Core Curriculum Learning Outcomes

The faculty of the University of St. Thomas has created an expansive Core Curriculum and an extensive set of majors and minors to provide students with an excellent undergraduate education rooted in the liberal arts and the Catholic intellectual tradition, and prepare them to address the challenges of the 21st century.

Our educational experience is designed to enable students to grow as reflective, moral persons prepared to advance the common good.

Core Curriculum Learning Objectives

We seek to develop students who:

Understand and synthesize central ideas of liberal arts disciplines:

• Grasp foundational claims and methods of disciplines that ground liberal education
• Integrate principles, theories, and perspectives across disciplines and cultures

Think critically and creatively:

• Think critically, which includes logically evaluating information, arguments and evidence; using sound reasoning to solve problems or address questions; interpreting data by explaining its meaning and significance; and being aware of one's own inferences and biases in order to confirm, correct, or develop ideas
• Think creatively, which includes generating one's own ideas, insightfully evaluating ideas and information, and innovatively applying concepts or ideas

Communicate effectively with diverse audiences:

• Articulate and support positions clearly and persuasively
• Access, evaluate, and use information appropriately
• Know the audience, and apply appropriate approaches and language

Reflect on the ethical and spiritual dimensions of life, and of their own lives, in light of Catholic intellectual tradition:

• Understand foundational claims of Catholic intellectual tradition, including claims that underlie such convictions as: faith and reason are compatible, the common good is to be pursued, and the dignity of the human person is to be respected
• Engage the claims and convictions of Catholic intellectual tradition, through critical reflection and constructive dialogue, in developing a reasoned worldview
• Apply ethical principles and the principles of Catholic intellectual tradition toward resolution of intellectual and social problems for the sake of the common good

Possess knowledge of, and apply skills from, their chosen fields of study

• Specific learning objectives will be determined by major and minor programs

• St. Thomas Core Curriculum
• All Student Learning Outcomes

The assessment of the core curriculum is coordinated by the Core Curriculum Assessment Committee (CCAC) that reports to the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee (UCC), which is the primary body overseeing the core curriculum.

The Core Curriculum Learning Objectives are assessed on a 5-year cycle, and faculty are substantially involved in assessing the courses they teach.

Questions about assessment of the core curriculum should be directed to Dr. Tonia Bock, Associate Vice Provost for Accreditation, Assessment and Curriculum and chair of the CCAC.