General Education Breadth Requirements

All UC bachelor degrees include general education/breadth requirements. Generally these requirements include both lower- and upper-division coursework. You can use community college courses to satisfy lower-division GE/Breadth requirements prior to transfer.

All UC campuses recommend, and depending on your major, some require that you complete GE/Breadth coursework while attending the community college. You have two options for completing GE/Breadth coursework before transfer:

1. Community colleges courses that are applicable to a GE/Breadth pattern at the UC campus you will attend
   
   The campus GE/Breadth patterns for transfer students are the same as those for students who enrolled at UC as freshmen. If you follow a campus GE/Breadth pattern, you must complete courses that are specified in the GE/Breadth articulation agreements in ASSIST.


2. Community college courses that are applicable to IGETC
   
   IGETC (Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum) is a pattern of lower-division GE requirements that is accepted at all UC and CSU campuses. The entire IGETC pattern must be completed prior to transfer. You can see the specific community college courses that fulfill IGETC at ASSIST.

While IGETC is popular with transfer students, it may not be the best choice for you. Depending on your major, it may be best to follow the UC campus GE pattern. The UC Transfer Preparation Paths on this site and the ASSIST Exploring Majors feature include information about the specific UC majors that do and do not recommend IGETC.