Fudan U breaks down major barriers
15/4/2005 15:08
Yan Zhen/Shanghai Daily news
In order to break down
walls between various departments, Fudan University will lump all of its
incoming students into two groups, art and science, this year, instead of
grouping students by their majors. The idea is to give students a chance to
take courses offered in various departments so they get a broader education in
their first year of studies, according to Fudan officials. Starting this fall
semester, first year students won't be arranged in classes set up by their
specific schools or colleges. Instead, freshmen in 68 different majors will be
divided into seven broader categories - such as social sciences, natural
sciences, medicine, management and law - for basic education in either art or
science. Science students will still be expected to take some arts courses,
and arts majors will have to earn some science credits. In their second year
of studies, students will begin taking classes offered by their own colleges,
Fudan officials said. "The new classification completely breaks the barrier
of different majors, which provides much a wider knowledge range for young
students and is a big step forward toward our target of all-round education,"
said Zheng Fangxian, director of Fudan's admission office. A similar system
has already been introduced at Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Donghua
University. This is the first time for a local university to apply the "art
or science" classification system for all first-year students, Zheng said.
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