CSU GE, IGETC & LDTP Course Requirements
Extrapolated from the California State University Admissions Handbook 2008-2009
 

CSU GE COURSES

Transfer: General Education Courses:
The CSU provides California Community College (CCC) transfers with four options for fulfilling CSU lower division general education requirements. Students should review the four programs described below, and with the help of a college counselor determine which option best meets their educational objective.

Option 1: CSU General Education-Breadth (GE-Breadth) Requirements:
Up to 39 of the 48 GE-Breadth semester units required can be transferred from and certified by a California Community College or other certifying institution. It is strongly recommended that students complete the 39 semester units of GE-Breadth courses as part of their minimum 60 semester units requirements for transfer as an upper division transfer student.

General Education Breath (GE-Breadth) Areas (may be completed separately):
Area A – Communication in the English Language (written as well as oral) and Critical Thinking (at least 9 semester
             units)
Area B – Physical Universe and Its Life Forms (at least 12 semester units including quantitative reasoning)
Area C – Arts, Literature, Philosophy, and Foreign Language (at least 12 semester units)
Area D – Social, Political, and Economic Institutions (at least 12 semester units)
Area E – Lifelong Understanding and Self-Development (at least 3 semester units)

Area and Full Certification:
Students can request GE certification from the California Community College where the greatest number of transferable courses has been completed. If students have completed some but not all of the GE areas, they can request “Subject-area Certification.” Students who have completed all the requirements for each area (Area A-E) can request to become fully-certified. “Certification” refers to official certification by a CCC that a transfer student has completed courses fulfilling CSU GE requirements. This status indicates that the student has completed all lower division CSU GE course requirements while at the community college campus.

Students who are fully certified with 39 semester units of lower division GE-Breadth units cannot be held to any additional lower division GE courses at the CSU campus. Upon enrollment, all CCC transfer students will be required to complete a minimum of 9 semester (12 quarter) units of upper division GE work.  Without certification, transfer students may be held to the general education pattern developed for CSU students, which may vary greatly from CCC General Education patterns.

Note: A few majors, such as nursing, engineering, science, and other technical majors, recommend students complete very specific coursework to meet general education. Students should see an advisor/counselor and consult with the CSU campus to which they intend to apply to best determine which courses should be completed prior to transfer for these majors.

Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC)

California Community College transfers can use the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) to fulfill all lower division general education requirements at any CSU campus or many University of California (UC) campuses. This curriculum provides transfer students with an alternative to the CSU General Education-Breadth requirements and allows them to meet lower division general education requirements for both the CSU and the UC.

The IGETC requires completion of a minimum of 37 semester or 56 quarter units of lower division work with a C grade or better in each course (C- is not an acceptable grade in IGETC). The IGETC areas are as follows:

Area 1 - English Communication
Three courses, one in English composition, one in critical thinking, and one in oral communication (at least 9 semester units).
Area 2 - Mathematical Concepts and Quantitative Reasoning
One course (at least 3 semester units)

Area 3 - Arts and Humanities
At least three courses, with at least one from the arts and one from the humanities (at least 9 semester units).

Area 4 - Social and Behavioral Sciences
At least three courses from at least two different disciplines or an interdisciplinary sequence (at least 9 semester units).

Area 5 - Physical and Biological Sciences
Two courses, one physical science and one biological science, at least one must include a laboratory (at least 7 semester units).

The course requirements for all areas of IGETC are expected to be completed and certified by a California Community College to be accepted by the CSU or the UC prior to transfer (see Certification section which follows). Students who have completed the IGETC requirements and have their courses certified will be required to complete at least 9 semester units of upper division general education work after transferring to a CSU campus.

Because the IGETC is accepted by both the CSU and UC, it is an excellent option for students who are undecided about the system to which they plan to transfer. If students are enrolled in a major that requires extensive lower division preparation, they may not be able to complete all IGETC requirements prior to transfer. When using the IGETC, partial certification is generally not allowed.

Students should consult with a counselor to determine which general education program is most appropriate.

Meet the General Education Requirements as Defined by the CSU Campus
Transfer students can complete admission requirements and have the selected CSU campus evaluate the courses completed against CSU campus general education requirements. Close interaction with an advisor and use of www.assist.org to determine transferability of courses are often necessary when using this option.
 

Lower Division Transfer Program (LDTP)
This program is not yet fully operational and is currently being reviewed.

The Lower-Division Transfer Pattern (LDTP) by major program presents potential transfer students with an efficient path to a bachelor’s degree from the CSU. The LDTP project provides a set of academic “road maps” for students to follow that will ensure appropriate academic preparation and that will decrease time to graduation once these students enter the CSU.

LDTPs for many of the most popular CSU majors have been developed. These academic “road maps” may serve as advising tools for all CCC students as they prepare to enter the CSU system. Once the course articulation for the LDTP project is fully implemented, these patterns will show CCC students which courses at their respective CCC they should complete to develop a good foundation for upper-division study in the major and to satisfy general education and other requirements for graduation from a major at a particular CSU.

Each LDTP includes a statewide component and a campus-specific component. A student who identifies a major and follows the statewide component will complete a set of courses that can advance the student toward graduation at any CSU campus offering the major. Students throughout the state will be able to complete about three-fourths of their lower-division study knowing that their preparation is acceptable at the widest possible selection of CSU campuses because of the statewide articulation that will occur with LDTP.

The statewide LDTP transfer pattern – the part of the road map that will be common and acceptable for students transferring to any CSU campus offering the major – includes at least 45 semester units and will ordinarily have the following components:
    1. C Completion of CSU General Education-Breadth requirements (39 semester units) or the Intersegmental General
        Education Transfer Curriculum (37 semester units);
    2. C Completion of the graduation requirements in United States History, Constitution, and American Ideals (0 to 6
        units); and
    3. C Completion of a statewide major preparation pattern of 6 or more semester units, to the extent such courses
        satisfy requirements for the major.

The campus-specific LDTP transfer pattern will typically include:
    1. Completion of any additional campus-specific major preparation requirements; and
    2. C Completion of elective courses.
The campus-specific transfer pattern may also include additional courses that the campus requires of all its undergraduate students. Together, the statewide and campus-specific transfer patterns for a major will total at least 60 units and no more than 70 units.

The LDTP provides an option – in addition to those already in place – to support the transfer process. This program does not replace any of the current transfer paths to the CSU. If a CCC student knows at the outset which CSU campus he or she wants to attend and which major he or she wants to pursue, the traditional major preparation articulation patterns and transfer agreements will continue to serve such a student very