University of the Pacific
AC-2: Learning Outcomes

Undergraduate core competencies directly reflect the integrated knowledge, skills, and dispositions that students will need for sustained success and responsible leadership in today's rapidly changing world. Competencies are: critical thinking; information literacy; oral communication; quantitative reasoning; and written communication.

The General Education Program student learning outcomes are:

• Critical and integrative thinkers: Students should be able to synthesize and transfer learning to new, complex situations within and beyond the Pacific community.


• Creative problem solvers: Students should demonstrate an understanding of what it takes to move from ambiguous goals with incomplete information to design, evaluate, and implement strategies to achieve their desired goals.


• Effective communicators: Students should be able to write, speak, and present their ideas and conclusions through a variety of mediums to diverse audiences.


• Globally aware and ethically engaged citizens: Students should be able to articulate their own cultural understandings and how they differ from others, adapt empathically and ethically to unfamiliar ways of being, and participate in society in ways that are personally enriching and socially beneficial to their communities. 

The General Education Program (GE) lies at the core of a University of the Pacific undergraduate education. The GE program cultivates habits of intellectual inquiry grounded in the liberal arts tradition and enriches a specialized field of study with an understanding of its scientific, humanistic, and artistic contexts. General education courses allow undergraduate students to collaborate across diverse intellectual and disciplinary boundaries and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to succeed in a diverse, complex, and constantly changing world. This journey begins in the two CORE seminars, required of all incoming students. These classes introduce and develop transferable skills in critical thinking, problem solving, and oral and written communication that are crucial for personal, academic, and professional success. CORE 001 introduces students to the demands of interdisciplinary, university-level inquiry. In CORE 001, students begin to acquire the skills necessary to become self-motivated learners who can work independently and collaboratively to solve complex problems. Such grounding will help students develop the agency and flexibility necessary to navigate a rapidly changing political, social, and economic environment. While a few sections focus on environmental concerns, many others require students to address sustainability when discussing impacts of potential solutions to complex issues. In CORE 002, students will further develop the writing and critical thinking skills necessary for college-level academic writing and careful reasoning.

Institutional Research provided a list of degrees conferred 2022-2023 by program. There were: 7 graduates in Geological and Environmental Sciences, 1 graduates in Environmental Studies, 4 graduates in LLM in Water & Environmental Law, 1 in JSD in International Water Resources and 4 with a minor in sustainability.

LLM in Water and Environmental Law Legal Concentration in Water & Environmental Law JSD in International Water Resources MPA and MPP in Environmental and Water Policy MLS in Water and Environmental Law BS Geological and Environmental Sciences BA in Geological and Environmental Sciences BA in Geological and Environmental Sciences and Law BA in Environmental Studies Minor in Sustainability Minor in Environmental Studies Minor in Geology

All degree program requirements can be found on the online academic catalog or program webpages: https://www.pacific.edu/about-pacific/administrative-offices/office-of-the-registrar/academic-catalogs