Program Overview

General Education Requirements

General Education (GE) is a program of courses in the arts and sciences that provides a broad educational experience. Courses are usually introductory in nature and provide students with fundamental skills and knowledge in English, arts, humanities, mathematics, social sciences, physical and biological sciences. Both Associate and Bachelor degrees require some amount of General Education.

Types of General Education Patterns

There are several types of General Education patterns, each with its own requirements and similarities. These include:

• IGETC (Intersegmental General Education Transfer curriculum) for prospective UC and/or CSU students
• CSU GE Pattern for prospective CSU students
• Associate Degree General Education for SRJC degree-seeking students (non-transfer)

IGETC (Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum)

The IGETC is a general education plan that community college transfer students can use to fulfill lower-division general education requirements to either the CSU or UC system. IGETC is intended for students who are undecided as to where they will transfer and want to keep their options open. However, it is not advisable for all majors, especially those with extensive lower-division major preparation, such as engineering.

CSU GE Pattern

The CSU GE Pattern is a general education plan that community college transfer students can use to fulfill lower-division general education requirements to the CSU campuses (but not the UC campuses). Santa Rosa Junior College can certify that a student has completed 39 units of lower-division general education by completing this pattern of courses.

Associate Degree General Education

The Associate Degree General Education is a general education plan that is similar to, but less extensive than, the CSU or IGETC plans. Every community college has its own general education requirements. At SRJC, there are 3 options for completing this requirement.

IGETC for STEM

For UC-bound students following the IGETC for STEM pattern for the Biology AS-T Degree, it is recommended to confirm with a counselor if the UC campus of choice will accept the IGETC for STEM pattern.