Core Curriculum

The School of Arts and Sciences at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS) oversees the design, content, and assessment of the general education core curriculum. The General Education Core Curriculum Mission and Learning Outcomes represent MCPHS’s definition of what it means to be a college-educated person. The School of Arts and Sciences is committed to building and furthering a culture of continuous improvement, academic quality, and innovation through continual, iterative assessment of the General Education Core Curriculum.

Core Curriculum Overview and Learning Outcomes

Undergraduate students joining MCPHS as first-time, first-year, or transfer students will complete 40 credits or the equivalent of core curriculum courses. The goal of the core curriculum is to help students build and apply all-important foundational knowledge across:

• Six academic content domains
• A set of nine specific learning outcomes to academic higher learning and professional success in the workforce of the 21st century

Core Curriculum Mission

The MCPHS General Education Core Curriculum cultivates students’ aptitudes for knowing about and interacting in the world. Classroom experiences support students in building important knowledge and skills critical to academic program success and in life after graduation. The skills and perspectives prepare students to contribute to their professions and society; make connections to various dimensions of illness, health, and healthcare; and engage in a lifetime of personal and professional growth.

Core Curriculum Learning Outcomes

Achieving the core curriculum learning outcomes prepares MCPHS graduates to be effective professionals and active participants in civic and community life. By the end of the general education core curriculum program, students will be able to:

1. Apply basic critical reasoning skills (e.g., analysis, evaluation of assumptions, and selecting and using evidence to form logical conclusions) to content across disciplines.
2. Identify and critically evaluate ethical positions and arguments, apply theories and principles to real and hypothetical cases, and reflect on their own ethical beliefs.
3. Interpret quantitative problems and information, represent information in various mathematical forms, and apply analytical reasoning to arrive at solutions; evaluate the strengths and limitations of quantitative approaches.
4. Apply problem-solving methodologies, protocols, technological tools, lab techniques, and/or theoretical models to questions appropriate to each discipline.
5. Actively read and listen with comprehension, speak, write, and communicate in a variety of genres, demonstrating an attention to audience, purpose, accurate language usage, and organization.
6. Identify information needs; search for and retrieve information; evaluate that information for accuracy, reliability, and credibility; and use the information ethically, including appropriate attribution.
7. Collaborate with others toward a goal, demonstrate respectful behavior and adaptability, address conflict constructively, and invite participation from all collaborators.
8. Analyze how power relationships and social identities intersect in local and global contexts.
9. Apply prior learning, new knowledge, and skills to different contexts; articulate strengths and challenges in their own learning and development over time.