All engineering curricula provide an opportunity for
students to select from a wide range of elective courses to meet
their individual needs. The following types of electives are used in
the programs outlined in this chapter.
Departmental Electives. Departmental
electives must be selected from among the course offerings of the
department whose subject code is indicated. For example,
"14:332:___ departmental elective" indicates a course offered by
the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
Electives (for Five-Year B.A./B.S. Program). Each
five-year engineering curriculum leading to the B.A. and B.S. degrees
must contain a minimum of 48 credits of electives that satisfy the
major requirements and any other degree requirements of the liberal
arts college offering the B.A. degree. Eighteen of these 48 credits
also must satisfy the humanities/social sciences elective requirement
of the School of Engineering as described below. The total number of
credits required for the dual-degree program must be at least 30
credits more than is required for the B.S. degree alone. See Five-Year
Engineering Curricula in this chapter for further information.
Engineering Electives. An
engineering elective refers to courses offered by the School of
Engineering. (This elective occurs only in the applied sciences in
engineer- ing curriculum.)
General Electives. The
general electives shown in all engineering curricula may be chosen from
any subject area other than individual and team activities in exercise
science and sport studies (377). A student who wishes to carry more
credits of general electives than are shown may add these credits to
the normal curriculum. All credits taken in excess of degree
requirements will be counted in the university cumulative grade-point
average. Normally, general electives may be scheduled at any time as
long as the load for any given term does not exceed 21 credits. General
elective credit is not allowed for remedial courses such as precalculus
and other courses offered at a level below that of required courses.
Humanities/Social Sciences Electives. Each
four-year curriculum must contain a minimum of 18 credits (or
equivalent) of humanities/social sciences electives, which are chosen
with the advice and approval of the appropriate faculty adviser. These
electives must include an expository writing course, such as 01:
355:101 or its equivalent, 01:220:200 Economic Principles and Problems,
and a minimum of 6 credits of upper-level courses. Upper-level refers
to courses with numbers in the 300s or 400s. At least 3 credits of
upper-level course work must be taken in a subject in which the student
has had a prior course.
The humanities/social sciences
electives must meet generally accepted definitions. Humanities are the
branches of knowledge concerned with people and their cultures, while
social sciences study individual relationships in and to society.
Subjects such as accounting, industrial management, finance, personnel
administration, introductory modern language courses, and ROTC studies
normally do not fulfill the objectives of this elective. Skills courses
are acceptable only if a substantial amount of material relating to
cultural values is involved, as opposed to routine exercises that
enhance the student`s performance. An extensive listing of acceptable
courses offered by the various units of Rutgers is available from the
Office of Academic Affairs (www.soe.rutgers.edu). Normally, these
electives may be scheduled at any time as long as the load for any
given term does not exceed 21 credits. The faculty of the School of
Engineering views this requirement as an important and integral part of
the overall curriculum.
Technical Electives. Technical
electives are courses in engineering or related areas as determined by
the department, and are chosen with the approval of the appropriate
faculty adviser. Lists of acceptable technical electives are available
at department web sites at www.soe.rutgers.edu.
