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Liberal Studies, BLS

The Bachelor of Liberal Studies Degree Program is an interdisciplinary major in which the student may pursue broad interests or develop a specialized program in areas where majors are not currently offered. The Bachelor of Liberal Studies (B.L.S.) option is designed by the student and the academic advisor to ensure comprehensiveness in the student's academic experience, while at the same time affording flexibility in fulfilling requirements. The B.L.S. may serve as a terminal degree or as preparation for graduate school, professional school, or employment in business, government or industry.  View Course Requirements (PDF)

Design

Central to the B.L.S. degree are the following features:

  • The freedom to select courses to meet the student's individual needs, taking into account previous college course work, prior college-level learning, and constraints unique to the individual.
  • The opportunity to select, through a planning and approval process, an area of concentration, and fully develop one's current interests; or to build on previous academic work; or to build on a concentraiton already formed (e.g., within the structure of the A.A. in Liberal Studies degree program).
  • The opportunity to pursue new courses, to investigate disciplines not previously encountered, and to pursue interdisciplinary studies leading to an understanding of relationships between different disciplines.
  • The potential to receive academic credit for demonstrated prior college-level learning.
Course Work

The B.L.S. degree consists of the General Education Core Curriculum (44 credits), a concentration (45 credits - 24 must be upper level), and electives (30 credits - 21 must be upper level) for a total of 120 credits. Inclusion of a minor is recommended. A minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.00 and a 2.25 in the concentration are required. At least 30 semester hours of credit must be taken at the University of Maine at Presque Isle. Ordinarily, not more than 30 credit hours may be taken in any single discipline.

Plan of Study *

To enroll in the B.L.S. degree program, the student should make an appointment with the Director of Advising who will assist the student with the approval process. The student should submit for advisor approval a written Plan of Study as soon as possible. The Plan of Study will include:

  • A concentration title that does not duplicate an existing degree program title.
  • A list of the courses that will fulfill the student's proposed concentration, including minor coursework if applicable.
  • A written rationale explaining the concentration and the way the proposed coursework forms a coherent field of study.
  • The student's Prior Learning Portfolio if the student is applying for Prior Learning Credit.
Credit for Prior Learning

Within the B.L.S. degree, the student may earn academic credit for prior college-level learning through CLEP/DANTES exams, challenge exams, and the Prior Learning Protfolio Assessment. A student may earn as much as 30 credits for prior learning, of which up to 15 credits may come from CLEP/DANTES or challenge exams and up to 15 credits may come from the Prior Learning Portfolio Assessment.

The Prior Learning Portfolio Assessment, a component unique to the Bachelor of Liberal Studies (B.L.S.) Degree Program, allows a student to petition for academic credit for college level learning achieved outside the classroom. The student prepares and presents a portfolio that demonstrates his/her knowledge and competence in a particular subject area of discipline. The emphasis of the portfolio is upon the demonstration of college-level learning in the subject area and not merely a description of the student's experience or time spent in a particular employment position.

Prior Learning Portfolio Assessment

Students wishing to present a portfolio for evaluation should discuss preparation of the portfolio and the evaluation process with their faculty advisor and with the faculty member(s) with expertise in the field(s) to be evaluated for prior learning. During the evaluation process, the student may be re-quested to supply additional information or to revise and resubmit a portion of the portfolio. The portfolio is evaluated for demonstrated college-level learning by faculty with expertise in the subject/discipline area(s). Successful portfolios receive 3 to 15 credits, with the maximum of 15 credits being awarded in exceptional cases of outstanding documentation of college-level learning achieved through long-term or professional-level experience in a given field. Credits awarded through portfolio evaluation are recorded on the student's transcript as "Prior Learning Credit" and may be applied only toward the BLS degree.

Evaluation of the Plan of Study

The student will submit the Plan of Study (including the Prior Learning Portfilio Assessment if applicable), first to his/her faculty advisor for approval. It will then be forwarded to the BLS committee composed of the student's advisor, the Dean of Faculty, if coursework is sufficiently interdisciplinary, and one other faculty member chosen by the student. This additional faculty member should represent a discipline in the student's concentration that is not represented by the student's faculty advisor.

Development and submission of the Plan of Study should take place as early as possible. The Plan of Study should be submitted for final committee approval before 70 degree hours have been earned. Students transferring more than 70 degree hours to the University of Maine at Presque Isle may, in certain cases, make special arrangements to pursue the degree in consultation with the appropriate academic advisor. The Plan of Study, with approval, will become part of the student's permanent record in the Registrar's office.*

* While another program is being designed, teacher certification seekers will be permtted to obtain the Bachelor of Liberal Studies with Certification Concentration. This is an option open only for students who enter already holding a bachelor's degree in an appropriate area and who are seeking teacher certification in the State of Maine.