Recommended GE Courses (updated as of July 2026)

• ENGL 101 College Writing: Stretch II 

• ENGL 102 Accelerated College Writing

• ENGL 104 College Writing: Stretch II (English for Speakers of Other Languages) 

• ENGL 111 College Writing: Stretch II (Online)

• ENGL 112 Accelerated College Writing (Online)

Additional courses approved for this GE Area for AY 2026-27 can be found HERE. 

*NOTE: For students following GE catalog years prior to AY 2025-2026, these courses will also work for GE Area A2. Written Communication. If you have a question about which catalog year you are being held to and/or which courses to take for this GE Area, please contact your academic advisor.

We recommend the courses listed below for students following the 2026-27 academic year (AY) catalog year for GE* and looking to satisfy GE Area 1B, Critical Thinking and Composition. More information about this requirement can be found on the General Education website.

• BIOL 200 Biological Reasoning (Second Composition)

• ENGL 200 College Writing II (Second Composition)

• INFO 230 Argumentation and Information Literacy for Sustainability Topics (Second Composition, Sustainability Overlay)

• INFO 240 Argumentation and Information Literacy for AI: Case Studies in the Ethics of AI Use (Second Composition, Social Justice Overlay)

• PHIL 100 Workshop in Critical Thinking (Second Composition)

• PHYS 230 Physical Reasoning (Second Composition)

• PSYC 110 Critical Thinking & Writing in Psychological Research (Second Composition)

Additional courses approved for this GE Area for AY 2026-27 can be found HERE. 

*NOTE: For students following GE catalog years prior to AY 2025-2026, these courses will also work for GE Area A3. Critical Thinking. If you have a question about which catalog year you are being held to and/or which courses to take for this GE Area, please contact your academic advisor.

We recommend the courses listed below for students following the 2026-27 academic year (AY) catalog year for GE* and looking to satisfy GE Area 1C, Oral Communication. More information about this requirement can be found on the General Education website. 

• COMM 100 Public Speaking

• COMM 104 Interpersonal Communication

Additional courses approved for this GE Area for AY 2026-27 can be found HERE. 

*NOTE: For students following GE catalog years prior to AY 2025-2026, these courses will also work for GE Area A1. Oral Communication. If you have a question about which catalog year you are being held to and/or which courses to take for this GE Area, please contact your academic advisor.

We recommend the courses listed below for students following the 2026-27 academic year (AY) catalog year for GE* and looking to satisfy GE Area 2, Mathematical Concepts and Quantitative Reasoning. More information about this requirement can be found on the General Education website.

• MATH 115E - College Algebra with Extra Support 

• MATH 120 Precalculus 

• MATH 125 Precalculus with Algebra

• MATH 130 Calculus I  

Additional courses approved for this GE Area for AY 2026-27 can be found HERE. 

NOTE: For students following GE catalog years prior to AY 2025-2026, these courses will also work for GE Area . B4. Quantitative Reasoning. If you have a question about which catalog year you are being held to and/or which courses to take for this GE Area, please contact your academic advisor.

The courses listed below are a short list of courses that have been approved for GE Area B1 and may be of particular interest to biology majors. To see the complete list of courses approved for GE Area B1, click here. For more information about the B1 requirements, you can visit the CSUEB General Education website.

• CHEM 100 Introduction to College Chemistry *

• CHEM 106 Chemistry and Society (Sustainability Overlay)

• CHEM 110 General Chemistry for Engineering *

• CHEM 111 General Chemistry I *

• CHEM 161 Basic Chemistry for the Health Sciences * 

  ENSC 210 Physical and Environmental Geology 

• ENSC 235 Disasters on Earth and in Hollywood (Sustainability Overlay)

• ENSC 260 Introduction to GIS in Earth and Environmental Sciences *

• ENSC 280 Humans and the Environment in California  (Sustainability Overlay)

• GEOG 110 Physical Geography: Earth Processes and Outcomes  

• GEOL 100 Earth Systems Science * (Sustainability Overlay)

• GEOL 101 Introduction to the Earth Sciences (Sustainability Overlay)

• GEOL 120 Introduction to Oceanography  (Sustainability Overlay)

• GEOL 210 Physical and Environmental Geology *

• GEOL 230 Natural Disasters  (Sustainability Overlay)

• GEOL 235 Disasters on Earth and in Hollywood (Sustainability Overlay) 

• GEOL 260 Introduction to GIS in Earth and Environmental Sciences * 

• PHYS 104 Musical Acoustics  * 

• PHYS 109 Exploring Physics in the Outdoors (B3, Sustainability Overlay)

• PHYS 115 Elementary Physics *

• PHYS 125 Principles of Physics I *

• PHYS 126 Principles of Physics II *

• PHYS 135 Physics for Scientists and Engineers I *

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for GE Area B2 and may be of particular interest to biology majors. (Courses marked with a star have a B3 laboratory component or a B3 co-requisite course.) To see the complete list of courses approved for GE Area B2.

• BIOL 100 Biology in the Real World*
• BIOL 140A Principles of Cell and Molecular Biology *
• BIOL 230 Introduction to Clinical Microbiology*
• BIOL 270 Human Anatomy & Physiology I* 

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for GE Area B3 and may be of particular interest to biology majors. To see the complete list of courses approved for GE Area B3.

• BIOL 100 Biology in the Real World 
• BIOL 102 Introduction to Biology Lab
• BIOL 140A Principles of Cell and Molecular Biology 
• BIOL 230 Introduction to Clinical Microbiology 
• BIOL 270 Human Anatomy & Physiology I 
• CHEM 100 Introduction to College Chemistry 
• CHEM 111 General Chemistry I 
• CHEM 161 Basic Chemistry for the Health Sciences 
• GEOL 100 Earth Systems Science (Sustainability Overlay)
• GEOL 102 Earth Sciences Laboratory 
• PHYS 115 Elementary Physics 
• PHYS 125 Principles of Physics I 
• PHYS 126 Principles of Physics II 
• PHYS 135 Physics for Scientists and Engineers I 

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for GE Area C1 and may be of particular interest to biology majors. To see the complete list of courses approved for GE Area C1.

• ART 100 Fundamentals of Drawing 
• ART 101 Photography I  
• ART 102 2D Processes  
• ART 103 3D Processes  
• ART 104 4D Processes  
• ART 111 Sculpture I    
• ART 172 Painting I 
• ART 278 Bookmaking I  
• ENGL 106 Academic Vocabulary Development 
• ENGL 205 Beginning Workshop in Fiction 
• ENGL 206 Beginning Workshop in Poetry 
• ES 200 Race and Resistance (Diversity Overlay)
• ES 247 Hip Hop Nation (Social Justice Overlay) 
• MLL 153 Intensive Elementary Japanese 
• MLL 163 Intensive Elementary Mandarin Chinese  
• PHIL 110 Freshman Topics in Philosophy and the Arts  
• THEA 150 Improvisation for Life, Stage and Wellbeing  
• THEA 255 Acting on Camera 

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for GE Area C2 and that may be of particular interest to biology majors. To see the complete list of courses approved for GE Area C2.

• COMM 260 Documentary Film Studies 
• COMM 266 Digital Media Production Abroad 
• DANC 233 Street to Stage: History of Hip Hop Dance (Diversity Overlay)
• ENGL 105 College Reading for Fluency 
• HIST 101 World History I 
• HIST 102 World History II 
• HIST 140 Humanity, Science and Nature in History 
• HIST 277 Science and Culture in the History of Medicine in the United States (Second Composition)
• HSC 130 Health Humanities 
• HSC 270 Investigating Disease Outbreaks and Epidemics (Social Justice Overlay)
• MLL 121 Elementary French I  
• MLL 131 Elementary American Sign Language I 
• MLL 141 Elementary Spanish I 
• MLL 151 Elementary Japanese I 
• MLL 161 Elementary Mandarin Chinese I 
• PHIL 120 Freshman Topics in Philosophy 
• PHIL 201 Introduction to Philosophy  
• PHIL 211 Introduction to Ethics  
• THEA 100 Theatre: A Spotlight on Life  
• THEA 254 Acting and Diversity (Diversity Overlay)

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for GE Area D3 and that may be of particular interest to biology majors. To see the complete list of courses approved for GE Area D1-3.

• ANTH 100 Introduction to Anthropology  
• COMM 255 Queer Cultures: Knowledge and Literacy (Social Justice Overlay)
• ECON 100 Economics of Public Issues 
• ECON 101 US Economic History and Institutions (US-1 and US-2)
• ECON 102 California Economic History and Institutions  
• ECON 106 Urban Policy, Social Justice, and the Environment  
• ENVT 101 Environmental Challenges of the 21st Century (Sustainability Overlay)
• ES 100 Introduction to Social Justice in Communities of Color (Social Justice Overlay)
• ES 244 Mixed Race Identities in the US (Diversity Overlay)
• GEOG 120 Human Geography: Diversity and Globalization 
• GEOG 125 World Regions and Development 
• GEOG 200 Sustainable Resource Management 
• HIST 110 The United States to 1877 (US-1 and US-2)
• HIST 111 The United States Since 1877 (US-1 and US-3)
• HOS 230 Sustainable Global Tourism Development (Sustainability Overlay)
• INTS 101 Introduction to International Studies 
• KIN 160 Introduction to Kinesiology  
• KIN 270 Women and Sport (Diversity Overlay)
• PHIL 130 Freshman Topics in Philosophy, Religion, and Social Science 
• POSC 101 American Political Institutions (US-1 and US-2)
• POSC 102 Public Policy/California Politics (US-1 and US-3)
• POSC 150 Conflict in World Politics 
• PSYC 100 General Psychology 
• REC 235 Leisure, Self, and Society 
• SOC 100 Introduction to Sociology                                                                                                                          

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for GE Area E and that may be of particular interest to biology majors. To see the complete list of courses approved for GE Area E.

• EPSY 101 Career Planning For College Students 
• FIN 230 Personal Finance 
• GS 101A Foundations of Success I 
• GS 101B Foundations of Success II 
• GS 201 Leadership 
• GS 202 Peer Mentor Practicum 
• GS 305 Advanced Peer Mentor Practicum 
• GS 321 Navigating for Success as a Sankofa Scholar I 
• GS 322 Navigating Success as a Sankofa Scholar II (Diversity Overlay)
• GS 331 Community Engagement and Leadership Seminar for GANAS I (Social Justice Overlay)
• GS 332 Community Engagement and Leadership Seminar for GANAS II (Social Justice Overlay)  
• GS 401 Approaches to Tutoring for Learning 
• INFO 200 Topics in Information Literacy 
• INFO 210 Introduction to Information Literacy Skills 
• INFO 220 Information Literacy Skills 
• KIN 110 Beginning Activities: Circuit Training 
• KIN 112 Beginning Activities: Fitness Training 
• KIN 115 Beginning Activities: Hapkido Self Defense 
• KIN 118 Beginning Activities: Self Defense - Women 
• KIN 128 Beginning Activities: Jogging 
• KIN 133 Beginning Activities: Relaxation 
• KIN 141 Beginning Activities: Aerobic Condition 
• KIN 145 Beginning Activities: Firm and Tone 
• KIN 149 Beginning Activities: Aerobic Walking  
• KIN 212 Intermediate Activities: Fitness Training 
• KIN 265 CPR and First Aid 
• REC 360 Foundations in Recreation Therapy 

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for GE Area B6 and that may be of particular interest to biology majors. To see the complete list of courses approved for GE Area B6.

*PLEASE NOTE: Biology majors on the QUARTER catalog for the major cannot take any of the biology courses on this list to satisfy this GE requirement. However, new policy allows students on the SEMESTER catalog for the major to take any of the courses on the list below including the biology courses.

• ANTH 310 Evolutionary Biology of Humans 
• ANTH 311 Human Fossil Record 
• *BIOL 333 Humans and Sex (Diversity Overlay)
• *BIOL 334 Humans and the Living Planet (Sustainability Overlay)
• *BIOL 335 Humans: Health and Disease (Social Justice Overlay)
• CHEM 301 Chemistry Connections 
• CHEM 304 Chemistry of Wine Making 
• CHEM 306 Green Chemistry and Sustainability 
• ECON 380 Managerial Economics and Business Strategy (Sustainability Overlay)
• ECON 383 Game-Theoretic Reasoning: The Science of Interactive Behavior  
• ENSC 320 The Science of Global Change (Sustainability Overlay)
• ENSC 330 Weather and the Atmosphere (Sustainability Overlay)
• ENSC 340 The Oceans (Sustainability Overlay)
• ENVT 307 Social Impact through Sustainable Solar Design (Sustainablity Overlay)
• ENVT 340 Climate Change (Sustainability Overlay)
• ENVT 445 Water and Watershed Resources 
• ENVT 447 Energy, Climate and Society (Sustainability Overlay)
• ES 308 Cultures of Habitat (Sustainability Overlay)
• GEOG 340 Climate Change (Sustainability Overlay)
• GEOG 445 Water and Watershed Resources 
• GEOG 447 Energy, Climate and Society (Sustainability Overlay)
• GEOG 450 Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 
• GEOL 310 Geology of the Western National Parks 
• GEOL 325 Volcanoes and Plate Tectonics  
• GEOL 330 Weather and the Atmosphere (Sustainability Overlay)
• GEOL 340 The Oceans  (Sustainability Overlay)
• HSC 300 Environmental Health (Sustainability Overlay)
• HSC 327 Genes and Human Health 
• HSC 435 Life Course Perspective on Health 
• INDE 390 Human Factors and Work Methods 
• KIN 461 Exercise and Well-Being 
• MATH 318 Mathematical Contributions to Modern Society 
• MATH 319 Mathematics in Art and Architecture 
• MGMT 350 Decision Science 
• PHYS 301 Physics Connections 
• PHYS 303 Biophysics  
• PHYS 304 Acoustics 
• PHYS 307 Social Impact Through Sustainable Solar Design (Sustainability Overlay)
• PHYS 308 Sustainable Energy Systems (Sustainability Overlay)
• PHYS 337 Extrasolar Planets 
• PHYS 338 The Cosmos 
• PHYS 339 Stars and Galaxies 
• PSYC 386 Stress and Coping 

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for GE Area C4 and that may be of particular interest to biology majors. To see the complete list of courses approved for GE Area C4.

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for GE Area D4 and that may be of particular interest to biology majors. To see the complete list of courses approved for GE Area D4.

• ANTH 300 Anthropology of Global Change 
• ANTH 312 Primate Behavioral Ecology 
• ANTH 334 Human Sexuality: Anthropological Perspectives 
• ANTH 372 Medical Anthropology (Diversity Overlay)
• ENVT 330 Environment, Sustainability, and Social Justice (Sustainability Overlay)
• ENVT 465 Sustainable Communities and Development (Sustainability Overlay)
• ES 306 American Indian Liberation (Social Justice Overlay)
• ES 320 The Chicano/a Movement (Social Justice Overlay)
• ES 326 Peoples of Central America (Social Justice Overlay)
• ES 327 Decolonize Your Diet (Sustainability Overlay)
• ES 347 Black Sexualities (Diversity Overlay)
• ES 364 Asian American & Pacific Islander Communities (Diversity Overlay)
• GEOG 350 California 
• GEOG 455 Sustainable Food Systems (Sustainability Overlay)
• GEOG 465 Sustainable Communities and Development (Sustainability Overlay)
• HDEV 380 Lifespan Human Development  
• HIST 382 California and the World (US-3)
• HSC 362 Environmental Health Policy 
• HSC 440 Global Health and Disability (Social Justice Overlay)
• INFO 310 Sustainability and Information Literacy (Sustainability Overlay)
• POSC 350 World Problems and Global Response 
• REC 300 Wellness Through Leisure 
• SOC 330 Environmental Sociology 
• SOC 360 Sociology of Sexualities 

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for Second Composition and that may be of particular interest to biology majors. To see the complete list of courses approved for the Second Composition requirement, click Second Composition Courses.

• ENGL 200 College Writing II 
• ENGR 200 Introduction to Engineering and Design 
• HIST 277 Science and Culture in the History of Medicine in the United States 
• PHYS 230 Physical Reasoning 

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for the Diversity (and Cultural Groups and Women) Overlay requirement and that may be of particular interest to biology majors. Please note, since the overlay requirements can be double-counted with a second GE requirement, the GE Area toward which these Diversity Overlay courses can simultaneously count are indicated in parentheses. To see the complete list of courses approved for the Diversity (or CGW) requirement, click Diversity Overlay Courses. 

*PLEASE NOTE: Biology majors on the QUARTER catalog for the major cannot take the biology course on this list to satisfy this GE requirement. However, new policy allows students on the SEMESTER catalog for the major to take any of the courses on the list below including the biology course.

• ANTH 342 Language and Sexuality (D4)
• ANTH 372 Medical Anthropology (D4)
• *BIOL 333 Humans and Sex (B6)
• DANC 331 Sex, Race, and Body Politics in Dance (C4)
• ES 244 Mixed Race Identities in the US (D1-3)
• ES 303 Debates in Contemporary Native America (C4)
• ES 321 Latinas in the US (C4)
• ES 324 Latin American Immigration (C4)
• ES 347 Black Sexualities (D4)
• ES 364 Asian American & Pacific Islander Communities (D4)
• GS 322 Navigating Success as a Sankofa Scholar II (E)
• HIST 474 Women, Gender and Rights in US History (C4)
• HIST 477 History and Trends in Nursing (C4)
• HSC 250 Health Disparities and Health Equity 
• PHIL 324 Philosophy and Sex (C4)
• PHYS 108 Astronomy of Ancient Cultures (B1)
• SOC 340 Sociology of Gender 
• SOC 350 Sociology of Immigration 
• SOC 370 Sociology of Education 
• SOC 460 Marriage and Sex 
• WOST 102 Introduction to Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies 
• WOST 301 Women and Work 
• WOST 302 Women and Families 
• WOST 303 Violence Against Women 
• WOST 402 Women’s Bodies and Health 

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for the Social Justice Overlay requirement and that may be of particular interest to biology majors. Please note, since the overlay requirements can be double-counted with a second GE requirement, the GE Area toward which these Social Justice Overlay courses can simultaneously count are indicated in parentheses. To see the complete list of courses approved for the Social Justice requirement, click Social Justice Overlay Courses. 

*PLEASE NOTE: Biology majors on the QUARTER catalog for the major cannot take the biology course on this list to satisfy this GE requirement. However, new policy allows students on the SEMESTER catalog for the major to take any of the courses on the list below including the biology course.

The courses listed below are a select list of courses that have been approved for the Sustainability Overlay requirement and that may be of particular interest to biology majors. Please note, since the overlay requirements can be double-counted with a second GE requirement, the GE Area toward which these Sustainability Overlay courses can simultaneously count are indicated in parentheses. To see the complete list of courses approved for the Sustainability requirement, click Sustainability Overlay Courses. 

*PLEASE NOTE: Biology majors on the QUARTER catalog for the major cannot take the biology course on this list to satisfy this GE requirement. However, new policy allows students on the SEMESTER catalog for the major to take any of the courses on the list below including the biology course.