The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) requires colleges and universities to include general education courses in each degree plan. For traditional transfer degrees—the Associate of Arts (AA), Associate of Science (AS), and Associate of Arts in Teaching (AAT)—Austin Community College (ACC) fulfills this requirement through the 42 semester credit hours core curriculum. For career and technical programs, which offer the Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree, ACC includes 15 general education credits in each AAS degree plan. Associate of Applied Science degrees are primarily intended for workforce entry, not university transfer; see the Career & Technical Awards General Education Requirements section of this catalog for more information. To make sure you are taking the appropriate general education or core curriculum courses, meet with your Area of Study advisor or instructional department’s program advisor.

The 42 semester credit hours core curriculum has been adopted to provide a solid foundation of a college education and to facilitate transfer between colleges and universities. By completing 42 credit hours of core curriculum courses as part of your transfer degree or by taking 15 credit hours of general education courses as part of your AAS program, you achieve college-level competence in general education skills that are fundamental to all disciplines of learning. See the Core Curriculum Course List section of this catalog for specific courses in each subject area.

Academic Terminology: The College offers courses during prescribed terms or semesters. The traditional semester is 16 weeks long in the fall and spring. If you take a course that has 3 “contact hours” (hours during which you are in ‘contact’ with the instructor and learning materials) per week, you will earn 3 semester credit hours (SCH) upon successfully completing the course.

Note: Completing all subject areas of the core curriculum allows you to substitute the Austin Community College (ACC) core curriculum for the core curriculum at Texas public institutions when you transfer. You will not be required to take additional core curriculum courses at your public transfer institution unless the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) has authorized an expanded core curriculum at that institution. If you satisfy all components of the core curriculum, the statement “core complete” is noted on your transcript. Be sure to refer to your degree plan and consult with your program/faculty advisor so that you make the right choices for core curriculum courses that will transfer smoothly to your chosen four-year institution.