What goes into it?
ESC Policy states the following:
The rationale essay is the student’s explanation of the purposes, design and significance of her/his individual degree plan. It is likely that most students will develop their rationale early in their degree studies. Therefore, the rationale should be perceived as a planning (or prospective) document. In the rationale, each student:
- outlines her/his own educational and professional experience, goals, and learning needs,
- discusses how the proposed degree plan reflects her/his own background and purposes,
- discusses how the degree plan reflects the educational expectations of the college (i.e., SUNY general education requirements, level and breadth of learning, and integration and progression of learning),
- discusses how the student's learning reflects, or may depart from, the Empire State College Area of Study and concentration guidelines for the degree, and
- reflects the student's awareness of external professional expectations, where applicable.