Undergraduate Course Catalog 2006-2007
General Information
What makes the University of New Hampshire (UNH) a great institution? Every
day, brilliant, dedicated, inventive, hard-working people come together
to teach, learn, and discover, always with an entrepreneurial spirit
that has made many of our academic and research programs world-class.
They are motivated by passion, by a spirit of inquiry, and by a desire
to give back to their communities.
What makes UNH outstanding is that we combine the "best of both
worlds." We offer students the living and learning environment of a
small New England liberal arts college with the breadth, spirit of
discovery, and civic commitment of a land-, sea-, and space-grant
research university. This is rare among American institutions of higher
education, and students and faculty will tell you it is our greatest
asset.
The University Today
Today the University of New Hampshire is made up of dozens of academic
departments, interdisciplinary institutes, and research centers that
attract students and faculty from around the world. As state-of-the-art
facilities are built to support academic growth, and new residence and
dining halls are built to meet the growing popularity of campus life,
the University continues to rest lightly on the Durham landscape. Some
13,000 students and hundreds of faculty and staff live and work
amid the rolling hills and riverbeds of one the most beautiful campuses
in the nation.
The University of New Hampshire is strong
and highly responsive to the needs of its public mandate—one that
increasingly results in productive partnerships not only with the
state, but the region and nation. The University of today has met its
greatest expectations and stands on the threshold of unlimited
possibilities.
Look around the University today: what you see is not one, but a great
many communities brought together in the process—at once profoundly
personal and inextricably social—of discovery and engagement concerning
issues of the greatest public importance.
You see a campus in which world class research centers and
laboratories, graduate seminars, undergraduate honors classes,
service-learning projects, and student internships have mobilized the
University’s capacities for teaching, research, and partnership
building.
You see faculty and students from health and human services and liberal
arts working as part of the Carsey Institute to undertake applied and
policy research on improving the quality of family life. You see the
University's working scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and
educators engaging in the Joan and James Leitzel Center to improve
mathematics, science, and engineering education from kindergarten
through college. You see researchers come together from across the
University to undertake a ground-breaking study of the complexities of
improving the region’s air quality in the era of modern industry.
A Powerful Linking of Teaching and Research
Where the University of New Hampshire has linked teaching and research
programs with the practical realities of life, it has set the
international standard with centers and institutes whose names have
become synonymous with excellence in such fields as computer
interoperability, ocean mapping, child study and development, and
experiential education.
Such research power translates into
exceptional educational opportunities for our talented students. The
University prides itself on graduating students who have undertaken
significant research. In recent years hundreds of students, from all
disciplines, have experienced the thrill of designing their own
research projects, collaborating with faculty, and presenting their
findings in a public forum. Robust undergraduate research programs
enable students to conduct research year-round, as freshmen and
seniors, on campus and around the world.
The University’s international research opportunities program was the
first of its kind and serves as a model for others nationwide. Today
the internationalization of the University is an accomplished fact. The
study abroad program and international studies major are strong and
growing. Faculty are in demand as visiting professors at universities
around the globe (many as Fulbright Fellows), and bring their
experiences back to Durham.
Mission
UNH offers a broad array of undergraduate, professional, and research
and graduate programs. Nearly ninety percent of the full-time faculty
members hold doctoral or terminal degrees, and many have earned
national and international reputations.
The University of New Hampshire has a threefold mission: the scholarly functions of teaching, research, and public service.
Teaching.
All undergraduate programs of instruction at the University are built
on a program of general education. The objectives of general education
carry through the undergraduate subject major, as students refine and
apply their skills and discover the relationships among fields of
study. At every level, students enjoy close contact with individual
faculty members who are dedicated to research and scholarship; this is
an advantage for students, because active scholars and researchers
teach by sharing their own learning.
Research.
The activity of research embraces all the arts and sciences at the
University: it is an integral part of both undergraduate and graduate
programs. In doctoral study, and in many master’s programs, thesis
research is a primary mode of learning. As a land-, sea-, and
space-grant institution, the University of New Hampshire has a special
obligation to conduct applied research in the areas of agriculture,
marine sciences, and engineering, and to disseminate the findings to
the state and nation.
Public Service.
The University fulfills its special responsibility for the welfare of
the state through UNH Cooperative Extension, through the Office of
Outreach Education and Summer Studies, and through research and
consultation on particular needs of New Hampshire citizens. The
University is dedicated to collaborative learning inside and outside
the classroom.
The UNH Library
The UNH Library consists of the main Dimond Library, four specialized
branch libraries, an extensive government documents collection, and the
Douglas and Helena Milne Special Collections and Archives. In addition
to more than a million volumes and 6,000 periodical subscriptions, the
library has government publications, maps, sound recordings, compact
discs, video cassettes, DVDs, and manuscripts. The library offers
extensive electronic resources including indexes in a wide variety of
subject areas, databases supplying full-text periodical and newspaper
articles, and statistical data sets. Experienced librarians and staff
provide expert service to people seeking information or research
assistance.
The library is a member of the elite Boston Library
Consortium, whose members include some of the most well-known research
institutions in the nation. Through the consortium, UNH faculty,
faculty emeriti, students, and staff at both the Durham and Manchester
campuses have full access to a combined collection of more than 31
million volumes via interlibrary loan and on-site visits to member
libraries.
The expanded and completely renovated Dimond Library combines the best
traditions of the 19th century with the information access of the 21st.
It offers three grand reading rooms, seating for 1,200 students and
other researchers, computer workstations on every floor, numerous laptop
computer hookups throughout the building, wireless access, and 21 miles
of shelving for books.
The four branch libraries specialize in science, mathematics, and
engineering. The Biological Sciences Library is located in Kendall
Hall, the Chemistry Library is in Parsons Hall, the
Engineering/Mathematics/Computer Science Library is in New Hampshire
Hall (rear entrance), and the Physics Library is in DeMeritt Hall. All
branches have reserve materials, reference collections, circulating
collections, periodicals, and electronic resources. All branch
materials are indicated in the UNH Library catalog.
For more information on Dimond and the branch libraries, visit www.library.unh.edu.
The Campus
The home of the main campus of the University is Durham—one of the
oldest towns in northern New England—near the picturesque seacoast of
New Hampshire. The 200-acre campus is surrounded by more than 2,400
acres of fields, farms, and woodlands owned by the University. A stream
flowing through a large wooded area in the middle of campus enhances
natural open space among the buildings. College Woods, on the edge of
campus, includes five miles of well-kept paths through 260 acres of
forest.
During the last decade, major building and
renovation projects have revitalized the UNH campus while maintaining
its traditions. In 2002, the University celebrated the completion of
Mills Hall, its newest and very beautiful residence hall; 2003 saw
completion of the new Holloway Dining Commons. Renovations of Murkland
and Congreve Halls have also been completed. The soon-to-be-completed
Kingsbury Hall renovation and expansion project will give science
students new project space, a modern lab wing, and high-tech classrooms.
In 2004, UNH was named one of the Top 25 Most
Entrepreneurial Colleges by The Princeton Review and Forbes.com,
ranking 10th in the nation.
According to The Princeton Review, while there are
more than 2,000 colleges in the United States, few concentrate on
raising the next generation of successful entrepreneurs. Schools named
to the Top 25 show a commitment to creating programs to encourage young
entrepreneurs on campus, as well as looking at how their alumni have
fared in the real world.
UNH's ranking was based on the efforts of the
Whittemore School of Business and Economics. UNH was the only public
university in the Northeast to make the top 10.
Accreditation
The University of New Hampshire is accredited by the New England
Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc., which accredits schools and
colleges in the six New England states. Accreditation by the
association indicates that the institution has been carefully evaluated
and found to meet standards agreed upon by qualified educators.
Specialized programs of study are also accredited by various
professional organizations.
All degree programs at the University are approved
for veterans’ educational benefits. Individuals are encouraged to
contact the veterans coordinator in Stoke Hall about specific questions.
The University supports the efforts of secondary
school officials and governing bodies to have their schools achieve
regional accredited status to provide reliable assurance of the quality
of the educational preparation of its applicants for admission.
