Degree Requirements for Transfer Students
Major Requirements
All UC San Diego majors require the equivalent of at least twelve or more upper-division courses (forty-eight or more units). Consult department and program advisors regarding major requirements and opportunities - visit your major's website to see their requirements and how to connect with their advising staff.
General Education for Transfer Students
The Eighth College GE curriculum is designed to be flexible and to complement any major.
Critical Community Engagement
The two-course Critical Community Engagement for transfer students one course focused on the foundations of community partnership and one upper-division project-based course. Both courses provide training in interdisciplinary inquiry and community engagement. They bring together modes of thought and content from the breadth courses and other coursework, including major courses, the campus-wide Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion requirement, and electives. These courses focus on interdisciplinary approaches to complex problems and successful solutions.
Critical Community Engagement courses must be taken at UC San Diego and must be taken for a letter grade.
Critical Community Engagement 110 - Starting in Fall 2026
This course is designed to prepare transfer students for critical community engagement by introducing both foundational concepts and community-facing writing skills. Students will integrate course material with their lived experience and collegiate academic history in preparation for community partnership and project design.
Launching in the 2026-2027 academic year for transfer students only
Critical Community Engagement 120 - Offered Fall, Winter, and Spring
This course focuses on putting the skills acquired in CCE 1-3 or CCE 110 (for transfers) into practice by acting. This project-based capstone course gives students the opportunity to design, develop, and deliver a project in collaboration with local community partners.
Offered Fall, Winter, and Spring Quarters, Starting Fall 2025
Transfer Agreements
Students who have completed their lower-division general-education requirements at an accredited four-year institution and students who have completed a system-wide or campus-wide approved core curriculum in a California community college prior to entering UC San Diego must complete Critical Community Engagement 110 and 120. For all other transfer students, Eighth College academic advising will work with incoming transfers to evaluate their courses on a case-by-case basis to determine applicability of prior course work towards the general-education requirements listed above.
Refer to the relevant transfer agreement below for details, and contact Eighth College Academic Advising with any questions or concerns.
Note: all agreements apply exclusively to students admitted as transfers; they do not apply to students admitted as freshmen.
- Students admitted to UC San Diego as freshmen are not eligible for IGETC.
Cal-GETC or IGETC
The California General Education Transfer Curriculum (Cal-GETC) is replacing the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) for California Community College Transfer Students. Eighth College accepts either certification with the guidance below.
Agreement Details
- Completion of all Cal-GETC/IGETC requirements at a California Community College prior to transferring to UC San Diego
- Certification must be sent from the community college to UC San Diego Office of Admissions and posted to your Academic History. Note, Admissions cannot accept attachments to your course transcript and the certification should be sent to admissions seperately.
GE Requirements
- CCE 110 (4 units), letter grade only
- CCE 120 (4 units), letter grade only
Reciprocity
Agreement Details
- Completion of all lower-division general education/breadth requirements at another UC or four-year institution prior to transferring to UC San Diego
- Students with an official letter of reciprocity will be waived from all lower-division Breadth GE requirements
Remaining GE Requirements
- CCE 110 (4 units), letter grade only
- CCE 120 (4 units), letter grade only
All Other Transfer Students
Course-by-Course Evaluation
- After transfer to UC San Diego, Eighth College will determine which of your transferable courses satisfy the first-year General Education Requirements.
GE Requirements
- CCE 110 (4 units), letter grade only
- CCE 120 (4 units), letter grade only
- All remaining General Education Requirements not already fulfilled by transfer courses or test scores. Review your Degree Audit in TritonLink and if needed, refer to the Degree Requirements for First year Students to see lists of approved General Education Breadth Requirements.
University Requirements
Entry Level Writing Requirement (ELWR)
The University of California requires all undergraduate students (including international students) to demonstrate a minimum proficiency in English composition within three quarters of enterning the University.
Transfer students meet this requirement prior to enrollment at UC San Diego.
American History and Institutions (AHI)
A knowledge of American history and of the principle of American institutions under federal and state constitutions is required of all candidates for the bachelor's degree. Exception for all international students on F-1 or J-1 visas: the college will waive AHI at the end of the final quarter.
Most transfer students have already met the AHI requirement with prior coursework. Refer to the UC San Diego General Catalog for how to meet AHI if applicable.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)
A knowledge of diversity, equity, and inclusion is required for all candidates for a bachelor's degree. This requirement is satisfied by passing one four-unit course.
All transfer students must satisfy this requirement. Refer to Undergraduate Education for the approved list.
The Diversity Equity and Inclusion Course Requirement per San Diego Senate Regulation 600.G is a graduation requirement for all UC San Diego students.
There has not been a change to this requirement. Any changes to graduation requirements are communicated from the Academic Senate to UCSD students via UCSD email.
In accordance with applicable Federal and State law and University policy, the University of California does not discriminate, or grant preferences, on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, and/or other protected categories. More information about Proposition 209 can be found here. More information about the University of California Anti-Discrimination Policy can be found here.
Unit Requirements
- A minimum of 180 units; at least 60 units must be upper-division
- No more than 25% of UC San Diego course units graded on a Pass/No Pass basis
- At least 35 of the final 45 units complete at UC San Diego
GPA Requirement
A 2.0 or higher GPA in all courses taken at University of California including: UC Summer Session, UC Education Abroad Program, UC Sacramento Center, and the UC San Diego Washington Program (UCDC).
Quarter Limit Policy
- An undergraduate student who enrolls at UC San Diego as a transfer student in Fall 2019 and thereafter is allowed to enroll for six quarters to complete all requirements for a bachelor of arts (BA) or bachelor of science (BS) degree. If a student reaches this quarter limit and needs additional time to complete those requirements, they will be required to submit a completion plan and have it approved by their major department or program as well as their college prior to enrolling for additional quarters to continue work toward the degree.
- Summer session, as well as quarters during which students are approved for part-time status or have withdrawn from all courses, will not count toward the allowable number of quarters.