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2024-2025 California State University General Education Requirements

Folsom Lake College may certify a total of 39 units of lower-division general education. Students are encouraged to complete lower-division major requirements as part of the 60 units required for transfer. These requirements can be found at assist.org.

It is important to meet with a counselor in selecting courses to determine the most appropriate courses to take depending on the transfer institution and major. Students should request certification of their California State University (CSU) General Education (GE) before transferring.

Courses listed in more than one area can only be used in one area for certification, except courses listed in Area B. Courses with the same designator and number at other Los Rios Colleges may have different CSU GE approvals. Consult with a counselor for more information.

A. English Language Communication and Critical Thinking

Choose one course (three units minimum) from each area for a minimum of nine units.
Area Courses
A1 Oral Communication COMM 301, 311, 331, 361
A2 Written Communication ENGWR 300, 480; ESLW 340
A3 Critical Thinking COMM 311, 315; ENGRD 310; ENGWR 301, 302, 481, 482; PHIL 300, 320, 325

B. Scientific Inquiry and Quantitative Reasoning

Choose one course from each area for a minimum of nine units. Courses in area B3 may also be used in areas B1 or B2 where appropriate. Related lecture courses must be completed prior to or concurrently with lab courses.
Area Courses
B1 Physical Science ASTR 300; CHEM 305, 306, 400, 401, 410, 420, 421; GEOG 300, 306; GEOL 300, 302, 305, 310, 330, 345; PHYS 310, 311, 350, 360, 411, 421, 431; PS 302
B2 Life Science ANTH 300, 303; BIOL 300, 307, 310, 323, 342, 350, 370, 400, 410, 411, 420, 430, 431, 440, 442; PSYC 312
B3 Lab ANTH 301; ASTR 400; BIOL 307, 310, 323, 370, 400, 410, 411, 420, 430, 431, 440, 442; CHEM 305, 306, 400, 401, 410, 420, 421; GEOG 301; GEOL 301, 302, 306, 311; PHYS 312, 350, 360, 411, 421, 431; PS 302; PSYC 312
B4 Quantitative Reasoning ECON 310; MATH 300, 310, 333, 335, 341, 343, 355, 356, 370, 372, 373, 375, 400, 401, 402, 410, 420; PSYC 330; STAT 300

C. Arts and Humanities

Choose one course from each area, plus an additional course from either area, for a minimum of nine units.
Area Courses
C1 Arts ART 300, 302, 304, 305, 310, 312, 320, 323, 327, 328, 370, 372, 402, 430; ARTH 300, 303, 304, 306, 307, 309, 311, 312, 318, 324, 325, 328, 330, 332, 333; COMM 305; DANCE 380; MUFHL 300, 308, 310, 311, 315#, 321, 330, 400, 401, 410; PHOTO 420;  TA 300, 302, 303, 304; TAFILM 300, 303, 304, 320
C2 Humanities ARTH 325, 333; ENGCW 400, 410; ENGLT 303, 305, 310, 311, 313, 319, 320, 321, 330, 339, 340, 341, 345, 359, 360, 370, 402; ENGWR 301, 481; FREN 401, 402, 411, 412; HIST 301, 302, 307, 308, 344, 368; HUM 300, 301, 310, 320, 325, 332, 370; MUFHL 308; PHIL 300, 310, 330, 331, 350, 352; SILA 315, 316; SPAN 401, 402, 411, 412; TA 302, 303

D. Social Sciences

Choose two courses for a minimum of six units. Students will be required to take an additional three units in their upper-division courses from a different subject area at the university to which they transfer.

Area Courses
D ADMJ 300, 302*, 320; ANTH 310, 319, 320, 323, 330, 341; BUS 330, 345; COMM 325*, 341, 351, 363; ECE 312, 314; ECON 302, 304, 307; ETHNS 300, 320, 330, 350, 360; GEOG 310, 322; HIST 301, 302, 307, 308, 310, 311, 314, 319, 331, 344, 368; JOUR 310; KINES 416#; NUTRI 310; POLS 301, 302, 310, 320; PSYC 300, 312, 320, 335, 340, 356, 368*, 370, 372, 390#; SJS 300; SOC 300, 301, 310, 321*, 341, 379; SWHS 331
  • * These courses meet CSU Sacramento's Race and Ethnicity requirement.
  • # These courses are approved for CSU GE beginning in fall 2024. See all new approvals for fall 2024.

E. Lifelong Learning and Self Development

Choose at least one course for a minimum of three units.
Area Courses
E1 COMM 321; ECE 312, 314; ENGED 320; HCD 310, 315; HEED 300, 351; INDIS 313; KINES 300; NUTRI 300, 302; PSYC 340, 356, 370, 372; SOC 310; SWHS 302, 340
E2 One unit maximum from courses with the following prefixes: DANCE, FITNS, PACT, SPORT, TMACT

F. Ethnic Studies

Area F is only for students with fall 2021 (or later) catalog rights. If you have catalog rights prior to fall 2021, then this section does not apply to you.

Choose at least one course for a minimum of three units.

Area Courses
F ETHNS 300, 320, 330, 350, 360

US History, Constitution, and American Ideals

This is a CSU graduation requirement only – it is not required for CSU general education certification. Choose option 1 or option 2. These courses can also be used to satisfy Area D.
Option Courses
Option 1 Complete HIST 310 and HIST 311
Option 2 Complete POLS 301, plus one of the following: HIST 310, 311, 331

New Approvals Effective Fall 2024

The following courses are approved for CSU GE beginning in fall 2024.
Course Number CSU Area
MUFHL 315 C1
KINES 416 D
PSYC 390 D
DANCE 362 E
DANCE 363 E
DANCE 436 E
DANCE 437 E
DANCE 438 E
DANCE 439 E
DANCE 390 E
DANCE 392 E
DANCE 393 E
DANCE 394 E
ETHNS 351 F
FITNS 393 E
FITNS 394 E
PACT 393 E
PACT 432 E

Minimum Requirements to Transfer to CSU With Junior Standing

  • Complete 60 transferable semester units. It helps to complete lower-division major requirements. These requirements can be found at assist.org.
  • Complete at least 30 semester units of CSU GE courses.
  • Have a 2.0 grade point average (GPA) in all transferable units attempted.
  • Be in good standing at the last college or university attended.
  • Complete the following CSU GE areas with a grade of "C-" or better:
    • A1 Oral Communication
    • A2 Written Communication
    • A3 Critical Thinking
    • B4 Quantitative Reasoning

Advanced Placement, College Level Examination Program, and International Baccalaureate

Advanced Placement (AP), College Level Examination Program (CLEP), and International Baccalaureate (IB) examinations are appropriate for inclusion in the GE breadth list. Learn more:

Special Notes for California State University Sacramento

  • CSU Sacramento requires three units to meet their Race and Ethnicity Graduation requirement. The following courses are approved to meet this requirement: ADMJ 302, COMM 325, PSYC 368, SOC 321, and SWHS 331. These courses can also meet CSU General Education Certification requirements.
  • Students with catalog rights of Fall 1992 or later must meet the Foreign Language Requirement. It can be met by any one of the following:
    • Completion of three years of the same foreign language in high school with a grade of "C-" or better
    • Graduation from a secondary school where the language of instruction was not English
    • Score of 3, 4, or 5 on a foreign language AP test
    • Completion of two semesters of a foreign language at a community college or university with a grade of "C-" or better

    Students pursuing a bachelor of science (BS) degree in the following majors are exempt from this requirement:
    • Business Administration: all concentrations
    • Chemistry: BS only
    • Computer Science: all concentrations
    • Engineering: all concentrations
    • Health Sciences: all concentrations
    • Kinesiology: Exercise Science concentration
    • Nursing: all concentrations
    • Public Health: all concentrations
    • Physics: BS only
    • Recreation, Parks, Tourism Administration
  • Students with catalog rights of Fall 1992 or later must complete CSU Sacramento's English 20. The following courses meet this requirement for CSU Sacramento: ENGWR 301 and 302. These courses also meet the area A3 requirement on the CSU General Education Pattern.

CSU GE for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM)

CSU GE for STEM is designed for ADT degrees that specify this pattern. The requirements for this pattern are the same as the CSU General Education/Breadth requirements with the following exceptions:

  • Area C: Students are required to take one course from the Arts (C1) and one course from the Humanities (C2) for a total of six units.
  • Area D: Students are required to take two courses (6 units minimum) from two different disciplines.