Academic Advising Handbook
Group Requirements
The current Group Requirements are part of the Distribution Requirements that are required to complete a degree at Reed College. Group requirements are fulfilled with 3 units in each of the 3 groups: 2 units must come from the same subject and the third unit must come from a different subject. (Note: No course can count towards more than one group. 200-level Humanities courses not used for the Humanities requirement can apply to either Group 1 or Group 2, but not both. A maximum of 2 units can come from language courses. If 2 units are being taken in language courses, the 2 units must be in the same language.)
Group 1
Art, Comparative Race and Ethnicity Studies, Dance, Humanities, Language courses (Chinese, French, German, Greek, Latin, Russian, Spanish), Literature courses (Ancient Mediterranean studies, English, Chinese, Comparative Literature, Creative Writing, French, German, Russian, Spanish, or Literature), Music, Philosophy, Theatre. If two units are being taken in language classes, the two units must be in the same language.
Group 2
Anthropology, Ancient Mediterranean studies (archaeology/history), CRES, Economics, ICPS, History, Linguistics, Political Science, Religion, Sociology.
Group 3
Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics, Psychology. A substantial portion of at least one unit must be devoted to primary data collection and analysis (identified in the Schedule of Classes as DCA or 3+).
Note 1: No course can count towards more than one of the above categories.
Note 2: Subject is defined as the subject designator for the course. Exceptions include: (1) HUM 411, which does not count toward group requirements, and (2) all literature courses, which are considered one subject.
Note 3: No more than two units from any subject can be used towards the distribution requirements. The one exception is Humanities, where the cap of two units excludes Humanities 110 or, in the case of transfer students, other Humanities courses being used to satisfy the Humanities 110 requirement. A given group cannot be satisfied by a combination of three courses that, due to one or more cross-listed courses, could be listed under the same subject.
Note 4: No distribution requirement can be taken as credit/no credit.
Note 5: No distribution requirement can be satisfied by waiver or by examination (e.g., AP, IB, or other examination).
Note 6: No thesis course or independent study course can be used to satisfy a distribution requirement.
Note 7: A course that is cross-listed between a department and a program will only count as a course in the department.
Students enrolled prior to Fall 2019 may still complete the previous group requirement structure: 2 units in the same subject for each of the following:
Group A - Literature, Philosophy, Religion, Arts
Group B - History, Social Sciences, Psychology
Group C - Natural Sciences
Group D - Mathematics, CSCI, Logic, Foreign Language, Linguistics
Group X - 2 units in any one department outside of the major
Students may use courses in their major to satisfy group requirements other than Group X.
Check ATLAS to see how courses have been applied to group requirements.