Picking your general education courses for the next semester can feel overwhelming, especially when Ohio State has so many options. Sorting out the good from the bad, finding the workload that works best for you and picking out classes with good professors can be incredibly time-consuming. To make things easier for you, I’ve assembled a list of some of my favorite general education courses I’ve taken, along with the requirements they fulfill.
1. FRIT 3054: Global citizenship
Global Citizenship (FRIT 3054) is a course offered by the French and Italian Department at Ohio State that focuses on how culture shapes our understanding of ourselves and others as well as our worldview. Within the class, you get to participate in the Collaborative Online International Learning program where you share a class over Zoom with University of Monterrey students taking a similar course from Mexico. Although you only read one book for the course, it’s a very interesting and fun read.
The course has no exams and is graded solely on group projects and reading quizzes due on Carmen each week. I highly recommend this course as the workload is very manageable, the content is interesting and the professor, Carrie Thomas, clearly loves teaching it. If you’re a dog person, you’ll be happy to know that Professor Thomas’ therapy dog Cascade will be in class throughout the semester.
FRIT 3054 fulfills the Citizenship for a Diverse and Just World theme.
2. WGSST 2317: Gender in Film
Professor Linda Mizejewski is one of the kindest and most enthusiastic professors I have had at Ohio State. If you like watching movies—especially older films—then this course is perfect for you. There are two open-note online exams, a midterm and a final, but as long as you take notes in class, you will likely receive an A.
You write two two-page, double-spaced essays, one being a very straightforward film analysis and the other being a summary of different articles critiquing a film you watched for class. The course looks at the representation of women in Hollywood cinema from the silent era to the present day. You will watch films from various genres, from comedy and melodrama to gangster, Western, detective and action films. The course load is very manageable, and the content is interesting and fun.
WGSST 2317 fulfills the Race, Ethnicity and Gender Diversity foundation.
3. Theatre 2100: Introduction to Theatre
If you’re looking for a fun course as someone who either loves theatre or is interested in learning more about it, then Introduction to Theatre is the perfect course for you. I even took the Honors track of this course, and the workload was still very manageable. You get to read and watch many different plays, including two live performances performed by the Department of Theatre, Film and Media Arts, which you will write essays about. You usually complete in-class assessments on the plays you read, but as long as you read or watch them, it’s easy to do well. I didn’t mind doing the readings because they were entertaining and enjoyable!
Students get to analyze the profession and art of theatre while going behind the scenes and exploring the different roles that come together to create a performance. They learn about the history, theories and styles of theatre and explore the production process. Be prepared to try out different movement and breathing techniques used by actors globally!
Everyone in the department is passionate about the art and clearly loves to teach. If you are in the Honors program, I highly recommend taking the course with Professor Karen Mozingo. You will get the chance to tour all of the departments, including costume design and set production. This course is so much fun and teaches you about something you otherwise may not have learned much about.
THEATRE 2100 fulfills the Literary, Visual and Performing Arts foundation.
4. Stat 1350.01: Elementary statistics
If you aren’t much of a math person, Elementary Statistics is the perfect course for getting your math foundation out of the way. The workload is easy, as long as you go to recitations, where you’ll get help with the “labs” due each week. Not to mention, the content is simple, especially if you took statistics in high school. The course is very well-organized, which is helpful, and both the midterm and final exams are open-note and online—they’re basically just Carmen Canvas quizzes. The best part about these exams is that you are given a time frame of a couple of days during which you can take them! Overall, this course was the perfect solution for my college math requirement and taught me certain things that will definitely be useful throughout my life.
STAT 1350.01 fulfills the Mathematical and Quantitative Reasoning or Data Analysis foundation.
Ohio State offers many incredible general education courses, and these are just a few of my favorites. College is a great time to get out of your comfort zone, learn something new and maybe even discover a new interest or passion. Why not use your general education requirements to do just that?