For Students

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Why am I required to take 3.0 credits of Arts classes?

The Arts requirement is central to the Integrated Liberal Studies (ILS) Program, and to the philosophy of liberal education. In support of the university mission, the Arts courses assist in developing students of broad perspective who think critically and creatively, providing an intellectual engagement with the arts. ILS Arts courses examine the significance of the arts in the human experience, the cultural context of creative composition and performance, the foundations of aesthetic values, and the communicative function of the arts.

The ILS Summary Check List states that I can satisfy this requirement by taking 3 hours of applied art courses or workshops. Will any art class fulfill this requirement?

No. Only Approved Arts Studio/Workshop courses will satisfy this requirement. Any approved Arts course will be marked as an ILSA in the class schedule. You can also find a current list of Approved Arts Studio/Workshop courses on the Arts & Ideas web site.

Since the aim of the Arts requirement is to do more than teach about the process of artistic production and performance, ILSA studio/workshop courses must also consider such issues as communication through the arts, aesthetic values, the political, cultural, and historical context of the arts. Not all art courses provide this contextual component. Instructors of the approved applied studio courses have gone through an application process to the Arts & Ideas Director and provided evidence of how their course will provide this valuable contextual component.

I think my major requires that I take courses that are on the list of Approved Arts Studio/Workshop courses. Does this mean that I have completed my Arts requirement?

Yes. Some departments with students who are studying the arts extensively have applied for some of their required classes to be approved as applied studio courses. Many of these courses have received approval and are listed on the Arts & Ideas web site, as well as marked in the class schedule as ILSA courses. If you have taken at least 3.0 credits of these approved applied arts classes, or ILSA identified classes, you have completed your Arts requirement.

If I complete an ILS Topical Cluster with an ILSA course in that cluster, have I satisfied my Arts requirement?

Yes. If the course was marked as an ILSA and is at least 3.0 credits, you can satisfy your Arts requirement within your Topical Cluster completion. There are many Arts courses in the clusters, so with careful planning in advance you can complete both ILS requirements (Topical Cluster and Arts) by completing a Topical Cluster with an ILSA

Is an ILSA course required to complete a Topical Cluster?

No. The ILSA component of a Topical Cluster is an elective for that cluster. In order to complete a Topical Cluster you must take (1) ILSN, (1) ILSS, and either an ILSA or another ILSN or ILSS.

I want to take an ARTS 310 class, but I keep getting a message from Registration that I don’t have a prerequisite. Is there a prerequisite for Arts 310?

Yes. There is a 60 credit prerequisite requirement before taking Arts 310. The Arts 310 class is meant for students of the Junior level standing. Since the courses focus on interdisciplinary studies and the integration of many courses in the UNC Asheville curriculum, it is important that students have accumulated at least 60 credits before taking Arts 310.

Can an Arts 310 instructor sign a prerequisite waiver so that I can take Arts 310 without the prerequisite requirement?

No. Only the Arts & Ideas Director can sign that waiver. Generally, if you are within a few credits of a 60 credit accumulation, have completed at least Language 120, Humanities 124, and 214 (or enrolled in HUM 214) the waiver would be approved.

I like the varying topics offered in the Arts 310 classes. Can I take Arts 310 more than once and use the second Arts 310 as an elective?

No. Arts 310 can only be taken once. However, there are plenty of other ILSA courses with other course numbers that can be taken as electives.

I have a lot of artistic experience in my life. Can I have the Arts requirement waived if I prove that I have been active in the arts outside of my academic classes?

No. The Arts requirement is an academic course requirement similar to your writing, math, and science requirements. They cannot be substituted simply by life experience, since they are university approved course requirements.

I am studying abroad for a semester and the university I am studying with has some very interesting arts courses I would like to take. Can I get one of these approved as completion of the Arts requirement?

If the course provides all the required components of an approved Arts course, this is certainly possible. You will need to bring a course description to the Arts & Ideas Director and if the course description matches an Arts course, or the Arts course requirements, this study abroad course could be approved. It is highly advisable to go through this process of course approval before you study abroad.

I am a transfer student and I believe I have taken a course at another institution that would count as the Arts requirement. Can I get this approved as a substitute?

This is certainly possible. Make an appointment with the Arts & Ideas Director to go over the course description and how you believe it satisfies the Arts requirements. You will need to bring a course description or a course syllabus that provides information proving that the course you took does indeed either match an Arts course currently offered in the Arts program or the class from the other institution clearly satisfies all the Arts course requirements. If the course is approved, you will need to process paper work provided by the Registrar’s office for final approval and documentation that your Arts requirement is completed.

I am a transfer student and I have taken a course at another institution that transferred in to UNC Asheville as a class that is identified as an ILSA course. Have I fulfilled my Arts requirement with this transferred course?

Yes. Any course that transfers in and is indicated in your transcript as the direct equivalent to an ILSA identified course (ie. Topical Cluster ILSA course, or Approved Arts Studio/Workshop course) is automatically marked towards your Arts course requirement.

I am taking a course at UNC Asheville that is not on the Arts & Ideas web site list as an Approved Arts Studio/Workshop course or listed as an ILSA, but I think it should be. Can I get this course approved to count as my Arts requirement?

No. All UNC Asheville Arts course applications must come from the instructor teaching the course. You can certainly bring this observation to the attention of the instructor, but it is the instructor who must apply for course approval, not the student.

If I take 3.0 credits of various Approved Arts Studio/Workshop Courses like singing with the University Singers (1.0) and Ballet I (2.0) have I completed my Arts requirement?

Yes. If these courses are on the list of Approved Arts Studio/Workshop courses you can take any combination of them that accumulates at least 3.0 credits, and you would have completed your Arts requirement.

I am on the “Old General Education System” and know that I must take Arts 310 and a 1.0 credit arts lab. What arts labs can I take?

Since the General Education curriculum has been phased out and there is a small number of students still in need of this requirement, you should see the Arts & Ideas Program director to ensure that you have the correct equivalent to an arts lab. Basically, the requirement is that you take an applied art class outside of your major for at least 1.0 credit. There are many courses in various departments that would satisfy this requirement.