General Studies

General Studies Information

• Benefits of a General Studies Degree

  Benefits Include:

  • Career Advancement: Boost your earning potential and job prospects. Some jobs require an associate's degree to be hired or to earn a promotion.
  • Transferable Skills: Prepare for future academic and career opportunities.
  • Pathway to a Bachelor's: Create a solid foundation for general education that seamlessly transfers credits to majors at WSU. Other universities within the Utah State Higher Education System will accept a WSU general studies associate's degree to fulfill the general education requirements of their bachelor’s degrees.
  • Competitive Edge: Enhance your eligibility for competitive programs like those offered by the Dumke College of Health Professions.
  • Flexibility and Exploration: Discover your interests and explore various academic areas.

• General Studies Degree Options

  You can choose between an Associate of Science (AS) or Associate of Arts (AA) degree. The AA requires proficiency in a foreign language. Both degrees can be completed online, although not all general education courses are offered online. 

  You can also choose to declare a Certificate of Completion in General Education (CC). The CC requires less overal credits. Connect with an advisor if you believe this is the best option for you. 

  See the Weber State University Catalog for more information.

  Online Degree Options

  You can earn a general studies associate’s degree online, although the full list of course options are not offered online. For more information, schedule an appointment with an advisor. 

• Staying on Track

  Along with talking to an advisor, you can use these planning tools to keep moving forward:

  • Use the General Studies Grad Maps to help you plan your degree.
  • Log into your CatTracks and click on the "Plans" tool to create a plan for your upcoming semester.
  • Register for classes. Learn how to add, drop and waitlist classes.

• Employment Opportunities

  General studies associate’s degree graduates are qualified to pursue entry-level employment that requires a general education foundation. The highly transferable knowledge and skills are strongly desired by employers in many different settings.

  Keep in mind:

  Associate’s degree graduates earn an average of about $6,450 more a year than people with a high school diploma.

  The 2017 unemployment rate for people with an associate’s degree was 3.4 percent, compared to 4.6 percent for those with only a high school diploma.

  (Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Statistics)

  For more information on employment opportunities, contact Weber State University Career Services at 801-626-6393.

• Specialized Advising Credentials & Training

  This section highlights the extensive training, specialized certifications, and professional expertise our advisors hold. We believe that the better prepared we are, the better we can serve you. You'll see credentials that go beyond basic advising.

  Area of Expertise	Training / Certification	Details
  Career Advising	NACADA Career Advising E-Tutorial Certificate	This training covers career development theories, advising competencies, and strategies for integrating career conversations into everyday academic advising.
  Career & Interest Assessment	Strong Interest Inventory Certification	This certification helps advisors guide students toward finding careers they can be passionate about by using the Strong Interest Inventory to match their personal interests and work preferences with suitable academic majors and job options.
  Design Your Life	Stanford's Design Your Life (DYL)	Advisors use "design thinking" to help students build a career through trial and error rather than just picking a major from a list. Instead of taking a personality test to find one "perfect" job, students learn to brainstorm multiple life paths and test them out with small, real-world experiments. It’s about moving from "What do I want to be when I grow up?" to "How can I try out different versions of myself?"
  MBTI	MBTI Certification Program	This certification taught staff how to use the MBTI test to help students understand their personality, so they can better pick their major, get along with others, and study more effectively.
  Appreciative Advising	Appreciative Advising Institute	Positive psychology-based Six Phases of Appreciative Advising to boost their effectiveness and improve student success and retention.

Schedule General Studies Advising Appointment

Step One: Complete New Student Orientation.

Step Two: Make sure you are declared a General Studies student. Check your Cattracks, a degree evaluation tool, within your eWeber portal to determine that you have the correct major declared. Note many General Studies students need to use the downward toggle to see the associate degree declaration.

Declare General Studies

Step Three: Schedule an appointment through Starfish (to schedule an appointment for the current day, please call us at 801-626-6752). Students seeking advisement for general studies can meet with any advisor in the General Studies area.

• Appointments for New & Incoming Students

  Choose a Location:

  New Student In-Person AppointmentNew Student Virtual Zoom Appointment

  Is Starfish scheduling not working for you? Call us at 801-626-6752.

• Appointments for Continuing Students

  Choose a Location:

  In-Person AppointmentVirtual Zoom Appointment

  Is Starfish scheduling not working for you? Call us at 801-626-6752.