NOTE: The course sequences below have been updated to reflect the changes in graduation requirements approved by the Cook Faculty in December, 2002. THESE REQUIREMENTS APPLY TO ALL STUDENTS ENTERING COOK AFTER JANUARY OF 2003. Other students have the option of following either the entire set of the old requirements, or the entire set of the new requirements. Additional information on the change in requirements is available on the Cook web site.

This material is intended as a reference guide to help Cook students in planning for their course of study at Rutgers University. It contains, for each of the 23 programs in which Cook students can major, suggestions for an 8-semester sequence of courses that will meet all of the graduation requirements of the College and the program. Many programs have options of specialization within the major, and in these cases, course sequences are provided individually for each of the options.

The purpose of this material is to help students better understand the broad outlines of course sequences needed in the various programs if they are to graduate within a period of 4 years. This information is not intended as a substitute for faculty advising of students majoring in each of the programs. Students should realize that within any given program and formal option there are complexities and alternative specific courses to meet varying objectives that are only hinted at in the stylized course sequence models presented here. In fact, few if any students will follow any of these sequences exactly. Some aspects of the suggested sequences could easily be modified without endangering the goal of systematically completing all the graduation requirements in 4 years. Furthermore, students who enter Rutgers with a math placement below calculus or an English placement below Expository Writing 101 will have to make some adjustments to these suggested sequences. Students should be aware that changes in course offerings as well as changes in program requirements are made from time to time, and their advisers are in the best position to provide them with the most up-to-date information. Furthermore, those students who choose to complete a minor or certificate program in addition to their major program of study will have additional requirements to take into consideration in their course sequence planning. For all of these reasons, it is important that students be in regular contact (at least once a semester) with their academic adviser as they plan their programs.

Cook students need 128 credits (163 credits in the case of the 5-year Bioresource Engineering curriculum) to graduate. To the extent that the specific course requirements of a program are less than 128 credits, students can complete the 128-credit requirement by taking any courses within the University for which they satisfy enrollment restrictions (such as prerequisites). These courses are called Free Elective Courses, or Unspecified Electives. In the course sequence models, free elective courses always appear toward the end of the 8-semester sequence, after other general college requirements -- particularly those of Areas III (Humanities and the Arts), IV (Multicultural and International Studies) and V (Human Behavior, Economic Systems, and Political Processes) -- have been met. In other words, the models assume that in their initial semesters, students take only courses that fulfill some specific course requirements, "saving" their free electives to the end of their undergraduate program. In fact, it is not necessary to postpone the free elective courses in this fashion, and taking free electives earlier than indicated in the course sequence models is not a barrier to completing a program in four years as long as key sequences of specifically-required courses are taken in a timely fashion.

Students who enter Cook with placements in remedial math or English may find (depending on the major chosen) that it is impossible to follow the course sequences indicated here. For example, students with remedial placements must satisfactorily complete the remedial work before they can register for Biology 101-102, which is a course that many curricula recommend be taken in the first year. For some programs, it will still be possible to complete the remedial coursework and all the graduation requirements of the program within 8 semesters. For others, this will not be possible. In these cases, students may still be able to graduate within 4 years by taking certain courses during the summer term. Students with remedial placements in either English or math should consult their advisers about these matters. Students who enter Rutgers with remedial placements need be in close consultation with their academic advisers in working out to work out an appropriate sequence of courses to meet all graduation requirements in a timely fashion.

The information provided in these materials is for general planning guidance only, and is not a formal statement of the detailed requirements of the programs of study. For such a statement, consult the Rutgers New Brunswick Undergraduate Catalog and, for any updates since the publication of the catalog, the Undergraduate Coordinators for the various programs of study.

Note on Requirements for Graduation

All graduations requirements for Cook students are grouped into nine categories, or areas:

• Area I: College Mission: Interdisciplinary Critical Analysis
• Area II: Introductory Life and Physical Sciences
• Area III: Humanities and the Arts
• Area IV: Multicultural and International Studies
• Area V:  Human Behavior, Economic Systems and Political Processes
• Area VI:  Oral and Written Communication
• Area VII:  Experience-based Education
• Area VIII: Proficiency in a Field/Concentration
• Area IX: Unspecified Electives (or Free Electives)

Area II is a two-part requirement. To fulfill Area II, a student must take courses in both Life Sciences and Physical Sciences. Area V is a three-part requirement. To fulfill Area V, a student must take courses in (1) Human Behavior; and (2) Economic Systems and (3) Political Processes.

For Areas III, IV and V, many of Cook's programs of study allow students to choose from a general list of courses that fulfill the requirements. (These lists can be found in the Cook College Degree Requirements section of the New Brunswick Undergraduate Catalog.) In these cases, the specific choice and sequencing of courses fulfilling these requirements is not critical. In these situations, the course sequence models specify "Course(s) fulfilling Areas III, IV or V." In the case of a few programs, there are similar references to courses that fulfill Area II or Area VI.

Area I consists of two items: course 11:015:101 (Perspectives on Agricultural and the Environment) which is required of all first year students, and a Junior/Senior Colloquium to be taken in the fourth year or in the spring semester of the third year.

Courses fulfilling Areas VI and VII are, in many cases, specific to the individual program of study, and in each case the specific courses that are required are listed.

For all programs of study, courses fulfilling Area VIII (Proficiency in a Field) are specific to the individual program. Many programs require students to take a specific set of required courses, and then to choose a certain number of courses (or course credits) from a list of courses. In these cases, the course sequence models make reference to elective courses that are specific either to the curriculum (for example, "Biological Science electives") or to the specific option within the curriculum ("Option electives"). Where a program or an option within a program has more than one category of electives, the course sequence models indicate the nature of the category of elective involved . Students should consult their academic advisers and the New Brunswick Undergraduate Catalog for a fuller description of these elective requirements, as well as for a list of the specific courses that fulfill them.

Courses in Area IX are listed in the course sequence models as Free Elective Courses. As noted above, the only graduation requirement that is being fulfilled by these courses is that of successfully completing 128 credits (163 in the case of the five-year Bioresource Engineering program). Thus, students may choose as their free elective courses any courses within the University for which they satisfy enrollment restrictions (such as prerequisites). The total number of credits of these Free Elective Courses in a given program's course sequence model is thus an indication of the degree of flexibility that the program allows the student in selecting courses beyond those used to meet specific college and program requirements.