College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences > Academics > History > Student Resources > Advising FAQ > Liberal Studies Program

Liberal Studies Program

Note: All students must complete the Liberal Studies program. The History Department cannot waive these requirements or authorize substitutions. Students in special circumstances may request course substitutions or waivers within the Liberal Studies Program from the LAS Dean's Office, but substitutions and waivers are NOT automatic and should NOT be expected. Students requesting a substitution should do so using the form available at the Exception to Policy page. Please submit all requests for waivers or substitutions as early as possible, as they often take time to process.

Note: Final decisions regarding Liberal Studies courses and how they fit in the students curriculum are made by the Liberal Arts and Social Sciences College Office. All students must complete the Liberal Studies program.

Yes, unless you have fulfilled one of the following equivalents:

  • Taken calculus (MATH 147 or 150 or 160 or 170 or BMS 125)
  • Taken an equivalent course at another institution and earned a passing grade.
  • Passed the Mathematical and Technological Literacy I (MTL I) test (a proctored exam, which cannot be taken off-site)
  • Received Advanced Placement credit for calculus or statistics

The only students for whom LSP 120 or one of these equivalents is not required are those who are required to take a calculus sequence for their majors. For more information on the MTL 1 (LSP 120) equivalency exam, please go to the go to the LSP Study Guide at the >Quantitative Reasoning Center and click the "placement" link.

If you began attending DePaul in fall 2006 or later (whether as a first-year or transfer student) you must take LSP 121, UNLESS one of the following situations applies to you:

  • You are an Honors student (for Honors students, LSP 180 replaces LSP 121.)
  • You are required to take a calculus sequence for your major (NOTE: Students cannot substitute calculus or any other courses for LSP 121 by choice; the calculus sequence must be required by their major to substitute for LSP 121 [or LSP 180, for Honors students].)
  • You transferred to DePaul with the Illinois Articulation Initiative (IAI) curriculum.

There is an equivalency test for LSP 121 that students can take, but unless they have a fairly advanced background in computer programming, they are unlikely to "pass out" of LSP 121. For more information on the MTL II (LSP 121) equivalency exam, please go to the Quantitative Reasoning Center (click on "placement", then click "LSP 121" tab. Use the link labeled "LSP 121 Placement Exam Study Guide.")

PLEASE NOTE: Non-Honors students who take both LSP 120 and LSP 121 may "waive" one of their Liberal Studies program Learning Domain courses OTHER THAN the Scientific Inquiry: Lab course. Please note, however, that all students must take at least one course in each Learning Domain. So, for example, a student who is using a Modern Language Option course as a substitute for one of the two "Philosophical Inquiry" domain courses cannot also use the LSP 121 waiver to substitute for the other required course in that domain.

Yes. All students, including students transferring in after sophomore year, are required to take LSP 200.

All students must take some kind of Experiential Learning (EL) course as a degree requirement. Students can fulfill this requirement in a number of ways, including through the following:

  • A community-based service learning course
  • Another EL-eligible course offered through a university department
  • Approved off-campus foreign or domestic study programs
  • An internship combined with a linked DePaul course (see additional information about this option in the questions below)

Note: You can identify specific EL-eligible courses offered each quarter through the Campus Connect enrollment system. (Set the filter in the "Liberal Studies Requirement" field to "Experiential Learning.")

Students are encouraged to fulfill their EL requirement during their junior year, but some students may complete this requirement in the sophomore or senior year. Please speak with your advisor about the best options for you. Visit the Experiential Learning site for further information.

For further guidance on internships, please go to the Career Center and access the relevant portion of their website.

Internship courses offer students, through the integration of academic coursework with workplace experiences, the opportunity to gain work-related skills and knowledge of career possibilities. Students who wish to participate in the University Internship Program (UIP) can enroll in one of the UIP courses listed on the program's website.

Please note that internships must be arranged in advance, at least one term before the internship and internship-related course are scheduled to begin.

To get internship credit that satisfies the "Experiential Learning" or EL requirement, students need to take an internship-linked DePaul course.  Most of these are offered through the Career Center.  For further information, students should consult the University Internship course listings, or speak to someone in the Career Center.

Yes, but using the same course to satisfy requirements for both the major and the Experiential Learning component of the Liberal Studies program will require you to complete an extra Liberal Studies-eligible course (a "domain elective") in a department outside History. According to the Liberal Studies website, "Students who complete one course to fulfill both major field credit and liberal studies credit will complete an additional domain elective (from outside the major). The third language course of the modern language option can fulfill this domain elective."

The following information is found on the Liberal Studies Website:

Students are required to take a Liberal Studies capstone course in their major field during their senior year. Some Liberal Studies capstone courses may be offered jointly for students in related majors and fields of study. These courses provide students with an opportunity to integrate their major area of study with broader issues raised in their general education program. The Liberal Studies capstone experience allows students to see the relationship between the ideas, perspectives, and substantive areas of scholarship and creative work within their major field and those learned through significant aspects of their course work in the learning domain courses and other courses and experiences of the Liberal Studies Program.

A liberal studies capstone course can meet both major field and liberal studies requirements. Students who complete one course to fulfill both major field credit and liberal studies credit, will complete an additional domain elective (from outside the major). The third language course of the modern language option can fulfill this domain elective.

Because the course is offered through the major field department, students must receive a grade of C- or better in this course.

Thus, all History majors must complete a Capstone Seminar during their senior year. Before Autumn 2013, the History Capstone was HST 397. Any student who entered DePaul before Autumn 2013 can either take HST 397 as their capstone or they can choose to follow the new capstone requirement for the major. As of Autumn 2013, all history majors are required to take HST 390 as their capstone. Note: Students who are double majors may take their Liberal Studies Capstone in another department, but they must still take HST 390 to meet the departmental major requirements.

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