Vision

UCORE Assessment is intended to help faculty, departments, and university leadership determine to what extent undergraduates are achieving WSU’s Learning Goals of Undergraduate Education, in the context of the UCORE general education curriculum.

The UCORE curriculum is overseen by the UCORE Director and UCORE Committee, supported by the Office of the Provost, and by the faculty through the Faculty Senate. Faculty participate on UCORE’s Subcommittee for Assessment and also assess student learning in key programs and courses. UCORE Assessment is a collaborative process that includes faculty, students, staff, administrators, and others. The Office of Assessment for Curricular Effectiveness (ACE) assists with UCORE assessment, by supporting and managing specific assessment-related initiatives, analyzing and reporting results, and maintaining assessment archives.

WSU’s Learning Goals of Undergraduate Education

All undergraduates, regardless of major, are expected to meet WSU Undergraduate Learning Goals, which identify core skills and knowledge that all students should develop through their undergraduate studies. WSU’s Learning Goals of Undergraduate Education are faculty developed and expressed broadly so as to frame study in the major as well as in UCORE (general education).

UCORE is the centerpiece of the undergraduate curriculum supporting the advancement of WSU’s Undergraduate Learning Goals. Each UCORE course designator includes a set of student learning outcomes, aligned with WSU’s Undergraduate Learning Goals, that articulate what students are expected to achieve as they complete a course in that designator. In addition, through the achievement of program-level student learning outcomes for the major or degree program, students generally demonstrate specialized knowledge and skills in the discipline, as well as disciplinary achievement of some of WSU’s Undergraduate Learning Goals (as appropriate to the disciplinary focus), through depth of study within the chosen academic field.

Vision for UCORE (General Education)

WSU’s general education program, known as UCORE, helps students acquire broad knowledge of the wider world that complements their specific areas of study. Through this broad exposure to multiple disciplines, students will develop intellectual and civic competencies, practical skills and the ability to apply knowledge and skills in real-world settings. WSU graduates will be prepared to address diverse, complex issues, for the benefit of themselves, their communities, their employers, and for society at large.

UCORE Curriculum

The UCORE Curriculum provides balance between the specialized focus of the major and the broader traditional objectives of higher education. UCORE is bookended by a required first-year course [ROOT] and a senior capstone experience [CAPS], complemented by foundational courses and inquiry-based learning in the disciplines. The program’s structure includes coursework in contemporary issues, social sciences, humanities, creative or professional arts, quantitative reasoning, natural sciences, diversity, and equity and justice, as well as communication, computation, and human relations. While the greater part of students’ courses of study is devoted to their major fields, the UCORE curriculum offers a wide variety of elective choices and provides many individual pathways through the curriculum, including introductory, advanced, and integrative forms of learning.