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The Bachelor of Arts BA degree prepares adults for career change, professional advancement or graduate education, while providing personal enrichment. Students develop a broad general knowledge of the traditional liberal arts disciplines while developing a greater depth of knowledge in particular areas of interest. Credit requirements are distributed among the traditional liberal arts areas and electives. Students have the flexibility to pursue a specific liberal arts concentration, or may select one of the following areas.
The Bachelor of Arts is a 120-credit program.
Students can select from the following areas of study:
- Anthropology
- Art
- Biology
- Communications
- Computer Science
- Criminal Justice
- English
- Environmental Studies
- Foreign Language
- History
- International Studies
- Labor Studies
- Liberal Studies
- Liberal Studies with a Concentration in the following areas:
- Communications
- Computer Science
- Criminal Justice
- General Management
- Healthcare Management
- Health and Wellness
- Human Resource Management
- Humanities
- Labor Studies
- Natural Sciences and Mathematics
- Psychology
- Social Sciences
- Mathematics
- Music
- Philosophy
- Photography
- Political Science
- Psychology
- Religion
- Sociology
- Theater Arts
Courses transferred to Thomas Edison State University are equated to the following levels: 100, 200, 300 or 400. A minimum of 18 credits equating to 300 or 400 are required in the area of study.
Credit Distribution
Courses in the General Education Requirements are listed as a guide. Other courses may satisfy the areas and can be viewed on our website under General Education Courses.
I. General Education Requirements Credits (60 Credits)
A. Intellectual and Practical Skills (15 credits)
B. Civic and Global Leadership (9 credits)
| SOC-101 | Our Changing World An Introduction to Sociology | 3 |
| ETH-230 | Ethics in the Digital Age | 3 |
| POS-110 | American Government | 3 |
C. Knowledge of Human Cultures (12 credits)
| HIS-114 | American History II | 3 |
| LIB-342 | Online Obsessions: Determining and Dealing with Digital Dependency | 3 |
| PHI-130 | Introduction to Critical Reasoning | 3 |
| PSY-302 | Brain and Mind | 3 |
D. Understanding the Physical and Natural World (4-7 credits)
For all TESU course options that will satisfy this area of the degree, go to Understanding of the Physical and Natural World.
E. General Education Electives (17-20 credits)
For all TESU course options that will satisfy this area of the degree, go to General Education Electives – Select from any course listed in A, B, C, D or E.
To identify which of these courses is Zero Textbook Cost ZTC, go to Zero Textbook Cost ZTC Courses.
II. Area of Study (30-60 Credits)
III. Electives (0-30 Credits)
For TESU course options, go to Elective Courses.
Total Credit Hours: 120
Learning Outcomes
Bachelor’s degree graduates from the arts and sciences area will have the ability to:
- explain key terms, concepts, and theories in an area of study in the arts and sciences;
- apply critical-thinking skills to problems in an area of study in the arts and sciences;
- communicate effectively, in both written and oral form; and
- apply research methods appropriate to the discipline.
See the BA Areas of Study for specific program outcomes