EDUCATIONAL PLANNING

(Don’t Take Anything You Don’t Need)

Structure of a College Degree

(Associate’s and Bachelor’s)

You will be filling out Part I of the Ed Plan Form while you read this mini-lecture.

There are two versions of the form in a link in this unit, “Ed Plan Forms (Fill-In & PDF). Select ONE to complete.

What Are the Requirements for ANYCollege Degree?

There are FOUR categories of requirements to keep in mind:

  1. Units
  2. Major courses
  3. General Education
  4. Electives.

We will cover each category in detail. Pay close attention to what each category means:

“Units”

Any degree requires a certain number of units. If you don’t complete that number of units, you won’t be awarded the degree.

  • For an Associate’s Degree at SMC, you will need 60 (or more is okay, but not less).
  • For a Bachelor’s degree, you typically need 120 semester units or more, depending on the school and major.
  • You can see that the Associate’s Degree is about HALF the requirements of a Bachelor’s degree.
  • For the Associate’s Degree, you take:
  • “Lower division” classes—freshman and sophomore level classes.
  • For the Bachelor’s Degree, you take:
  • “Lower division” (freshman and sophomore level) AND
  • “Upper division” (junior and senior level) classes.

“Major”

The major that you select will become your area of specialty. You will take the most courses in this area, so you will become an expert in it.

An Associate’s Degree AND Bachelor’s degree BOTH have major requirements.

“General Education”

General Education is a variety ofrequired courses meant to “round out” your education and make you the “truly educated, ” well-rounded college graduate.

So, even though you’re a History major, you will still take science, English and maybe even art history courses as an example.

Some students think that GE is busy work. However, GE courses can open your mind and teach you about many ways to view and understand the world.

Example: When an earthquake happens, from general education, youmay understand what happened inside the earth (Geology); what people might be feeling in a crisis (Psychology); the behavior of people together (Sociology); or the economic or political implications of a crisis (Economics, Political Science).

After you finish your degree, chances are you’ll surprise yourself when you say every so often, “Hey! I learned about that in college!” I know I certainly do!

“Electives”

Electives can be VERY important!

Electives are courses that you take for units that are NOT major or GE requirements.

Students often need electives to complete the unit requirement if the major and GE don’t add up to the required number of units for the degree.

Example:

  • Maria is working on her AA degree, which requires 60 units.
  • She has 42 units completed with her major AND GE
  • She still needs 18 units of electives—otherwise she won’t get her degree!
  • So, she can take ANYTHING for elective units, as long as they are considered AA-level courses.

Or, you may take elective units to learn about areas that you’re interested in. Or, you may take a major course and then change majors. Those units may become elective units.

Next, go back to the list of goals and read the next mini-lecture according to your educational goal.