I’ve been told repeatedly that going to a CC for 2 years and then transferring means that within those 2 years, you just complete the general education requirements. But then I’ve also been told that if you aren’t sure what you want to major in yet, community college is good because it offers a range of classes to explore what you want to major in. And that seems a little confusing. I’m not sure what I want to major in because I’m deciding between 2 different majors. If I went to community college, am I strictly forced into just gen ed courses? I’m strongly considering a psych major. Could I take classes at the CC level that align with a psych major and transfer those credits when I transfer to a 4 year? And can I take classes related to multiple major interests, not just one, while at CC?
For many common majors, you complete general education courses and frosh/soph level courses for your major. http://www.assist.org lists the major preparation courses that you need for a given major and target UC or CSU. Examples for a student at Santa Monica College:
UCLA psychology major: http://web2.assist.org/web-assist/report.do?agreement=aa&reportPath=REPORT_2&reportScript=Rep2.pl&event=19&dir=1&sia=SMCC&ria=UCB&ia=SMCC&oia=UCB&aay=16-17&ay=16-17&dora=PSYCH
UCR psychology major: http://web2.assist.org/web-assist/report.do?agreement=aa&reportPath=REPORT_2&reportScript=Rep2.pl&event=19&dir=1&sia=SMCC&ria=UCR&ia=SMCC&oia=UCR&aay=16-17&ay=16-17&dora=PSYC
CSULB psychology major: http://web2.assist.org/web-assist/report.do?agreement=aa&reportPath=REPORT_2&reportScript=Rep2.pl&event=19&dir=1&sia=SMCC&ria=CSULB&ia=SMCC&oia=CSULB&aay=16-17&ay=16-17&dora=PSYCH
CSULA psychology major: http://web2.assist.org/web-assist/report.do?agreement=aa&reportPath=REPORT_2&reportScript=Rep2.pl&event=19&dir=1&sia=SMCC&ria=CSULA&ia=SMCC&oia=CSULA&aay=16-17&ay=16-17&dora=PSY
Community college in California is inexpensive for California residents, and does not put the student on as strict of a clock in terms of needing to declare a major as quickly. This gives the undecided student more time to decide, since extra semesters at community college are less costly than extra semesters at a four year school.
Yes. As noted above, see http://www.assist.org for courses that you need to take for your intended major(s).
Yes. Note that if you select your courses carefully, the courses you take to prepare for your possible majors may also fulfill general education categories.
Thank you so much! These links are all very helpful! I’m also toying with the idea of possibly double majoring. Would I I need to complete the major prep coursework for both majors prior to transferring to a 4 year, or can I do the coursework for a second major after I have already transferred?
It is best to complete as much of the major preparation course work as you can before transfer; otherwise, you will need to “catch up” after transfer, potentially delaying graduation (which is more expensive if the delay is while you are at the four year school).
Depending on the school, you may not be allowed to double major unless you complete the prerequisites at the CC due to unit caps and graduation expectations. I know this to be true for the UCs but perhaps the CSUs as well.
I majored in math at CC and got my AS degree.
All those math credits, as well as the gen ed credits, transferred to my 4 year university, and counted towards my BS in Secondary Math Education.
You can take intro courses in both areas of interest, as long as they are mainstream enough to be offered at community college. You can do a psych AA and take electives in your other area of interest, or vice versa if there’s a major offered in the other subject. Just be aware that there’s a limit to how many “extra” classes beyond the AA requirements you can transfer. At a semester school, you need 60 credits for the AA, and the max you can transfer is 70 credits… so that’s three additional classes at the most.
The other thing you can do is take UC or CSU classes in the summers when enrollment is open, in addition to your CC GE and major-subject classes.
Although UCs will only accept 70 credit units of lower division transfer credit, all courses taken still count for subject credit (e.g. prerequisites for majors, general education requirements). I.e. additional community college courses beyond 70 credit units will not bring the transfer student closer to bachelor’s degree graduation, but can allow him/her to fulfill more requirements for a second major.
Interesting, @ucbalumnus - is the same true for CSU’s?
CSU campus and community college web sites indicates that all courses do count for subject credit, even if they do not add to transferable credit units because the student already has 70.
Example: https://www.csun.edu/admissions-records/transfer-course-information
Interestinggg…
My brain is hurting a little, trying to comprehend how a course can “become part of your cumulative GPA” without having credits assigned to it… the denominator for the GPA calculation is different from the total credits earned?
(Also, the fact that the cc counselor who’s supposed to be advising my nephew gets paid six figures and evidently doesn’t understand any of these things is grinding my gears just a bit… when I figure out how to give you the cut of her salary you deserve, @ucbalumnus , I will let you know.)