What is IGETC? Frequently Asked Questions and Answers

The Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) is a series of courses that prospective transfer students attending California community colleges (CCC) may complete to satisfy the lower-division breadth/general education requirements at both the University of California (UC) and the California State University (CSU). Many independent/private and out-of- state colleges and universities will also accept the IGETC.

Students with a post-secondary school record who wish to pursue IGETC must meet the definition of California community college transfer applicants. They must:

  • Complete at least 30 semester (45 quarter) UC-transferable units at one or more California community colleges.
  • Have attended, immediately before admission to a UC campus, a California community college (excluding summer sessions).

Students have the option of completing IGETC at their community college or the specific lower-division breadth/general education requirements of the UC school or college at the campus they plan to attend.

Students Who May Use the IGETC

Completion of the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) will permit a student to transfer from a California Community College to a California State University (CSU) or University of California (UC) campus generally without the need, after transfer, to take additional lower-division, general education courses to satisfy campus general education requirements. It is strongly recommended that students complete IGETC prior to transfer. Advantages of completing IGETC include more flexibility in class selection at the university and timely progress to degree completion. All UC and CSU campuses will accept the completed IGETC to satisfy all lower-division general education requirements. However, individual colleges or majors within a CSU or UC campus may not accept IGETC for meeting general
education. A list of those UC colleges and majors is found in the document https://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/counselors/files/quick-reference.pdf.

Note: Students transferring to a CSU with a completed IGETC will still need to complete 9 semester units of upper-division general education (GE) after transfer and may be held to other campus specific graduation requirements in addition to general education and major coursework. CSU students who transfer with the IGETC for STEM will need to complete 6  semester units of lower-division GE and 9 units of upper-division GE after transfer. UC students who transfer with  the  IGETC for STEM will need to complete 6 semester units of lower-division GE and Area 6A (LOTE) after transfer.

IGETC and Other Lower-division General Education Options

Completion of the IGETC is not an admission requirement or admission guarantee for transfer to CSU or UC, nor is it the only way to fulfill the lower-division general education requirements for CSU or UC prior to transfer. Engineering students and students completing majors that have high lower-division unit requirements are advised to focus on completing the pre-major requirements while meeting minimum admission requirements.
Students may also choose to complete coursework to meet the campus general education requirements of the university that they plan to attend. Depending on a student's major, the student may find it advantageous to take courses fulfilling CSU's general education requirements or those of the UC campus or college to which the student plans to transfer.

Students transferring to a CSU campus may choose to use the CSU GE-Breadth pattern in lieu of IGETC. Students may elect the GE pattern (GE-Breadth or IGETC) for certification at the time of transfer because nearly all IGETC coursework is embedded in the CSU GE-Breadth pattern.

Students Who Are Eligible to Use IGETC

IGETC was developed by the Academic Senates of the CCC, UC, and CSU systems for use by CCC transfer students. A student may be IGETC certified if they have completed coursework at a California Community College(s) without regard to current enrollment status or number of units accrued at a CCC.

Students who enroll at a UC or CSU campus, then leave and attend a community college, and subsequently return to a different UC or CSU campus, may use the IGETC.

Students Who Are Not Eligible to Use IGETC

Students who initially enroll at a UC campus, then leave and attend a community college, and subsequently return to the same campus are considered "readmits" by the UC. Such students cannot use the IGETC. CSU does not have a system-wide policy that addresses this issue. Questions regarding the use of IGETC for a student who has recently been enrolled at a CSU should be directed to the specific campus the student wishes to attend.

Which Types of Students Should Follow IGETC

IGETC is most helpful to students who want to keep their options open - specifically, those who know they want to transfer but haven't yet decided upon a particular institution, campus or major.

Which Types of Students Should NOT Follow IGETC

Students who intend to transfer into majors that require extensive lower-division preparation, such as engineering or the physical and natural sciences, should concentrate on completing the many prerequisites for the major that the college screens for to determine eligibility for admission.

Is Completion of IGETC an Admission Requirement?

IGETC is not an admission requirement. Completing it does not guarantee admission to the campus or program of choice. However, completing the lower-division breadth/general education requirements - whether through IGETC or the campus-specific requirements - may be considered by the campus in selecting among qualified applicants. NOTE: UC Berkeley’s College of Letters and Science requires full completion of the IGETC pattern as a selection criterion for admission into the College.

IGETC for STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics)

Students Who Are Eligible to Use IGETC for STEM Majors

Students who are preparing for a major in science, technology, engineering or mathematics.  IGETC for STEM Majors is applicable only to students earning an associate degree for transfer (ADT) in Biology or Chemistry.

IGETC for STEM certification

Complete the following courses before transfer:

  • All courses in Areas 1 (except 1C for UC-bound students), 2, and 5 of the traditional IGETC; and
  • One course in Area 3A, one course in Area 3B, and two courses from two different disciplines in Area 4.

Complete the following courses after transfer:

  • One remaining lower-division general education course in either Area 3A or Area 3B;
  • One remaining lower-division general education course in Area 4;* and
  • One course in Area 6 for UC-bound students who have not satisfied it through
    proficiency.*

       *These deferred lower division courses must be replaced with calculus and/or science courses required by the major before transfer.

For CSU

If any specific AS-T degree allows IGETC for STEM Majors as its general education pattern, the specific courses that should replace the deferred lower division general education courses may be indicated on the Transfer Model Curriculum (TMC) for that discipline.

For UC

UC will accept IGETC for STEM if the UC school/college/major program to which the student transfers accepts partial IGETC certification. For information on the IGETC acceptance practices for each UC school/college/major program, see:
https://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/transfer/general-education-igetc/

For CSU and UC

Alternatively, STEM students may complete the traditional IGETC. However, IGETC and IGETC for STEM Majors may not be appropriate for those colleges or majors which prefer that transfer students follow a more prescribed lower-division curriculum.

Information Pertinent to both IGETC and IGETC for STEM

Minimum Grade Requirements

A minimum “C” grade is required in each college course for IGETC. A “C” is defined as a minimum of 2.0 grade points on a 4.0 scale. A “C-” grade valued at less than 2.0 grade points on a 4.0 scale cannot be used for IGETC certification. Exception: For the UC Language Other Than English requirement (Area 6A), the University of California does not count “minus” or “plus” grades for high school coursework; only the letter grade is used. In other words, a “C-” grade is counted as a “C”.

Credit/No Credit, Pass/No Pass

Courses in which a student receives a “Credit" or "Pass” grade may be certified for IGETC if the community college’s policy states that a “Credit" or "Pass” designation is equivalent to a “C” grade (2.0 grade points on a 4.0 scale) or better. It is important to keep in mind that some CSU and UC campuses may have limitations on the number of “Credit/No Credit” (“Pass/No Pass”) courses that may be used to meet degree requirements. The UC system allows a maximum of 14 semester units graded “Pass/No Pass” (Credit/No Credit) basis of the 60 transferable semester units required for admission.

There is no system-wide policy for CSU campuses. Therefore, each campus has established its own policy on limitations of courses transferred with grades of “Credit" or "Pass”. The information is updated annually and is available at the CSU Upper Division Transfer website https://www2.calstate.edu/apply/transfer/Pages/upper-division-transfer.aspx/ (Note: after arriving at this page, scroll to the bottom and select the CSU campus of interest from the drop-down menu in the center of the page).

Minimum Unit Value

A course must have a minimum unit value of 3 semester or 4 quarter units to meet the requirements for IGETC. (Laboratory courses intended to accompany lecture courses are an exception to this guideline, see Section 10.5.3 of the IGETC Standards). It is not acceptable to take three 1-unit courses to fulfill a 3-unit requirement, because as a rule three 1-unit courses will not
together provide the depth or rigor of a single 3-unit course.

Exception: 3-quarter-unit Math and English courses that satisfy IGETC Areas 1A or 2 may be applied if they are a part of a sequence, and at least two of the 3-quarter-unit sequence courses have each been completed with "C" grade (2.0 on a 4.0 scale) or higher. The course sequence must meet the rigor of IGETC.

Certification of IGETC

Completion of the IGETC will permit a student to transfer from a California Community College to a California State University (CSU) or University of California (UC) campus generally without the need, after transfer, to take additional lower-division general education courses to satisfy campus general education requirements. It is strongly recommended that students complete IGETC prior to transfer.

Advantages of completing IGETC include more flexibility in class selection at the university and timely progress to degree completion. All UC and CSU campuses will accept the completed IGETC to satisfy all lower-division general education requirements. However, individual colleges or majors within a CSU or UC campus may not accept IGETC for meeting general education. A list of those UC colleges and majors is found on the website https://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/counselors/files/quick-reference.pdf. It is the student’s responsibility to request IGETC Certification in the Counseling Office.

NOTE: Students transferring to a CSU with a completed IGETC will still need to complete 9 semester units of upper division general education and may be held to other campus specific graduation requirements outside of general education and major coursework.

Partial IGETC Certification 

Partial certification is defined as completing all but two (2) courses on the IGETC pattern. Students who do not complete IGETC before transferring will be required to satisfy the specific lower-division general education/ breadth requirements of the UC school they plan to attend. Students submitting partial IGETC certification should complete the missing requirements at either UC or a California community college as designated by their department. Students who have been granted partial IGETC certification should not return to the community college for a full certification.

NOTE: Deficiencies in IGETC Areas 1 and/or 2 may indicate a student does not meet minimum transfer admission requirements.

Who Certifies IGETC?

Students who have completed coursework at more than one California Community College (CCC) should have their coursework certified by the last California Community College they attended for a regular term (fall or spring for semester schools; fall, winter, or spring for quarter schools) prior to transfer. If a student requests certification from a California Community College that is not the last school of attendance, it is at the discretion of that community college to certify. IGETC certification will be processed without regard to current enrollment status or number of units accrued at a particular CCC.

References: IGETC Standards, Policies and Procedures 2020, Version 2.1; https://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/transfer/