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College Requirements

Quantitative Reasoning


All students admitted to the College for the Fall Term of 1994 and thereafter must meet the Quantitative Reasoning (QR) requirement. The goal of this requirement is to ensure that every graduate of the College achieves a certain level of proficiency in using and analyzing quantitative information. Students may fulfill this requirement either by:
  1. successfully completing one course (of 3 credits or more) designated for full QR credit (QR/1); or
  2. successfully completing two courses (at least one of which must be of 3 credits or more) designated for half QR credit (QR/2).

QR courses may come from a wide range of disciplines representing the natural and social sciences, as well as some areas of the humanities.

Quantitative reasoning is first and foremost reasoning. It is not mathematical manipulation or computation, but rather the methodology used to analyze quantitative information to make decisions, judgments, and predictions. It involves defining a problem by means of numerical or geometrical representations of real-world phenomena, determining how to solve it, deducing consequences, formulating alternatives, and predicting outcomes.

Advanced Placement (AP) courses may not be used to fulfill the Quantitative Reasoning requirement. Courses transferred from another college or university do not generally carry QR credit, except in the following circumstances: (1) QR is considered fulfilled for all science, math, and computer science concentrators who transfer in the prerequisites; (2) Transfer credit for Physics 125, 126, 140, 240 and any statistics course receive (QR/1) credit. Courses used to satisfy the QR requirement may also serve to satisfy other College requirements; e.g., students who are working towards an A.B. or B.S. degree may elect a QR course that also counts toward meeting the Area Distribution, Concentration, or other College requirement.