The general education program is integral to the Associate in Arts degree. It includes courses that provide broad foundational knowledge to help students develop intellectual skills and habits that enable them to become more effective and lifelong learners. The Associate in Arts degree requires 60 eligible college-level credits, including all of the following:
- Thirty-six (36) credits in general education,
- Twenty-four (24) credits of acceptable electives,
- Demonstration of proficiency in civic literacy and foreign language requirements, and
- Meeting all graduation requirements.
General Education Standards
General education provides broad foundational knowledge to help Valencia students develop intellectual skills and habits that enable them to become more effective and lifelong learners.
In accordance with 1007.25, Florida Statute, courses included in the General Education program align withthe following standards:
- Communication courses afford students the ability to communicate effectively, including the ability to write clearly and engage in public speaking.
- Humanities courses afford students the ability to think critically through the mastering of subjects concerned with human culture, especially literature, history, art, music, and philosophy, and must include selections from the Western canon.
- Social science courses afford students an understanding of the basic social and behavioral science concepts and principles used in the analysis of behavior and past and present social, political, and economic issues.
- Natural science courses afford students the ability to critically examine and evaluate the principles of the scientific method, model construction, and use the scientific method to explain natural experiences and phenomena.
- Mathematics courses afford students a mastery of foundational mathematical and computation models and methods by applying such models and methods in problem solving.
The general education program is 36 semester credits and serves as the core of the curriculum. The 36 credits are selected from five core areas of academic courses offered at Valencia as listed below.
Core courses are established by the State Board of Education to create a common general education experience across all public institutions. Core courses must be offered and accepted by every Florida College System (FCS) and State University System (SUS) institution.
Institutional courses are established by each college and university to support their general education program outcomes. Institutional courses, combined with Core courses beyond the minimum required for general education, account for the remaining 12 of the 36 general education program credits.
| 9 |
| 3 |
| 6 |
| 3 |
| 3 |
| 12 |
| Total Credit Hours | 36 |
Required Courses
Area 1: Communications
| |
| ENC 1101 | FRESHMAN COMPOSITION I +*~ (GR)1 | 3 |
| or ENC 1101H | FRESHMAN COMPOSITION I - HONORS |
| ENC 1102 | FRESHMAN COMPOSITION II +*~ (GR) | 3 |
| or ENC 1102H | FRESHMAN COMPOSITION II - HONORS |
| FUNDAMENTALS OF SPEECH +~ (GR) | |
| FUNDAMENTALS OF SPEECH - HONORS |
| INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION +~ (GR) | |
| INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION HONORS |
| Total Credit Hours | 9 |
Area 2: Humanities
| 3 |
| ART APPRECIATION ~ | |
| ART APPRECIATION - HONORS |
| INTRODUCTION TO HUMANITIES ~ | |
| INTRODUCTION TO HUMANITIES - HONORS |
| INTRODUCTION TO LITERATURE ~ | |
| INTRODUCTION TO LITERATURE-HONORS |
| MUSIC APPRECIATION ~ | |
| PHILOSOPHY ~ | |
| INTRODUCTION TO THEATER ~ | |
Area 3: Mathematics
| |
| COLLEGE ALGEBRA +*~ (GR) | |
| COLLEGE ALGEBRA - HONORS |
| MATHEMATICAL THINKING +*~ (GR) | |
| MATHEMATICAL THINKING - HONORS |
| CALCULUS WITH ANALYTIC GEOMETRY I +*~ (GR) | |
| CALCULUS WITH ANALYTIC GEOMETRY I - HONORS |
| STATISTICAL METHODS +*~ (GR) | |
| STATISTICAL METHODS - HONORS |
| COLLEGE TRIGONOMETRY +*~ (GR)# | |
| COLLEGE TRIGONOMETRY HONORS |
| PRECALCULUS ALGEBRA +*~ (GR)# | |
| PRECALCULUS ALGEBRA-HONORS |
| CALCULUS WITH ANALYTIC GEOMETRY II +*~ (GR)# | |
| CALCULUS WITH ANALYTIC GEOMETRY II - HONORS |
| CALCULUS FOR BUSINESS AND SOCIAL SCIENCE +*~ (GR)# | |
| MATHEMATICS IN CONTEXT +*~ (GR) | |
Area 4: Science
| |
| |
| DESCRIPTIVE ASTRONOMY ~ | |
| DESCRIPTIVE ASTRONOMY - HONORS |
| BIOLOGICAL SCIENCE ~ | |
| BIOLOGICAL SCIENCE COMBINED ~ | |
| BIOLOGICAL SCIENCE - HONORS |
| GENERAL BIOLOGY I *~ | |
| GENERAL BIOLOGY I HONORS |
| HUMAN ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY I ~ | |
| CHEMISTRY IN EVERYDAY LIFE ~ | |
| GENERAL CHEMISTRY WITH QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS I *~ | |
| GENERAL CHEMISTRY WITH QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS I -HONORS |
| EARTH SCIENCES ~ | |
| INTRODUCTION TO ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE ~ | |
| INTRODUCTION TO ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE HONORS |
| PHYSICAL GEOLOGY ~ | |
| INTRODUCTION TO OCEANOGRAPHY ~ | |
| INTRODUCTION TO OCEANOGRAPHY-HONORS |
| FUNDAMENTALS OF PHYSICS ~ | |
| GENERAL PHYSICS WITH CALCULUS I ~ | |
| GENERAL PHYSICS I ~ | |
| Total Credit Hours | 3 |
Area 5: Social Sciences
| 3 |
| U.S. GOVERNMENT ~ (GR) | |
| U.S. GOVERNMENT - HONORS |
| UNITED STATES HISTORY TO 1877 ~ (GR) | |
| UNITED STATES HISTORY TO 1877 - HONORS |
| U.S. HISTORY 1877 TO PRESENT ~ (GR) | |
| UNITED STATES HISTORY 1877 TO PRESENT - HONORS |
| Total Credit Hours | 3 |
Area 6: General Education Student Choice
| |
| AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE I +~ | |
| AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE II +*~ | |
| ELEMENTARY FRENCH I +~ | |
| ELEMENTARY FRENCH II +*~ | |
| ELEMENTARY GERMAN I +~ | |
| ELEMENTARY GERMAN II +*~ | |
| ELEMENTARY PORTUGUESE I +~ | |
| ELEMENTARY PORTUGUESE II +*~ | |
| ELEMENTARY SPANISH I +~ | |
| ELEMENTARY SPANISH II +*~ | |
| INTRODUCTION TO ART HISTORY I ~ | |
| INTRODUCTION TO ART HISTORY II ~ | |
| INTRODUCTION TO FILM ~ | |
| ANCIENT WORLD TO THE RENAISSANCE HUMANITIES ~ | |
| RENAISSANCE TO MODERN PERIOD ~ | |
| 20TH AND 21ST CENTURY HUMANITIES ~ | |
| 20TH AND 21ST CENTURY HUMANITIES - HONORS |
| ELEMENTARY LATIN I +~ | |
| ELEMENTARY LATIN II +*~ | |
| ETHICS AND CRITICAL THINKING ~ | |
| ETHICS AND CRITICAL THINKING - HONORS |
| WORLD RELIGIONS ~ | |
| WORLD RELIGIONS - HONORS |
| GENERAL BIOLOGY II *~# | |
| GENERAL BIOLOGY II - HONORS |
| HUMAN ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY II *~# | |
| INTRODUCTION TO GENERAL CHEMISTRY ~ | |
| GENERAL CHEMISTRY WITH QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS II *~# | |
| GENERAL CHEMISTRY WITH QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS II |
| THE SCIENCE OF NUTRITION ~ | |
| MICROBIOLOGY *~# | |
| GENERAL PHYSICS WITH CALCULUS II *~# | |
| COLLEGE PHYSICS II WITH ALGEBRA AND TRIGONOMETRY ~# | |
| INTRODUCTORY ANTHROPOLOGY ~ | |
| INTRODUCTORY ANTHROPOLOGY - HONORS |
| PRINCIPLES OF ECONOMICS-MACRO ~ | |
| PRINCIPLES OF ECONOMICS-MACRO-HONORS |
| GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY ~ | |
| GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY - HONORS |
| INTRODUCTION TO CRIMINAL JUSTICE ~ | |
| DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY ~ | |
| DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY HONORS |
| PRINCIPLES OF ECONOMICS-MICRO ~ | |
| PRINCIPLES OF ECONOMICS-MICRO HONORS |
| INTRODUCTION TO THE TEACHING PROFESSION ~ | |
| ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL WESTERN CIVILIZATION ~ | |
| ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL WESTERN CIVILIZATION - HONORS |
| MODERN WESTERN CIVILIZATION ~ | |
| MODERN WESTERN CIVILIZATION-HONORS |
| INTRODUCTION TO BUSINESS ~ | |
| INTERNATIONAL POLITICS ~ | |
| INTERNATIONAL POLITICS HONORS |
| STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT ~ | |
| STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT - HONORS |
| INTRODUCTORY SOCIOLOGY ~ | |
| INTRODUCTORY SOCIOLOGY- HONORS |
| WORLD HISTORY TO 1500 ~ | |
| WORLD HISTORY SINCE 1500 ~ | |
Students must successfully complete an additional 24 credits to graduate with their Associate in Arts degree.
Most college-level credit courses taught at Valencia will count toward elective credit. Any credits in excess of the minimum required in any of the five core areas listed above will count as elective credits. University majors require certain prerequisite courses before transferring; these courses should be taken as electives at Valencia.
Students are encouraged to meet with their Student Success Coach to develop an academic plan that includes all required coursework for this degree. You may also visit the Degree Pathways website for course sequencing recommendations.
Graduation Requirements
Proficiency and Competency Requirements
Students must demonstrate proficiency in a foreign language and civic literacy before graduating with their Associate in Arts degree.
Valencia’s college-level foreign language proficiency requirement can be satisfied in one of the following ways:
High School Coursework
Completion of two years of instruction in the same foreign language at the high school level, with passing grades each year, as documented on an official high school transcript.
College-Level Coursework
Successful completion, with a grade of C or higher, of one of the approved course sequences in a single foreign language, or its equivalent, in the list below.
Additional Ways to Earn Credit
Visit the Foreign Language Proficiency Requirement section in this catalog for details about earning by examination or proficiency testing, native language other than English, and American Sign Language.
- Note: Satisfaction of this graduation requirement for Valencia may also satisfy the foreign language admission requirement for Florida public universities; it may or may not satisfy a specific university graduation requirement. Students are encouraged to learn the specific requirements of the institutions they are interested in.
Civic Literacy Requirement
Per Florida Rule 6A-10.04213, students initially entering a Florida College System institution in the 2021-22 school year, and thereafter, must demonstrate competency in civic literacy prior to graduation by:
- receiving a passing score on the Florida Civic Literacy Exam (FCLE), and
- successful completion of one of the following.
Course and examination details, along with alternative ways to satisfy the requirement through prescribed assessments, can be found in the Civic Literacy Requirement section of this catalog.
