Pathways | Prospective Students & Counselors | Office for Academic Affairs

CHART YOUR COURSE

Take ownership of your education by focusing some of your core curriculum courses on a particular thematic Pathway. A Pathway can augment your major or help you explore another field of study. You can complete a Pathway without adding any additional credit hours to your degree, and when you complete a Pathway, you will receive a credential that employers want to see.

Select a Pathway

Global Engagement Pathway : 9 credit hours

3 hours of social and behavioral science or history from the core curriculum thats a part of this Pathway.
3 hours of fine arts, humanities, world language or literature from the core curriculum thats a part of this Pathway.
3 hours of course work that is not in the General Education Core Curriculum.

Executive Systems & Structures Pathway: 9 credit hours

3 hours of social and behavioral science or history from the core curriculum thats a part of this Pathway.
3 hours of fine arts, humanities, world language or literature from the core curriculum thats a part of this Pathway.
3 hours of course work that is not in the General Education Core Curriculum.

ABOUT THE PATHWAYS

Global Engagement (rolling out fall 2025)

This Pathway explores relationships between individuals and communities. It seeks to understand the political, economic and cultural forces that make us who we are, paying attention to unique geographical, historical, racial, economic and gendered intercultural experiences. This Pathway is for students interested in understanding the key problems and issues that define our world.

In this Pathway, you will learn to:

1. Gather and analyze historical and contemporary knowledge on the nature of global affairs. This can include engagement with political, cultural, local and national forces.

2. Debate and/or present on the most critical issues that shape political thought in the modern era, including the relationship between local and global forces.

3. Identify historical or contemporary definitions of human engagement (this can include anthropological, philosophical, religious, literary and linguistic perspectives).

4. Explore intercultural dependencies, investigating how human cultures rely on and/or influence each other.

5. Demonstrate skills that foster the communication and interaction of people from a variety of backgrounds, cultures, and identities.

6. Demonstrate how social, political, cultural, historical and economic forces shape the ways that cultures interact.

Executive Systems & Structures (rolling out fall 2025)

This Pathway explores the economic, cultural and political structures and systems that shape people and the physical world. It considers the deeper, interconnected structures that define the human and global experience. Tailored for students keen on honing their executive and strategic thinking abilities, this Pathway offers a comprehensive understanding of these structures.

In this Pathway, you will learn to:

1. Identify the larger political, economic, social, cultural, historical or physical structures that define and shape the contemporary world.

2. Identify and debate the forces that create and moderate the larger structures and systems of the contemporary world.

3. Explore the ethical and philosophical issues undergirding the functioning of large social, political, economic, cultural, or physical systems in the contemporary world.

4. Examine how legal, cultural, and ethical structures are inherited, cultivated and perpetuated locally and globally and how they animate and orient human experience.

5. Offer a critique of structural understandings of the world and societies, paying attention to how structural thinking can essentialize human behavior and marginalize the nuanced experiences of different groups.

6. Explore the ways that individuals and groups can undermine socio-economic structures and play a critical role in creating social change.

7. Identify how social structures are historically and/or discursively determined.

FAQ

Is a Pathway required to complete my core curriculum?

No, Pathways are optional. You can complete your core general education courses without selecting a Pathway.

When will Pathways be available?

Intercultural Affairs and Global Systems & Structures will roll out in the fall semester of 2025. Health & Sustainability and Digital Ethics & Practice will roll out in the fall semester of 2026.

What documentation is provided to students upon the successful completion of a Pathway?

Once completed, you will receive a credential on your academic transcript.

Can a class I take towards a Pathway requirement also count towards my Major or Minor?

Yes. If your Pathway classes also help you to complete a Major or Minor, that is great.

Can one class count towards multiple Pathways?

No. There is no “double dipping” between Pathways.

Can I take more than one Pathway?

Yes. You can take as many Pathways as your schedule will allow.

Can a transfer student do a Pathway?

Yes. If a course you completed at another university transfers to UA as an equivalent to a course that sits within a Pathway at UA, it will be considered the same as that course. You are also welcome to take a Pathway at any time during your enrollment at UA.

If I have completed all or some of the courses for a Pathway but have not declared a Pathway, can I do it after the fact?

Yes. You can declare a Pathway at any point during your time at UA. You do not have to declare a Pathway before you start taking the required courses.

Can I change Pathways?

Yes. The courses you took for one Pathway will most likely not transfer over to another Pathway, but you are welcome to change and embark on a plan to take a different Pathway instead.

Can I use transfer credits or AP scores to complete a Pathway?

Yes. If your AP or other college credits transfer to to UA as an equivalent for a course is a part of a Pathway, then it will count.

How do I add/drop a Pathway?

You will be able to add/drop a Pathway through an online form. This link will be available before fall 2025 registration begins. The link will be accessible through the Add/Drop Majors and Minors page on mybama.ua.edu and will be included here as soon as it goes live.

How do I track my progress through a Pathway?

You will be able to see your progress through a Pathway in Degree Works.

How can I see what courses are in a Pathway?

A PDF of all courses in each of the Pathways will be available through Degree Works and on this website in time for fall 2025 registration.

Are there any chances to meet other students who are doing my Pathway?

Yes! Each semester there will be guest lectures and social events just for students in your Pathway. You will have a chance to meet people from across the university and hang out with cool faculty. All events and invitations will be posted here and sent to Pathways members via email.

Who do I contact if I have Pathway questions?

Please send all questions to Dr. Margaret Peacock, Director of Pathways in the Office for General Education, at mepeacock@ua.edu.