ETSU students can soon expect a pleasant change to the curriculum.

“Starting in summer 2016, undergraduate students will no longer be required to choose courses based on proficiencies,” said Angela Lewis, associate vice provost at East Tennessee State University.

Originally, each student had to complete four writing intensive courses, two oral intensive courses and one technology intensive course on top of their general education requirements.

The university organized a committee to review why students are sometimes hindered from graduating. They discovered that these proficiencies were confusing to some students, causing them to come short on credits when it came time to declare their intent to graduate.

Since then, ETSU has found an alternative way to ensure that students will continue to receive the same knowledge provided by these courses without having to take them.

“We’re asking each program to integrate these skills into their curriculum,” Lewis said.

Students can easily gain these specific skills from the courses offered in their discipline and can still apply them later in life or in their future career.

Once the departments have these plans drawn up, they will be submitted to another committee where they will be carefully evaluated before being approved.

This change does not have an impact on general education requirements, students will still be required to take the usual composition courses and speech classes.

Lewis urges students to continually check in with their advisors, as they are being kept up to date on the details of changing graduation requirements.

Students should be receiving a mass email over the next week announcing this change and providing more information on the matter prior to Spring registration, allowing students to make adjustments while scheduling classes.

Students graduating fall of 2016 will be under this new guideline and will not be forced to change catalogues.

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