Professional Practice

Students cultivate skills necessary for a career readiness, including: decision making, change management, negotiation, organization and prioritization, leadership, teamwork, and emotional intelligence.

 

The above competencies will be documented by students and assessed by the University on the basis of the knowledge, skills and abilities acquired prior to admission to NLU, during coursework at NLU and as part of field experiences.

NLU requires all students to have a minimum of 12 courses in general education for a total of 48 to 60 quarter hours; each course requires a minimum of 4 quarter hours. The specific requirements within each field are detailed in the chart below.

First-time freshmen will fulfill all general education fields of knowledge by completing the full Illinois Articulation Initiative General Education Core Curriculum (IAI GECC) package as recommended by IAI, GECC guidelines. Upon completion, students will receive a designation on their transcript that they have completed the IAI GECC course requirements. 

Transfer students who fulfilled all general education fields of knowledge and required disciplines by completing 12 general education courses meet the University general education core requirement. 
 
Transfer students who have previously completed a Bachelor’s degree, Associate’s of Arts or Science at an accredited 2 or 4-year institution, or the IAI general education core at another Illinois college or university are not required to take required core general education courses. 

Certain general education courses are specifically required by different programs and will need to be completed in addition to the general education core. Department or program alerts should be consulted for specific requirements regarding: 

  • Specific courses required for degree completion 
  • Minimum grades accepted for credit
  • Additional NLU requirements that must be met