Students who graduate from Oakland University have demonstrated success in two programs of study: their major degree program and OU’s innovative general education program. The major program prepares students for professional success through a study of the knowledge and “hard skills” associated with their chosen careers or disciplines. The general education program provides students with the diverse learning experiences necessary to develop the “soft skills” valued by employers and essential to our students’ successful engagement as citizens and as members of their local, global and professional communities.

While the general education program at Oakland University focuses on transferable “soft skills” and abilities, our wide-range of course offerings demonstrate our faculty’s commitment to providing students with opportunities to enrich their current interests and cultivate new ones through individualized programs of general study.

The three-part structure complements every major, giving students a well-balanced, refined education.

Talk to your academic adviser if you have any questions about general education. First-year, undecided and re-deciding students: see your assigned adviser at the First Year Advising Center. All others: see an academic adviser at the school or college that offers your major.