SUNY GE Framework 2023 and 2026
On December 17, 2024, the SUNY Board of Trustees passed Resolution 2024-64, which amended Resolution 2021-48, passed by the SUNY Board of Trustees on November 9, 2021, that established the SUNY General Education Framework (SUNY GE).
The revised (2026 effective) SUNY GE is applicable to new first-time students entering all associate and baccalaureate degree programs in or after fall 2026. The SUNY GE adopted in 2021 remains applicable to new first-time students who entered A.A., A.S., and all baccalaureate degree programs in or after fall 2023 but prior to fall 2026 and to new first-time students who entered A.A.S. and A.O.S. degree programs in or after fall 2024 but prior to fall 2026.
Category Descriptions
- Communication – Written and Oral
- Diversity: Equity, Inclusion, and Social Justice
- Mathematics (and Quantitative Reasoning)
- Natural Sciences (and Scientific Reasoning)
- Humanities
- Social Sciences
- The Arts
- US History and Civic Engagement
- World History and Global Awareness
- World Languages
- Critical Thinking and Reasoning
- Information Literacy (Revised, Effective Fall 2026)
- Civic Discourse (New, Effective Fall 2026
Knowledge & Skill Areas
A minimum of 7 of 10 categories of knowledge and skills are required for AA-, AS-, and all baccalaureate-degree programs.
The following four are specifically required for all undergraduate-degree programs
- Communication – Written and Oral
- Diversity: Equity, Inclusion, and Social Justice
- Mathematics (and Quantitative Reasoning)
- Natural Sciences (and Scientific Reasoning)
In addition, a minimum of three of the following six are required for AA-, AS-, and all baccalaureate-degree programs
- Humanities
- Social Sciences
- The Arts
- US History and Civic Engagement
- World History and Global Awareness
- World Languages
(1) Communication Written and Oral
Students will:
- research a topic, develop an argument, and organize supporting details;
- demonstrate coherent college-level communication (written and oral) that informs, persuades, or otherwise engages with an audience;
- evaluate communication for substance, bias, and intended effect; and
- demonstrate the ability to revise and improve written and oral communication.
(2) Diversity: Equity, Inclusion, and Social Justice
Students will:
- describe the historical and contemporary societal factors that shape the development of individual and group identity involving race, class, and gender;
- analyze the role that complex networks of social structures and systems play in the creation and perpetuation of the dynamics of power, privilege, oppression, and opportunity; and
- apply the principles of rights, access, equity, and autonomous participation to past, current, or future social justice action.
(3) Mathematics (and Quantitative Reasoning)
Students will demonstrate mathematical skills and quantitative reasoning, including the ability to
- interpret and draw inferences from appropriate mathematical models such as formulas, graphs, tables, or schematics;
- represent mathematical information symbolically, visually, numerically, or verbally as appropriate; and
- employ quantitative methods such as arithmetic, algebra, geometry, or statistics to solve problems.
(4) Natural Sciences (and Scientific Reasoning)
Students will demonstrate scientific reasoning applied to the natural world, including
- an understanding of the methods scientists use to explore natural phenomena, including observation, hypothesis development, measurement and data collection, experimentation, evaluation of evidence, and employment of data analysis or mathematical modeling; and
- application of scientific data, concepts, and models in one of the natural sciences.
(5) Humanities
Students will
- demonstrate knowledge of the conventions and methods of at least one of the humanities; and
- recognize and analyze nuance and complexity of meaning through critical reflections on text, visual images, or artifacts.
(6) Social Sciences
Students will
- describe major concepts and theories of at least one discipline in the social sciences; and
- demonstrate an understanding of the methods social scientists use to explore social phenomena.
(7) The Arts
Students will
- demonstrate an understanding of at least one principal form of artistic expression and the creative process inherent therein.
(8) US History and Civic Engagement
Students will
- demonstrate understanding of United States’ society and/or history, including the diversity of individuals and communities that make up the nation;
- understand the role of individual participation in US communities and government; and
- apply historical and contemporary evidence to draw, support, or verify conclusions.
(9) World History and Global Awareness
Students will
- demonstrate knowledge of a broad outline of world history and/or the development of the distinctive features of at least one civilization or culture in relation to other regions of the world; and
- demonstrate an understanding of the structures, systems, and interrelationships among civilizations and cultures within historical and/or contemporary contexts, and their impact on wellbeing and sustainability.
(10) World Languages
Students will
- exhibit basic proficiency in the understanding and use of a world language; and
- demonstrate knowledge of the distinctive features of culture(s) associated with the language they are studying.
Core Competencies
All undergraduate degree-seeking students must demonstrate the required student learning outcomes in three core competencies, Critical Thinking and Reasoning, Information Literacy, and Civic Discourse.
All core competencies complement one another, and the student learning outcomes of the core competencies also intersect with and support the knowledge and skills areas. As such, a learning experience (e.g., a course) may address more than one core competency and may also address a knowledge and skills area.
Core competencies are not necessarily associated with any one course, though the student learning outcomes may be required in one or more courses. In either case, campuses must ensure that the required learning outcomes are included in each undergraduate degree curriculum. Campuses have flexibility to implement and assess these learning outcomes across a diverse range of academic programs.
(11) Critical Thinking and Reasoning Competency
Students will
- clearly articulate an issue or problem;
- identify, analyze, and evaluate ideas, data, and arguments as they occur in their own or others’ work;
- acknowledge limitations such as perspective and bias; and
- develop well-reasoned (logical) arguments to form judgments and/or draw conclusions.
(12) Information Literacy Competency
2023-2026 Requirements
Students will
- locate information effectively using tools appropriate to their need and discipline;
- evaluate information with an awareness of authority, validity, and bias;
- demonstrate an understanding of the ethical dimensions of information use, creation, and dissemination.
Requirements Effective Fall 2026
Students will
- locate information effectively using tools appropriate to their need and discipline;
- evaluate information from a variety of sources with an awareness of authority, validity, bias, and origin; and
- demonstrate an understanding of the ethical dimensions of information use, creation, and dissemination, whether from traditional sources or emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence.
(13) Civic Discourse Competency (2026)
Effective Fall 2026
Students will demonstrate the discourse skills necessary to participate in civic life, including
- the deliberation of ideas through reasoned inquiry that seeks new information and considers multiple viewpoints; and
- the ethical practice of advocacy, dissent, and dialogue that constructively attends to points of conflict.