What to do with All Those Electives?
Students at Monmouth College complete 32 credits of academic work over four years.
The Art Major requires 12 credits (and no more than 13).
The General Education requirements vary slight by individual - depending on AP credits, testing score, etc.
- but are usually between 8 and 11 credits.
That means that MC students have between 8 and 12 credits of elective courses that they must take.
So, how should those electives be used?
The Art Major requires 12 credits (and no more than 13).
The General Education requirements vary slight by individual - depending on AP credits, testing score, etc.
- but are usually between 8 and 11 credits.
That means that MC students have between 8 and 12 credits of elective courses that they must take.
So, how should those electives be used?
1. Explore. Be Curious. Follow your Interests.
Embrace the Liberal Arts curricular philosophy of Monmouth and use those electives to enhance the breadth of your educational experiences. Take courses you are curious about. Step outside your comfort zone!
2. Engage in the Arts
The Fine Arts at Monmouth include Visual Art, Theatre, Music, and Creative Writing. As an artist, it can be very valuable and enriching to understand how other Arts disciplines work - how those other artists think, what formal issues they grapple with, and what inspires them.
3. Support the Content of your own Artmaking
Because making art means more that just making stuff - it means engaging with ideas, exploring conceptual content, and conducting research into other disciplines- your electives can become a place to acquire ideas and information that supports the meaning of the art that you make. Interested in nature? - take biology or environmental science courses. Interested in culture?- take sociology, political science, or history courses. Interested in the physical universe? - take physics, astronomy, chemistry or math courses. Interested in thinking? -take philosophy or psychology courses.
4. Seek a Minor
Pursuing a minor in another discipline can be a way to spend your electives. However, we encourage you to place exploration and genuinely following your interests above completing all the requirements for a specific minor. Perhaps you are interested in 90% of the courses for a minor, but would rather fit in a special literature course instead of completing the economics requirement. If so, take that lit course! Having a minor listed on your transcript is not as important as getting the most out of the educational opportunities of Monmouth.
5. Seek a Second Major
This option is listed last on this page because dividing your time and energies between two majors is not always the best option. If you are an Art Major, do that Art Major fully. Commit to the level of work and involvement that allows you to flourish as an Art Major. If you interests truly are divided, then perhaps this is the best option, but remember that a double major requires twice the energy. It rarely works well to simply divide your energy between two places.