The Liberal Arts degree program offers students a wide variety of courses to choose from and, at the same time, prepares the student to transfer into the junior year of study at a four-year college. The program is similar to other general Liberal Arts programs in the first two years at such colleges.
Liberal Arts is the study of basic knowledge and the development of one’s ability to think clearly. Thus, Liberal Arts students take courses in English, their own and foreign cultures, mathematics and science, the arts, the study of society, past and present, the study of ideas and a foreign language. Students who want to study Liberal Arts but also know they want to concentrate in Social Science, Music, Studio Arts, Theatre, or Communication may select one of the Liberal Arts options.
Although Liberal Arts is not career training in a direct way, many employers in corporations, government and in such professions as law and medicine believe that the best preparation for work in their fields is a Liberal Arts education. Liberal Arts teaches the student how to use and think about information, no matter what the job is or how jobs change.
Graduates are able to:
- apply critical thinking strategies across the disciplines
- write research-based essays that analyze and synthesize sources to support a thesis
- organize and deliver effective oral presentations
- forge a practical linkage between learning in the classroom and applying that learning to real-world problems
- demonstrate cultural competence by communicating effectively and efficiently in cross-cultural and multicultural situations
Students enrolled in Associate of Arts degree programs who intend to transfer to four-year colleges or universities are strongly advised to discuss the General Education Foundation Courses with a counselor. Selection of these courses will facilitate full transfer of general education credits completed toward the degree.
Raritan Valley Community College Associate of Arts (AA) and Associate of Science (AS) degree programs are designed to comply with the New Jersey Community Colleges General Education Foundation which supports transfer of courses to NJ Public four-year colleges and universities. Students who intend to transfer to a NJ college or university can further improve the transfer of courses by using the Recommended Transfer Program (RTP) feature in NJTransfer.org.
NOTE: Students considering transfer to Rutgers University should choose a Global & Cultural Awareness (GCA) General Education course not replicated elsewhere in their curriculum. Students who have already fulfilled the GCA requirement for their Associates of Arts (AA) degree should select an additional Social Sciences or Humanities General Education course.