Ways of Thinking/Ways of Doing | Stanford Undergrad

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WAYS characters Ben and Sophia, with WAYS icons.

Ways of Thinking/Ways of Doing

Learn all about your new General Education system.

PRISM demonstration in Berlin. Photo by Mike Herbst.

Right and Wrong Human Conduct

Ethical Reasoning (ER)

Should the government be able to track our internet and phone communications? What constitutes right and wrong action? What are valuable qualities of human character? ER courses will help you examine these types of questions in a variety of contexts.

M.C. Escher Metamorphosis ii; wikipaintings.org

Making an argument

Formal Reasoning (FR)

What do M.C. Escher’s drawings reveal about Formal Reasoning? Using geometry in art allows us to engage the same rules of logic and symbolism that are critical to the formal sciences.

Ai Leen Ko inserts a sample for analysis into the FEI Titan Transmission Electron Microscope. Credit: Linda A. Cicero / Stanford News Service

Applied Quantitative Reasoning (AQR)

Many decisions and judgments in life are made on the basis of large amounts of data, which can be imperfect and technically complicated.

Aesthetic and Interpretive Inquiry (AII) - what is a book?

Your Place in the Universe

Aesthetic and Interpretive Inquiry (AII)

What can the study of books tell us about the nature of human experience? Decode the DNA of human creativity through the study of history, philosophy, literature, the arts, and other cultural practices.

Megaloceros image from Lascaux caves in Southern France.

Find your voice

Creative Expression (CE)

The Lascaux cave paintings in southern France show us that for nearly 20,000 years, people have explored artistic expression and made creative decisions. CE courses give you the freedom to think creatively, give expressive shape to your ideas, and communicate those ideas in imaginative ways.

BOSP student in Bhutan. Photo by Emily Gorbaty.

Awareness and Understanding

Engaging Diversity (ED)

In a globally interconnected world, an awareness and understanding of difference is crucial. By gaining knowledge about diversity, you’ll extend your understanding of the social contexts that frame our communication and collaboration with one another.

Prof. Anne Fernald and students study language acquisition in infants. Photo by Linda A. Cicero / Stanford News Service

Social Inquiry (SI)

Human beings are social animals. To understand human behavior and to exercise responsible citizenship, you’ll need to be able to think critically about social orderings.

Varroa destructor on honeybee host. Image from Wikimedia Commons.

Scientific Literacy

Scientific Method and Analysis (SMA)

The Varroa mite attacks the honey bee and quickly threatens the life of the entire colony. Deepen your intellectual curiosity about the natural and physical world, and hone your ability to analyze scientific information in SMA courses.

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ER
FR
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