Liberal Education Curriculum Requirements

The core of academic study at SUNY Old Westbury is a Liberal Education Curriculum that provides students with a broad multidisciplinary liberal arts education that serves as the intellectual foundation for further education, career preparation, and participation in our increasingly complex society.

Complete information about the Liberal Education Curriculum is available in the Liberal Education Curriculum Guidelines:

Old Westbury's current Liberal Education Curriculum was developed to meet SUNY-wide General Education requirements while maintaining the College's commitment to diversity, interdisciplinary education, and critical inquiry. In order to fulfill the LEC requirements, students must satisfy the College-Wide Proficiency requirements in Mathematics and Basic Communication, and complete one to two courses in each of the other eight LEC domains (note that LEC domains correspond to SUNY General Education areas. While some courses satisfy more than one domain, SUNY requires that all students take a minimum of 30 credits worth of General Education courses).

Liberal Education Curriculum Domains (as of Fall 2023)

  • Diversity: Equity, Inclusion, and Social Justice
  • Mathematics (and Quantitative Reasoning)
  • Basic Communication
  • The Arts
  • US History and Civic Engagement
  • World History and Global Awareness
  • World Languages
  • Natural Sciences
  • Humanities
  • Social Sciences

How to Find Out What LEC Courses Are Being Offered

During course registration periods for each semester, the Course Schedule is made available online via the Office of the Registrar. To determine what classes satisfy a given LEC domain:

  1. When looking up classes online, select the class term for which you are scheduling (i.e. Winter 2017, Spring 2017)
  2. Choose “All” for departments.
  3. In the "Attribute Type" menu (located near the bottom of the page) select the domain you’d like to complete.
  4. Hit "Class Search" and the system will then show you all the courses being offered that semester in the given domain.

LEC Tips for Successful Students

  • Be sure to keep track of the courses you have completed and those you need to complete. Use the Liberal Education Curriculum Worksheet.
  • Create a plan over several semesters to map out your LEC requirements. Don’t wait until your last few semesters to complete your LEC requirements.
  • Be sure to speak about the LEC requirements with your advisor and, most importantly, ask questions!

Liberal Education Curriculum for the Transfer Student

Many transfer students will have completed some of their LEC requirements before arriving at Old Westbury. After your transfer credits have been processed by the Registrar’s office, you will be able to see whether those courses count toward LEC by looking at your degree evaluation (ask your advisor if you do not know how to access this).

  • Courses that satisfy a General Education domain at another SUNY school will automatically satisfy that domain at Old Westbury. Note, however, that Old Westbury’s Math and Basic Communications proficiency requirements have specific additional requirements.
  • Courses that transfer in as equivalent to courses offered at Old Westbury will receive the LEC credit given to that OW course.
  • Other transfer courses that meet the learning outcomes of domain can be considered for LEC credit by petition to the Liberal Education Committee (LEC). Such requests should be directed first to the Director of Transfer Services, Rachel Littenberg (littenbergr@oldwestbury.edu), who will consult with the LEC on your behalf. Note that you will be asked to submit syllabi and catalog descriptions for the course in order to have it considered.