Volunteer Core
The Volunteer Core program focuses on Effective Communication, Expanded Perspectives, and Engaged Inquiries.
The design of the University of Tennessee’s Volunteer Core program enables students to move among colleges within the university or another institution of higher learning to fulfill the requirements. Although Volunteer Core provides students with the foundational knowledge and skills required for life in and beyond college, this information is specific neither to UT nor to a particular major or career path. Learn more about the Volunteer Core curriculum.
The Volunteer Core requirements for Tickle College of Engineering students for each of the Volunteer Core areas are listed below.
Requirements: Two Courses
Good writing skills enable students to create and share ideas, investigate and describe values, and record and explain discoveries—all skills that are necessary for professional success and personal fulfillment. Students must also be able to write correctly and engage in a productive writing process that includes drafting, feedback, and revision. They also must be able to locate relevant information, evaluate its usefulness and quality, and incorporate it logically and ethically to support ideas and claims for different audiences and purposes.
Major: All Engineering Majors/Honors/Concentrations/5 year BS/MS
Course: English 101-102; 112; 298; or 131-132
Requirements: One Course
Upon completion of the first-year composition requirement, students must take one other approved writing intensive (WC) course. The WC course can be within the student’s major or an elective.
Engineering Major: Aerospace
Course: AE 449; EF 437
Biomedical
BME 449; EF 437; Philosophy 345
Biosystems
English 360; EF 437
Chemical
CBE 415; EF 437
Civil
CE 205; EF 437
Computer Engr.
ECE 395; EF 437
Computer Sci.
COSC 395; English 355 or 360; EF 437
Electrical
ECE 395; EF 437
Industrial
IE 250; EF 437
Materials
MSE 304; EF 437
Mechanical
ME 449; EF 437
Nuclear
NE 401; EF 437
Requirements: One Course
Oral communication skills enable students to interact successfully with others, share ideas, and present and explain discoveries, all of which are necessary for professional success and personal fulfillment. Students should be able to speak in an informative and/or convincing manner to other individuals and to groups, both small and large. Students should be able to locate relevant information, evaluate its usefulness and quality, and incorporate the information logically and ethically in oral communication.
Engineering Major: Aerospace
Course: AE 450 (12-1-2021 revise and resubmit); EF 437
Biomedical
AE 450 (12-1-2021 revise and resubmit); EF 437
Biosystems
BSE 404; EF 437
Chemical
CBE 320; EF 437
Civil
CE 205; EF 437
Computer Engr.
ECE 401; EF 437
Computer Sci.
COSC 401; EF 437
Electrical
ECE 401; EF 437
Industrial
IE 201; EF 437
Materials
MSE 220; EF 437
Mechanical
ME 450 (12-1-2021 revise and resubmit); EF 437
Nuclear
NE 471; EF 437
Requirements: One Course
Effectively communicating ideas within a particular discipline or profession is a fundamental skill that all students should acquire and demonstrate. Applied Oral Communication (AOC) courses will expand upon OC course skills to promote understanding of and engagement with targeted audiences and stakeholders in a variety of communication contexts, such as: interpersonal, small group, and team communication; nonverbal and cross-cultural communication; communication of discipline-specific or professional information both within and outside the discipline or profession; conversational communication in formal and informal settings; and active listening.
Engineering Major: Aerospace
Course: AE 460; EF 438
Biomedical
BME 460; EF 438
Biosystems
BSE 403; EF 438
Chemical
CBE 488 or 490; EF 438
Civil
CE 399/399S; EF 438
Computer Engr.
ECE 402; EF 438
Computer Sci.
COSC 402; EF 438
Electrical
ECE 402; EF 438
Industrial
IE 422; EF 438
Materials
MSE 489; EF 438
Mechanical
ME 460; EF 438
Nuclear
NE 472; EF 438
Requirements: Three Credit Hours
What does it mean to be human? In attempting to answer this question, people have produced—and continue to produce—culturally and historically significant works. The study and critical interpretation of such works and their creators enriches students’ lives and helps students understand the human condition, which is essential to our flourishing in an increasingly global community.
Engineering Majors: All Engineering Majors/Honors/Concentrations/5 year BS/MS
Course: Choose from approved AH list in Undergraduate Catalog.
Biosystems
Philosophy 244
Requirements: Two Courses
Quantitative and statistical evidence and mathematical and logical reasoning often play critical roles in building arguments and claims to support opinions and actions. Students should therefore possess the mathematical and quantitative skills needed to evaluate such arguments and claims. Students should be able to recognize the quantitative dimensions of questions and issues they will encounter in their professional and personal lives. They also should be able to use mathematical and logical reasoning to formulate and solve problems.
Engineering Majors: All Engineering Majors/Honors/Concentrations/5 year BS/MS
Course: Math 132; Math 141-142; Math 147-148
Requirements: Two Courses, one must have lab included
Over time, advances in science and technology have shaped our understanding of the world and our place in it. All students should be familiar with the fundamental principles and chief discoveries of one or more scientific disciplines, should understand the role and relevance of science in contemporary society, and should be able to use scientific knowledge and methods to answer questions about natural phenomena and analyze contemporary issues.
Engineering Majors: All Engineering Majors/Honors/Concentrations/5 year BS/MS
Course: Chemistry 122/123 or 128; EF 152 or 158
Computer Science
EF152 or 158 ; Biology 101 or 150; Chemistry 102/103 or 122/123 or 128 or Physics 231
Requirements: Three credit hours
Courses in the International Focus area of the Global Citizenship category develop students’ knowledge of international cultures. Courses will help students develop an understanding of historical influences and contemporary dynamics that shape the experiences of those living outside the United States.
Engineering Majors: All Engineering Majors/Honors/Concentrations/5 year BS/MS
Course: Choose from approved GCI list in Undergraduate Catalog.
Requirements: Three credit hours
Courses in the U.S. Focus area of the Global Citizenship category develop students’ appreciation of the variety and realities of the “American experience,” taking into consideration categories of difference, such as social class, disability, ethnicity, gender, human geography, language, race, religion, and sexual orientation. Courses will help students develop an understanding of the transnational, historical, and contemporary forces that affect American society, in order to foster students’ awareness of their own identities and responsibilities in a deeply pluralistic nation and globally intertwined world.
Engineering Majors: All Engineering Majors/Honors/Concentrations/5 year BS/MS
Course: Choose from approved GCUS list in Undergraduate Catalog.
Requirements: Six credit hours
These electives offer students choice and flexibility to choose specific areas and courses in the arts & humanities, applied arts & humanities, social sciences, and / or global citizenship to explore in greater depth.
Engineering Majors: All Engineering Majors/Honors/Concentrations/5 year BS/MS
Course: Choose from approved AH, AAH, GCI, GCUS, SS lists in Undergraduate Catalog.
Requirements: Nine credit hours; Two courses; Two subject areas
Truly well-educated citizens should be ready to lead and solve problems, building on their chosen fields of study and personal interests and strengths. Students will benefit from experiences that broaden, extend, apply, and integrate prior learning and promote effective collaboration and self-awareness. In all Engaged Inquiries courses, students will produce an investigative, creative, or practical work relevant to the course topic.
Engineering Majors: Aerospace
Course: EF 141-142; EF 151-152; EF 157-158; and AE 345
Biomedical
EF 141-142; EF 151-152; EF 157-158; and BME 345
Biosystems
EF 141-142; EF 151-152; EF 157-158; and BSE 402
Chemical
EF 141-142; EF 151-152; EF 157-158; and CBE 415
Civil
EF 141-142; EF 151-152; EF 157-158; and CE 399/399S
Computer Engr.
EF 141-142; EF 151-152; EF 157-158; and students choose from approved EI List in Undergraduate Catalog
Computer Sci.
EF 141-142; EF 151-152; EF 157-158; and students choose from approved EI list in Undergraduate Catalog
Electrical
EF 141-142; EF 151-152; EF 157-158; and students choose from approved EI list in Undergraduate Catalog
Industrial
EF 141-142; EF 151-152; EF 157-158; and IE 404
Materials
EF 141-142; EF 151-152; EF 157-158; and MSE 489
Mechanical
EF 141-142; EF 151-152; EF 157-158; and ME 345
Nuclear
EF 141-142; EF 151-152; EF 157-158; and NE 472
Check back later in the spring semester when the Undergraduate Catalog has been updated to learn more about which courses are approved in each of the Volunteer Core areas.
Review the latest updates to the curriculum for your major.
Engineering Advising Office
160 Zeanah Engineering Complex
Knoxville, TN 37996
Phone: 865-974-4008
Email: engradvising@utk.edu