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The Bachelor of General Studies at the University of West Florida is designed to meet the needs of every student. With course offerings spanning 14 departments and four colleges and a choice of in-person classes in Pensacola or Fort Walton Beach or online, you can shape your studies to best fit your career goals.

Why Get a Degree in General Studies at UWF?

The General Studies program is extremely flexible and accessible for any student, including working adults, members of the military or those with family obligations.

The program is open to all and offers admission to students with a wide range of academic backgrounds. Your advisor will help you build a course of study that best fits your unique goals.

We offer classes online and face-to-face at the Pensacola campus or UWF Emerald Coast in Fort Walton Beach.

What You Will Learn

Our program offers a broadly based liberal arts education rather than a single academic focus or vocational track.

The degree revolves around four areas of emphasis: communication, information literacy, problem solving/decision making and community leadership. You will take two courses from each of these four areas. Each area includes at least six or more options and includes multiple disciplinary options.

This unique design teaches you marketable skills in several disciplines, preparing you for entrance into an increasingly diverse, fast-paced workforce.

Some students choose to complete an internship as part of the required senior capstone course. The capstone provides great freedom for you to choose a final project. Students have created websites, podcasts or training manuals, depending on their area of interest.

You can build on your associate of arts degrees from another institution or return to college study after an absence.

Areas of Emphasis

Design your program of study around four areas of emphasis.

Courses in the communication area provide you with the skills you need to communicate effectively in written, oral and visual forms. Assignments and activities in these courses often include research papers, short response papers, creative writing, critical reviews, essay exams, class discussions, PowerPoint presentations, speeches, films and artwork. Courses may also include an introduction to specific styles of writing or other forms of communication.

These courses help you develop core skills and gain in-depth knowledge of resources in your discipline. You will learn to efficiently access the information you need; critically evaluate information and its sources; use information effectively to accomplish a goal; understand the economic, legal and social issues surrounding the use of information; and use information ethically and legally.

Courses with this focus equip you to recognize and define problems, develop creative ways of understanding and thinking about them and finding strategic solutions. You will reflect on past and/or present issues in order to understand different world views, recognize the meaning of events from other perspectives and engage in a critical analysis of your own assumptions in the pursuit of workable solutions.

Community leadership courses explore the fundamentals of leadership, probing what it means to be a leader. Courses may include service learning or experiential learning opportunities, giving you an opportunity to practice these skills. You may also study the nature of citizenship, the different forms of government and avenues to participate in a democratic society.

Interested in the online version of this program?

The interdisciplinary nature of the online B.G.S. program prepares you to excel in a number of different fields and pursuits while maintaining your personal and professional schedules.

Visit Online General Studies B.G.S.