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University of Florida

New Student Guide

ABOUT UF QUEST

UF Quest encourages students to explore essential questions about the human condition, society, and the planet. Instead of rote learning and standardized tests, Quest emphasizes close reading, critical thinking, and effective communication, fostering intellectual curiosity and engagement.

  • Quest 1: Explores fundamental questions about life, society, conflict, identity, and humanity’s relationship with the natural world.
  • Quest 2: Uses biological, physical, or social sciences to examine pressing issues such as structural racism, global health crises, economic disparities, and unintended effects of digital progress.

THE UF QUEST REQUIREMENT

Students entering Summer B 2021 or later must complete:

  1. Quest 1 :Typically in the first year, may count toward 3 Humanities Gen Ed credits.
  2. Quest 2: After Quest 1, typically in the second year, may count toward 3 Gen Ed credits in Social/Behavioral Sciences, Biological Sciences, or Physical Sciences.
    Some courses also fulfill the International (N) and/or Writing requirement.
    Exemptions: Students with an A.A. from a Florida public college/state university or in the Innovation Academy program.

CHOOSE YOUR QUEST 1 COURSE

After confirming their intent to enroll at UF, new students (including transfer students and students with an A.A.) need to answer a Short Questionnaire to learn whether they need to do the New Student Quest 1 Survey by May 2 (see Steps 1-3).

Answer a Short Questionnaire to find out whether you are required to take a UF Quest 1 course and need to do the New Student Quest 1 Survey. If required to take the New Student Quest 1 Survey, review the Quest 1 course descriptions before doing the survey (see Step 2).

Read the descriptions of the Quest courses and then take the survey (see Step 3).*

Complete the New Student Quest 1 Survey by May 1.* 

  • You may need to wait one business day after you have confirmed your intent to enroll at UF for your credentials to be updated. Once your credentials have been updated, you may take the survey.
  • To access the survey, you will need to login with your Gatorlink username and password. A few days after you were admitted, you received an email that prompted you to create your Gatorlink username and password (see Admitted Student Checklist). If you did not receive the email, you can request a new Gatorlink Invite.
  • In the survey, you will be asked to identify several Quest 1 courses that interest you in order to increase the odds that you are matched to one Quest 1 course. Based on your unranked preferences, we will then attempt to match you to one Quest 1 course.

*If you are unable to complete the survey by May 1, no need to worry. When you attend Preview or during Schedule Adjustment, you can look for Quest courses or wait to take a Quest course until the spring semester.

If you are a new PaCE student or student athlete, you do not take the New Student Quest 1 Survey. Instead, you will choose a Quest 1 course during Preview.

  • If you are matched to a Summer B or Fall course, the matched course will appear on your course schedule in One.UF. 
  • If you do not want to take the matched Quest 1 course or it conflicts with another course that you need to take, you may drop the matched course from your schedule during Preview and can look for another Quest 1 course during schedule adjustment or postpone taking a Quest 1 course until the spring semester.
  • If we are unable to match you to a Summer B or Fall Quest 1 course, you will see a note in One.UF that the spring semester is your designated semester to complete the UF Quest 1 requirement (see instructions). You will have the opportunity to choose a Quest 1 course when advance registration begins for the spring semester. You also have the option of checking for openings in Summer B or Fall Quest 1 courses during schedule adjustment and drop/add for those semesters.

If you could not take the survey or did not complete it by the deadline, don't worry. We got you covered!! You can either check for openings in Summer B or Fall Quest 1 courses during schedule adjustment or wait to take a Quest 1 course until the spring semester.