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Courses and areas of study

Majors, minors and areas of study

2024-25 Academic Catalog Page edits in-progress

NOTE: While the senior audit, program evaluation, academic support resources, as well as academic guidance from  faculty and advisors are all available to every student at no additional cost, these resources are provided for use in planning only. It is the responsibility of the student to report any printed error to the Office of the Registrar within two semesters. The responsibility for understanding and meeting degree requirements rests entirely with the student.

Augustana College offers a wide variety of courses in the traditional liberal arts and in several areas of pre-professional and special studies. Nearly 90 majors and related academic programs are available.

Minors in most fields allow students to pursue secondary interests or to augment their major studies. These options, plus opportunities for individual studies, result in much flexibility in the planning of each student’s program of study, and choices can be made according to individual needs and interests. Students are encouraged to consult often with their academic advisors.

The Schedule of Course Offerings is published annually by the Office of the Registrar and Academic Affairs. Students can view offerings in Arches Self-Service for the following year in mid-February. In addition, some classes are offered during summer school. (See Summer Programs.) Any course that has not been taught in three consecutive years and is not on a regular departmental rotation frequency of at least once every four years, is removed from the course catalog.

Numbering and symbols

  • 100-level courses are beginning courses open to first-year students.
  • 200-level courses are sophomore-level courses, some of which are open to first-year students.
  • 300- and 400-level courses are upper-division courses intended primarily for juniors and seniors. Students may enroll in sequential courses for which they qualify, and in advanced courses with the approval of the academic advisor.
  • 500 level and above are reserved for graduate level coursework
  • (4) — the number of credits.
  • + — the course may be repeated for credit, e.g. (4+).
  • Hyphenation (e.g. 101-102-103) indicates that the courses must be taken in sequence.
  • Suffix designations applicable to particular courses appear after the course number.

Credits and credit maximums

Augustana credits are semester credits.

Course load. Full-time tuition for one semester in an academic year covers enrollment in 12-17 credits of instruction. Full-time tuition for fall semester and J-term in an academic year covers enrollment in up to 17 credits (e.g. 13+4 will not result in an overload charge). Full-time tuition for the entire academic year (fall semester, J-term, and spring semester) covers enrollment in up to 34 credits with at least 12 credits per semester (e.g. 16+4+14 will not result in an overload charge). Classes dropped after the midpoint of the term are included in determining overload charges. Overloads will be charged as specified by the Costs and Financial Assistance section of this catalog and in the Schedule of Student Charges.

Course code. No more than 40 credits in courses with the same course code designation may be applied toward the credits required for the Bachelor of Arts degree. Courses listed under more than one course code are counted toward the limit under each code.

Physical education activities. No more than 3 credits from physical education activity courses may apply toward the Bachelor of Arts degree.

Music ensembles. No more than 8 credits from music ensembles may apply toward the Bachelor of Arts degree.

Internships. No more than 12 credits from internships may apply toward a Bachelor of Arts degree. Augustana-sponsored J-term internships may be taken for 1-4 credits.

Sequenced Courses. Courses are noted in Arches if they have a required prerequisite to enroll. Students must complete an online add form to enroll if they have not met the prerequisite. Many courses at Augustana are not sequenced, meaning that a student may take them at any point in their academic career in no particular order. However, in some departments courses are required to be taken in a particular order or sequence. While this is not an exhaustive list, here are some examples of courses that must be taken in sequence: 

  • CHEM-131 & 132
  • MATH-140-160-220-230
  • MUSC-111-112-211-212
  • PHYS-211-212-213
  • FYI-101 & 102 (if a student fails a FYI course or enters Augustana for the first time during spring semester an exception may be made.)
  • All language-based courses that fulfill the second-language requirement. Students may not receive credit for an upper-level course (i.e. 201, 301) and then take a lower level sequence course after successful completion. See the World Languages and Literature department for all policies and procedures on placement exams and consequences for withholding prior language experience from the college.

Course leveling limitations. In most academic subjects, students are not able to take a lower level course after they have successfully passed and/or proven proficiency in a higher level or higher sequenced course. This includes transferring in coursework at a lower level. Examples of this include CHEM, MATH, PHYS, MUSC, second languages, some HEPE courses and others. See also Sequenced Courses above.  

NOTE! Required prerequisites and placement exams may impact sequencing requirements.

HONOR CODE ALERT! Students are required to submit all prior coursework to Augustana at the time of application or face sanctions of the Honor Council. If a student elects not to send official transcripts for prior coursework to the college at the point of enrollment, the student is waiving their ability to take sequenced (or prerequisite) coursework at a higher level at a later point in their career and also waives their ability to receive credit for the transfer work at a later time.

For more information about sequence requirements contact the Office of the Registrar or the academic department.

Independent and directed studies. No more than 8 credits in independent and directed studies combined may be applied toward the Bachelor of Arts degree. In one term, no more than 1 course of independent study and 1 course of directed study may be earned in a given department. These courses do not carry Learning Perspectives.

Finalized 3-1-2020