During that period, faculty will test and consider various educational innovations before establishing the most successful initiatives as part of a new curriculum for all undergraduates. Academic departments and interdisciplinary programs will be responsible for devising suitable venues for these projects in which majors can learn firsthand how to advance the boundaries of knowledge. We're a research university, not just a liberal arts college. One reason to come to a place like Penn is to be able to have research be part of the undergraduate curriculum. Carrying out a research project extends and deepens the educational experience by allowing students to use the theory derived from reading and lectures to solve problems.
Research really makes it all come alive, and students find it enormously satisfying.
Besides research, an important innovation of the pilot curriculum is a reconfiguration of general education. The pilot's general requirement consists of only four courses, which must be taken during the first four semesters. The new courses will approach specific topics through a number of disciplines in the humanities and the social and natural sciences, often highlighting conflicts among cultural or disciplinary perspectives. Curriculum reform carries widespread benefits across the University, with salutary effects for faculty as well as undergraduates. The last major revision of the College's degree requirements took place 13 years ago.