The core curriculum of the CU Denver Downtown Campus is designed to provide each undergraduate student with a high quality general education based on a liberal arts foundation, while allowing students flexibility based on their individual backgrounds and specific career goals. The Core Curriculum develops multiple literacies, stimulates creative thinking, and utilizes technology. A goal of the CU Denver Core Curriculum is to engage students in developing sensitivity to diversity and developing their place in an urban environment as well as in the rapidly changing global environment. 

Specific core courses from the list of approved core courses may be identified by a college or program to satisfy requirements in the student’s major. 

The CU Denver core curriculum is outlined below.  Courses approved by the faculty for satisfying core learning objectives are identified in the core curriculum table of courses.

Students must earn a minimum letter grade of ‘C­–‘ (1.7) in each Intellectual Competency course to satisfy the core curriculum requirements.

Students may not use approved core courses in the discipline defined by their major(s) to satisfy Knowledge Area requirements.  In restricted disciplines, only courses specifically approved for the Knowledge Area may be used to satisfy Core Curriculum requirements in that Knowledge Area.

The three Knowledge Areas are: Arts and Humanities; Behavioral and Social Sciences; and Biological and Physical Sciences, Mathematics.

International Perspectives:  3 hours

Cultural Diversity:  3 hours

Students must take one upper division cultural diversity course.  Courses may be selected from the discipline defined by the student’s major(s).