Core Curriculum

Spring 2021 Announcement

In order to protect the health of students, staff, faculty, and community partners, Butler University announces the following update regarding the Indianapolis Community Requirement.

Indianapolis Community Requirement:

Students who complete ICR work as defined in their respective course syllabus will earn credit for the ICR. Most spring 2021 ICR-related coursework and community-based experiences will be virtual rather than face-to-face. Where ICR coursework involves face-to-face engagement, students should be especially vigilant about the health of all involved. Students must follow all Butler University guidelines for health and safety, including wearing masks and physical/social distancing, whether on- or off-campus. If a host site has more stringent precautions, Butler students are expected to comply.

At the CORE of Career Possibilities

Many colleges and universities expect their students to complete a variety of courses across multiple disciplines. At Butler University, we built our core around the skills students will need to be successful, both during their time in college, and in their careers post-graduation.

Our Core curriculum is designed around these key skills: strong written and oral communication, the ability to think critically and creatively, ethical and compassionate consideration of individual difference, and the ability to adapt quickly in this increasingly diversified and globalized world. In all our Core elements, we are committed to courses structured by learning objectives rather than disciplines, and courses that employ experiential and interactive pedagogies.

• First Year Seminar: A two-semester sequence in their first year (6 hrs)
• Global and Historical Studies: A sophomore-year sequence of courses (6 hrs)
• Analytic Reasoning (3 hrs)
• The Natural World (5 hrs)
• Perspectives in the Creative Arts (3 hrs)
• Physical Well-Being (1 hr)
• The Social World (3 hrs)
• Texts and Ideas (3 hrs)
• The Speaking Across the Curriculum Requirement (1 course)
• The Writing Across the Curriculum Requirement (1 course)
• The Social Justice and Diversity Requirement (1 course)
• The Indianapolis Community Requirement (1 course)
• The Butler Cultural Requirement (8 events)

In order to ensure academic quality and integrity, some Core curriculum requirements may only be satisfied by taking courses at Butler University. Other Core curriculum requirements have provisions which allow for completion via transfer credit, AP, or other exemptions. View our Core Curriculum brochure.

For more information about Advanced Placement (AP) credit, International Baccalaureate (IB) credit or College Level Examination Program (CLEP) credit, please click here.

For more information about Butler's Core Curriculum, please contact core@butler.edu or call 317-940-9480.