For students starting in 2025
General Education is designed to complement and broaden your education, no matter what you are studying. There are important changes for students commencing their undergraduate study in 2025.
What it is all about
By taking General Education courses outside of your main field of study you will be exposed to new ideas, meet students and researchers from other parts of the University, and acquire a broader range of skills and understanding to complement your specialist knowledge.
Courses in the programme are designed to:
- Give you a greater understanding of New Zealand and its place in the world
- Give you an opportunity to mix with students from different disciplines
- Expose you to cross-disciplinary research.
What you need to do
If you are studying for an undergraduate degree with us, you will most likely need to complete one General Education courses to be eligible to graduate.
| Programme | General Education requirements |
|---|---|
|
Two General Education courses |
|
One General Education course |
|
General Education courses are not required or available for these degrees |
What courses can I take?
Courses in the General Education programme are organised into six schedules. The courses available to you will depend on the degree(s) for which you are enrolled. Courses in the Open schedule are available to all students. The other five schedules are faculty-specific. You can choose your General Education course/s from the Open Schedule, or your faculty schedule, or for programmes where you can take two General Education courses select from both schedules.
General Education courses are identified either by a:
- "TD" prefix in their course code; for example, TDENVF; or
- "G" suffix in their course code, for example: HISTORY 103G. Some courses have a non-General Education counterpart e.g. PHIL 105 and PHIL 105G. Make sure you enrol in the G-code version if you intend using the course to meet your General Education requirement. If you have enrolled in the wrong version and can't change this contact your faculty nearest Student Hub for assistance.
Exemptions
- You are exempt from General Education requirements if you have previously completed an undergraduate degree at another tertiary institution.
- If you transfer to the University of Auckland after completing the equivalent of 120 University of Auckland points at another teritiary institution (i.e., after a year of full-time study in degree-level courses) you will only need to complete one General Education course.
- If you transfer to the University of Auckland after completing the equivalent of 240 UoA points at another tertiary institution (ie after two years of full-time study in degree-level courses) you are exempt from General Education.
- If you change your degree after completing part or all of your General Education requirements, and the General Education courses you have already passed are not in schedule for your new programme, you can apply for a concession to re-assign the General Education course to the new degree provided you do not intend taking any further courses in that subject. Consult your nearest Student Hub to discuss your options.
- If you undertake an approved overseas exchange programme of one full-time semester, equivalent to 50 points or more, you will be eligible for a 15 point General Education exemption.
For advice, if you think you are eligible for an exemption from General Education, please visit your nearest Student Hub.
If you receive an exemption for your General Education courses, you will still need to complete the points requirements for your programme.
This means that you will fill the space that this creates using other courses available to your degree.