General Education

All colleges and universities require General Education core courses to help you achieve the basic knowledge and skills expected of college graduates. General Education courses supplement courses in your major and minor and in your academic electives.

We offer two pathways to General Education: University Studies and the Honors Program. Both will give you the communication and critical thinking skills that will help you succeed in college and beyond.

University Studies

Portland State's University Studies design has won national acclaim and received many educational awards since its inception. Universities in Oregon and across the country have copied its innovative interdisciplinary approach. Foundations such as W.K. Kellogg and the Pew Charitable Trusts have supported the program and now call on our faculty and administrative leaders for advice and counsel. Most students choose this General Education pathway toward graduation.

University Studies courses support your major by expanding your abilities to gather information, ask questions, and analyze data: all skills you can draw upon during your college career and in the workplace.

Honors Program

Recognized nationally as a model for undergraduate and liberal arts education, the University Honors Program -- the honors college at Portland State -- accepts a limited number of highly motivated students, all of whom plan to attend graduate or professional schools. With an enrollment cap of 200, the program functions as a small, liberal arts college within the larger University and provides students an alternate track to University Studies for fulfilling the General Education requirement.