criminals	4
SF-1182	Curators, Collections and Exhibits	4
SF-1183	Revenge!	4
SF-1185	Socially-Conscious Storytellers in a Political World	4
SF-1187	The Psychology of Nutrition	4
SF-1189	Urban and Contemporary Art	4
SF-1190	Black Lives Matter: Past, Present, Future	4
SF-1191	Writing Your Future: Genes and Gene Editing	4
SF-1192	Dark Ecologies	4
SF-1194	Power: What Is How to Get It	4
SF-1195	Understanding Global Public Policy	4
SF-1196	Human Rights in the 21st Century	4
SF-1197	The History of Rap, Hip Hop and Popular Culture	4
SF-1198	True Crime	4
SF-1199	Death, Dying, & Grieving in America (settlement to 1870)	4
SF-1200	Quantum Reality, Information, and Computing	4
SF-1201	Sinatra: Voice of the 20th Century	4
SF-1202	Our Plastic Problem	4
SF-1203	Generals, Explorers, and Smokejumpers: Disaster Leadership	4
SF-1204	The Age of Renaissance and Reformation	4
SF-1205	Diversity and Inclusion: a View From the Arts and Media	4
SF-1206	Technology, Globalization, and Sustainable Development	4
SF-1207	American Popular Culture	4
SF-1208	Social Meanings of Money	4
SF-1209	Video Games As Expressive Art	4
SF-1210	Data Visualization: Seeing Is Believing	4
SF-1211	Boston in Film and Literature	4
SF-1212	Socialism v. Capitalism	4
SF-1213	I Fought the Law and I Won: Debating 21st Century Civil Rights in the Law	4
SF-1214	Boston and Book History	4
SF-1215	Philosophy in the City	4
SF-1216	Gender and Media: Taylor Swift	4

Students in the CAS Honors Program should choose one First-Year Seminar course from those listed below:

SF-H116	Honors Enlightened Insanity	4
SF-H132	Honors The Beatles: Here, There and Everywhere	4
SF-H182	Honors Heroes, Antiheroes and Outsiders: Reading the Graphic Novel	4
SF-H189	Honors American Gothic	4
SF-H1134	Honors The Meaning of Life	4
SF-H1148	Honors Brave New Worlds	4
SF-H1167	Honors Fantasy Fiction: Imaginary Worlds	4
SF-H1180	Honors American Women Writers and the Struggle For Equality	4
SF-H1181	Honors Mad Criminals	4
SF-H1182	Honors Curators, Collections and Exhibits	4
SF-H1188	Honors Attention in the Age of Distraction	4
SF-H1196	Honors Human Rights in the 21st Century	4
SF-H1202	Honors Our Plastic Problem	4
SF-H1210	Honors Data Visualization: Seeing is Believing	4
SF-H1211	Honors Boston in Film and Literature	4
SF-H1214	Honors Boston and Book History	4

First-Year Writing: 1-3 courses, 4-12 credits

A student may be assigned to a first Writing course other than WRI-101.  Qualified students are invited to take WRI-H103.  Students not eligible for direct entry into WRI-101 must complete WRI-100+ prior to enrolling in WRI-101.  Through directed self-placement, a student may also opt to complete the developmental writing course WRI-100 before enrolling in WRI-101.

Students must complete one of the following tracks:

Track 1: 2 courses, 8 credits

WRI-101	First-Year Writing I	4
WRI-102	First-Year Writing II	4

Track 2: 3 courses, 12 credits

WRI-100+	Developmental Writing - Tutorial Section	4
WRI-101	First-Year Writing I	4
WRI-102	First-Year Writing II	4

Track 3: 3 courses, 12 credits

WRI-100	Developmental Writing I	4
WRI-101	First-Year Writing I	4
WRI-102	First-Year Writing II	4

Track 4: 1 course, 4 credits

WRI-H103

Honors Advanced First-Year Writing

4

Note: WRI-H103 is by invitation only.

Creativity and Innovation: 1 course, 3 credits

In this course students will be introduced to the practice of creativity as a rigorous approach to problem solving requiring research, persistence and grit. Students will work collaboratively to effectively synthesize existing ideas, images, and skill sets in original ways. They will embrace risk and support divergent thinking. In the process, they will become more confident life-long learners.

Note: Students with 30+ transfer credits are exempt from this requirement.

Choose one Creativity and Innovation course from those listed below:

ADF-S171	Creativity and Innovation: Integrated Studio I	3
ADF-S172	Creativity and Innovation: Integrated Studio II	3
CI-102	The End of Global Poverty	3
CI-103	Sticking Your Neck Out: Inventing for Non-Engineers	3
CI-106	Failing Successfully	3
CI-108	Designing the Next Best Thing	3
CI-110	The Entrepreneur's Cocktail	3
CI-H112	Honors Creating Problems: a New Solution For Sustainability	3
CI-114	Creating the Dream Team	3
CI-115	Poetry Out Loud	3
CI-120	Process to Value: The Power of Relationships	3
CI-127	Nutrition Psychology Based Meal Plan Through Creative Collaboration	3
CI-141	The Creative Approach to Learning	3
CI-143	Dreams, Demons, and Dynamic Artists Creative Nature	3
CI-147	Seeing Double: Printmaking, the Art of Discovery, Experimentation and Process	3
CI-149	Service Learning-Creative Writing and Literacy	3
CI-157	Mindful Journal	3
CI-163	A Course on Skepticism and Rationality	3
CI-165	Chemistry Is Everywhere: Zig-Zagging to Success	3
CI-167	Public Health: A Need to Think Outside The Box	3
CI-169	Riddles of Identity	3
CI-173	Imagining the Other	3
CI-175	Creating Social Change: From Theory to Activism	3
CI-H175	Honors Creating Social Change: From Theory to Activism	3
CI-177	The Curious and Open-Hearted Historian	3
CI-H177	Honors- the Curious and Open-Hearted Historian	3
CI-179	Myths of Self-Making	3
CI-183	It Happened Like This... the Stories We Tell	3
CI-H185	Honors City of Stories: Walking Tours of Boston's Past	3
CI-187	Think Small: Change the World	3
CI-189	The Extended Photo Essay	3
CI-191	The Self in Society	3
CI-193	Tackling Global Issues Creatively: Sustainable Development	3
CI-195	Multilingualism at Play	3
CI-197	Writing the Future: Poetry and Activism	3
CI-199	Big Ideas and Blank Spaces	3
CI-1121	How to Be a Friend	3
CI-1122	Intuition, Creativity and Innovation Across Borders	3
CI-1123	The Fantastic Feast: Social Justice Through Changing the Way	3
CI-1125	Travel Photography	3

Math: 1 course, 4 credits

Choose one Math course from those listed below:

MATH-128	Math for the Modern World	4
MATH-130	Topics in Finite Mathematics	4
MATH-134	Calculus for Management and Social Sciences	4
MATH-165	Calculus I	4
MATH-166	Calculus II	4

Social, Cultural, and Global Perspectives: 1 course, 3-4 credits

Choose one SCGP course from those listed below:

ADPR-217	Gay and Lesbian Studies	4
ARH-203	Arts of Asia	4
ARH-206	Global Cross-Cultural Perspectives in Art	4
ARH-321	Women, Art and Society	4
AS-100	Introduction to Asian Studies: Culture, People, Ideas	4
BLE-325	Global Business Ethics	3
BLKST-395	From \ck to Africa\ to \ack Lives Matter\: A Global History of Panafricanism	4
CJN-216	Intercultural Communication	4
CJN-225	World Cinema	4
CJN-232	Gender, Sexuality, and Communication	4
CJN-281	Asian Popular Culture	4
CJN-301	Documentary Film and the Image of Conflict in the Middle East	4
CJU-218	Crime and Law in Indian Country	4
CJU-275	Women and Crime	4
EAP-104	Foundations of Reading and Writing II	4
EDUC-310	Culturally Sustaining Practices	4
EDUC-315	Strategies for Working With Emergent English Learners	4
ENG-123	Great Books of the World I	4
ENG-135	World Literature in English	4
ENG-163	Latinx Literature Today	4
ENG-221	Tactical Rhetoric: Advocacy & Activism, Propaganda & Power	4
ENG-357	African-American Literature	4
ENT-352	Green and Sustainable Business	3
FR-210	Business French in a Communicative Context	4
HST-100	Introduction to Asian Studies: Culture, People, Ideas	4
HST-103	Cultures and Social Transformations in Asia	4
HST-236	Public History in Practice	4
HST-241	Narrating the Past With Digital History	4
HST-251	Modern East Asia	4
HST-268	History of the Mediterranean	4
HST-275	Women in 20th-Century Europe	4
HST-296	Building Urban America: City Design and Architecture From 1700-1880	4
HST-321	History of Islam	4
HST-340	Europe in the 20th Century	4
HST-356	World War II: the Global War	4
HST-371	U.S. Women's History Colonial to 1865	4
HST-374	The Early American Republic: Politics and Culture in the New Nation	4
HST-465	Monumental Women: Female Public Space	4
LAWU-280	Domestic Violence, Abuse and Neglect	4
P.AD-201	Social Change	3
P.AD-H201	Honors Social Change	3
PHIL-120	Ethics and Civic Life	4
PHIL-228	Feminist Philosophy	4
PHIL-251	Philosophy of Race and Gender	4
PHIL-262	Buddhism	4
PHIL-265	Women in Spirituality	4
PHIL-267	Chinese Philosophy	4
POLS-115	Evolution of the Global System	4
POLS-208	Politics and Religion	4
POLS-359	Global Politics of Sport	4
POLS-467	Comparative Social Movements	4
PSYCH-243	Organizational Psychology	4
RS-111	Introduction to World Religions: Western Traditions	4
RS-112	Introduction to World Religions: Eastern Traditions	4
SIB-550	Global Travel Seminar	3
SF-178	Sacred Hoops and Sneaker Pimps: Understanding the American Hoop Dream	4
SF-1166	Cinema-Monde: Global Challenges on Film	4
SIB-321	Introduction to International Business	3
SOC-228	Cultural Diversity	4
SOC-257	Death and Dying	4
SOC-329	Sociology of Globalization	4
SPAN-202	Intermediate Spanish II	4
SPAN-290	Advanced Composition and Conversation	4
SPAN-300	Intro to Cultural Texts	4
SPAN-315	Spanish for the Professions	4
THETR-160	From Oedipus to Hamilton: Shaping Society Through Theatre	4
THETR-260	Broadway Musicals	4
THETR-267	Introduction to Theatre: Contemporary American	4
WGS-111	Women, History, and Culture	4
WGS-113	Women, Science, and Society	4
WGS-115	Introduction to Gender Studies	4
WGS-225	From Prophetess to Poetess: African Women Since 1800	4
WGS-325	Global Women's Fiction	4
WGS-335	Queer Narratives	4
WGS-338	Re-Imagine the World: Transnational Feminism in Film	4

Courses that fulfill the Creativity and Innovation, First-Year Seminar, Humanities/History, Language, Literature, Quantitative Reasoning, Social Science, or VPATH requirements may double count to fulfill the Social, Cultural, and Global Perspectives (SCGP) requirement.

Science, Technology, and Engineering (STE): 2 courses and corresponding laboratories where applicable, 8 credits

Choose two STE courses (and corresponding laboratory where applicable) from those listed below. Courses do not need to be in a sequence. In the case of a course that is a lecture plus a lab, the student must complete both components to earn credit for the STE requirement.

Biology:

BIO-105	Humans and the Evolutionary Perspective	4
BIO-111	Introduction to the Cell	3
BIO-L111	Introduction to the Cell Laboratory	1
BIO-114	Organismal Biology	3
BIO-L114	Organismal Biology Laboratory	1
BIO-201	Biology's Big Questions	4

Chemistry:

CHEM-111

General Chemistry I

3

Computer Science:

CMPSC-F107

Ants, Rumors and Gridlocks

4

Environmental Science:

UES-107	Introduction to Drones	3
UES-L107	Introduction to Drones Lab	1
UES-111	Environmental Science	3
UES-L111	Environmental Science Lab	1
UES-211	Environmental Science II	3
UES-L211	Environmental Science II Lab	1
UES-225	Geographical Information Science	3
UES-L225	Geographic Information Science Lab	1

Physics:

PHYS-111	College Physics I	3
PHYS-L111	College Physics Lab I	1
PHYS-151	University Physics I	3
PHYS-L151	University Physics Lab I	1
PHYS-152	University Physics II	3
PHYS-L152	University Physics Lab II	1

Science:

SCI-101	Introduction to Forensic Biology	3
SCI-L101	Introduction to Forensic Biology Lab	1
SCI-102	Introduction to Forensic Chemistry	3
SCI-L102	Introduction to Forensic Chemistry Lab	1
SCI-103	Environmental Science	3
SCI-L103	Environmental Science Lab	1
SCI-104	Food Chemistry	4
SCI-108	Introduction to Cancer Care	4
SCI-H108	Honors Introduction to Cancer Care	4
SCI-109	Service Learning-Introduction to Community Cancer Care	4
SCI-H109	Service Learning-Honors Introduction to Community Cancer Care	4
SCI-111	Introduction to Astronomy	3
SCI-L111	Introduction to Astronomy Lab	1
SCI-112	Structure of the Universe	3
SCI-L112	Structure of the Universe Lab	1
SCI-120	Everyday Chemistry	4
SCI-165	Inner Workings of the Physical Universe	4
SCI-171	The Built World: How Humans Engineer Environments	4
SCI-H171	The Built World: How Humans Engineer Environments- Honors	4
SCI-173	Mapping Our World The Power of Digital Maps	3
SCI-L173	Mapping Our World Lab	1
SCI-181	Science and Life in the 21st Century	4
SCI-184	Contemporary Science and Innovation	4
SCI-201	Physics for Future Presidents	4
SCI-288	Measuring the World	4

Some Science division courses may have Math or Computer Science prerequisites; many have other Science prerequisites.

Studies in Literature: 1 course, 4 credits

Choose one Studies in Literature course from those listed below:

ENG-120	Ireland to America (and Back Again): Irish and Irish-American Literature	4
ENG-130	Introduction to Literature	4
ENG-135	World Literature in English	4
ENG-141	Studies in British Literature	4
ENG-142	Studies in American Literature	4
ENG-150	Mysteries	4
ENG-152	Horror Fiction	4
ENG-153	Literature of War	4
ENG-154	Bob Dylan and the Beat Generation	4
ENG-155	Young Adult Literature	4
ENG-156	Immigrant Stories	4
ENG-158	Rebels and Renegades in American Women's Writing	4
ENG-160	School Stories: Narratives of Power and Class	4
ENG-162	Shakespeare From Stage to Screen	4
ENG-163	Latinx Literature Today	4
ENG-172	Sports and Literature	4
ENG-213	English Literature I	4
ENG-214	English Literature II	4
ENG-217	American Literature I	4
ENG-218	American Literature II	4
ENG-313	Sex and Power in the Middle Ages	4
ENG-314	Medieval Monsters, Monks, and Maidens	4
ENG-317	Classical Mythology	4
ENG-347	20th Century Female Gothic	4
ENG-H347	Honors 20th Century Female Gothic	4
ENG-348	Jane Austen	4
ENG-356	Whitman and Dickinson	4
ENG-358	Women Writing the American West	4
ENG-361	Contemporary American Fiction	4
ENG-412	Women in Classical Antiquity	4
ENG-430	Literature of the Vietnam War and the Post 9/11 Wars	4
PHIL-424	Philosophy and Literature: Feodor Dostoevsky and the Great Philosophical Novel	4
SPAN-426	Latin American Theater and Society	4
WGS-211	Heroines, Hotties and Hubris: Adolescent Girl's Books	4
WGS-240	Feminist Literature	4
WGS-325	Global Women's Fiction	4

Ethical and Philosophical Inquiry: 1 course, 4 credits

Choose one Ethics course from those listed below:

PHIL-119	Global Ethics	4
PHIL-120	Ethics and Civic Life	4
PHIL-123	Social Ethics: The Good Life	4
PHIL-127	Contemporary Moral Issues	4

Human Behavior and Societies: 1 course, 4 credits

Choose one Human Behavior and Societies course from those listed below:

Advertising and Public Relations:

ADPR-285

Media and Pop Culture I

4

Communication:

CJN-255	Introduction to Media	4
CJN-336	Social Identity and Intergroup Relations	4

Economics:

EC-101	Applied Microeconomics	3
EC-102	Global Macroeconomics	3
EC-103	Using Big Data to Solve Economic and Social Problems	4

Environmental:

ENVS-101

Environmental Studies

4

Political Science:

POLS-110	Introduction to American Politics	4
POLS-115	Evolution of the Global System	4

Psychology:

PSYCH-114	General Psychology	4
PSYCH-249	Introduction to Lifespan Development	4

Sociology:

SOC-113	Introduction to Sociology	4
SOC-116	Social Justice	4
SOC-221	Environment and Society	4

Women's and Gender Studies:

WGS-113

Women, Science, and Society

4

Social and Intellectual History/Visual and Performing Arts Theory and History: 1 course, 4 credits

Choose one course from those listed below:

American Studies:

AMST-101

American History and Culture

4

Art and Design:

ADG-224	History of Graphic Design	4
ADI-234	History and Theory of Interior Architecture	3

Art History:

ARH-101	Art History I	4
ARH-102	Art History II	4
ARH-203	Arts of Asia	4
ARH-206	Global Cross-Cultural Perspectives in Art	4
ARH-303	Art of the Early Renaissance in Italy	4
ARH-304	Art in the Age of Michelangelo: The High and Late Renaissance in Italy	4
ARH-308	Art of the Baroque and Rococo	4
ARH-309	Art of the 19th Century	4
ARH-310	Modernism in Art	4
ARH-311	American Art	4
ARH-312	Art of the Northern Renaissance	4
ARH-316	Contemporary Art	4
ARH-321	Women, Art and Society	4

Asian Studies:

AS-100

Introduction to Asian Studies: Culture, People, Ideas

4

Black Studies:

BLKST-395

From \ck to Africa\ to \ack Lives Matter\: A Global History of Panafricanism

4

Communication:

CJN-152	Visual Aesthetics	4
CJN-218	Photojournalism	4
CJN-292	Film History: From Silent Cinema to the Modern Era	4
CJN-352	Visual and Global Contexts	4

English:

ENG-123	Great Books of the World I	4
ENG-162	Shakespeare From Stage to Screen	4
ENG-266	\ad Men:\ Reading Visual Narratives	4
ENG-389	History of the Book	4

Environmental Science:

ENVS-325

Environmental History of the U.S.

4

History:

HST-103	Cultures and Social Transformations in Asia	4
HST-149	Empires and Globalization in World History I	4
HST-150	Empires and Globalization in World History II	4
HST-181	American Life to the Civil War Era	4
HST-182	American Life Since the Civil War Era	4
HST-218	Service Learning- Walls and Bridges: Immigration in Global Perspective	4
HST-236	Public History in Practice	4
HST-239	Getting Started With Oral History	4
HST-241	Narrating the Past With Digital History	4
HST-251	Modern East Asia	4
HST-256	Exploring Asia	4
HST-260	Asian Peoples and Cultures	4
HST-268	History of the Mediterranean	4
HST-275	Women in 20th-Century Europe	4
HST-296	Building Urban America: City Design and Architecture From 1700-1880	4
HST-319	The History of Black Music in America	4
HST-340	Europe in the 20th Century	4
HST-356	World War II: the Global War	4
HST-357	Spain's Ancient to Early Modern Societies and Realms	4
HST-358	Spanish Society and the State, From Absolutism to Democracy?	4
HST-374	The Early American Republic: Politics and Culture in the New Nation	4
HST-383	Boston: Heritage of a City	4
HST-392	An Enduring Conflict: the American Civil War	4
HST-465	Monumental Women: Female Public Space	4

Music History:

MUH-212

Popular Music in the United States

4

Philosophy:

PHIL-115	Introduction to Philosophy	4
PHIL-210	Ancient Traditions	4
PHIL-211	History of Modern Philosophy	4
PHIL-250	Social and Political Philosophy	4

Political Science:

POLS-275	Ancient and Medieval Political Theory	4
POLS-276	Modern Political Theory	4

Theatre:

THETR-160	From Oedipus to Hamilton: Shaping Society Through Theatre	4
THETR-260	Broadway Musicals	4
THETR-265	Introduction to Theatre: Prehistory to Melodrama	4
THETR-266	Intro to Theatre: 20th Century	4

Women’s and Gender Studies:

WGS-111	Women, History, and Culture	4
WGS-115	Introduction to Gender Studies	4
WGS-225	From Prophetess to Poetess: African Women Since 1800	4
WGS-330	Furies to Femi-Nazis: A History of Modern Anti-Feminism	4
WGS-335	Queer Narratives	4

Modern Language: 0-2 courses, 0-8 credits

A student may fulfill the modern language requirement in one of the following ways:

1. Complete a language course at the level of 102. It may be necessary to complete 101 before taking 102.

2. Complete an advanced language course at the level of 201 or above, including a course offered through a study abroad program or in a format that ‘meets together’ with an English-language version of a course.

3. Earn a sufficient score on an AP examination. Information on test scores is available through Admissions.

4. Earn a sufficient score on the SAT Subject Test.

5. Earn a score of 1+ on the ACTFL Writing Proficiency Test in any language other than English to waive the requirement. Waiving the requirement does not earn credits.

6. Provide a transcript from a high school in which most classes were conducted in a language other than English to waive the requirement. Waiving the requirement does not earn credits.