NOTE: Texas has six common core areas and state guidelines below for the core which must be followed at all public institutions. 

• A core class cannot be taken for more than one core area (no “double-dipping).  This includes courses that are cross-listed in two or more departments and are approved for two or more areas of the core.
• A course taken for core credit in the department of the student's major cannot be counted in the hours applied to the major.
• Departments may specify which core courses may be taken by their majors and may specify that a course taken for core credit is a prerequisite for a course that gives credit in the major. 
• If a course in a student's major field is also approved for core credit, the student may elect to take the course either for core credit or for credit toward the major, provided the department of the student's major approves.
• Departments may specify which core classes majors should take; however, transfer students cannot be required to repeat an area of the core which they have completed for core credit.  If the major has prerequisites, the student may have to take those in addition to the core.
• Students must follow the requirements of their majors in selecting science courses and labs [details on 2007 General Catalog, p. 78].  The TWU core requires a minimum of 6 credit hours in natural sciences, and there is no stated requirement for a science lab.
• Students who entered under the 2005 General Catalog and subsequent ones must complete competencies in computer literacy and oral communication [2005 General Catalog, p. 69].
• A student who transfers to TWU from a Texas public college/university and is “core complete” does not have to take any of the TWU core or satisfy other core requirements. If the “core complete” does not appear on the transcript, students may be asked to provide documentation showing its completion at the original institution.
• If a class counts at a core at another Texas public institution, TWU must accept that class for the area of the core for which it was taken.
• Students who have not completed all areas of the state core must complete the TWU core.
• Courses from private or out-of-state institutions must be evaluated for core credit based on their teaching and testing of the approved core educational objectives.
• No advisor, institution, or institutional representative may approve course substitutions or waivers of core curriculum requirements.
• Only the Texas Commissioner of Higher Education can approve accommodations for disabled students on a case-by-case basis.

Detailed state rules can be found at the TWU Core Curriculum website:

o       State Assumptions and Defining Characteristics

o        State and Local Educational Objectives

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