With the statement of values as common ground, the Arizona public community colleges and universities have agreed upon a common structure for a transfer general education curriculum. This curriculum provides students attending any Arizona public community college with the opportunity to build a general education curriculum that is transferable upon completion without loss of credit to another Arizona public community college or university. This common agreement is called the Arizona General Education Curriculum (AGEC).

The structure of the AGEC is based on a previous articulation agreement, the Transfer General Education Core Curriculum (TGECC). Approved in 1991 and revised in 1993, the TGECC attempted to go beyond course-by-course articulation by creating a 41 semester-credit block of courses that any student could transfer, as a block, to meet the lower division university general education requirements at Arizona's public universities. Although the TGECC was an option for all students, it was intended to provide a useful pathway to ensure meaningful transfer of a substantial number of credits for students who had not selected a major or university.

The AGEC has three forms - the AGEC-A, AGEC-B and AGEC-S:

• AGEC-A is a 35 semester-credit lower division general education curriculum block that fulfills the lower division general education requirements of liberal arts majors (e.g., social science, fine arts, humanities). The block will transfer without loss of credit from any Arizona public community college to any other Arizona public community college or university, and is for students who intend to transfer into liberal arts majors.
• AGEC-B is a 35 semester-credit lower division general education curriculum block that fulfills the lower division general education requirements of business majors. The block will transfer without loss of credit from any Arizona public community college to any other Arizona public community college or university, and is for students who intend to transfer into business majors.
• AGEC-S is a 35 semester-credit lower division general education curriculum block that fulfills the lower division general education requirements of majors with more stringent mathematics and mathematics-based science requirements The block will transfer without loss of credit from any Arizona public community college to any other Arizona public community college or university, and is for students who intend to transfer into majors with more stringent mathematics and mathematics-based science requirements.

The mathematics and science requirements differ among the three forms of AGEC. The AGEC-A requires a minimum of college mathematics or college algebra. The AGEC-B requires a minimum of brief calculus. The AGEC-S requires a minimum of calculus and a minimum of university chemistry, or university physics, or university biology.

The goal is to create for community college students clear and secure transfer pathways - different from, but parallel to the pathways followed by native university students - that will allow them to maximize their experience at the community college, to incorporate community college credits or degrees efficiently into university graduation requirements, and to complete baccalaureate majors in the minimum number of required credits.

Completion of the AGEC will fulfill lower division general education requirements at all Arizona public community colleges and universities and will be fully applicable to the baccalaureate degree, but may not apply to degrees articulated with the Transfer Guide Pathway -- TG-XR. Students completing the AGEC will still be required to fulfill lower division program requirements and prerequisites within their college and major/minor area of study. In order to most efficiently complete a degree program, students should select courses to meet the AGEC requirements that will also fulfill program requirements in the college and major they intend to pursue upon transfer. Majors in the professional fields, e.g. architecture, engineering, business, fine/creative arts, or health professions and sciences have significant prerequisites and/or program requirements that must be completed before a student may be admitted to upper division course work. Community college students who are undecided about which of the Arizona public universities they plan to attend or what program of study they intend to pursue are advised to explore educational options while they complete the AGEC.

The AGEC does not replace articulation agreements developed to enhance the transfer process between specific institutions. Nor does the AGEC eliminate the possibility that students who have identified the university they plan to attend and/or a major area of study will follow transfer guides provided by the state universities through mechanisms such as the Course Applicability System (CAS).

The AGEC allows the community colleges flexibility in their approach to general education requirements. Subject Area Requirement, Special Requirements, and Options that were previously approved as a part of a community college TGECC may be incorporated into that college's AGEC without further review.

In order for a course to be included in a community college's AGEC, it must be accepted for transfer credit in any of the following categories: equivalent course, departmental elective credit, general elective credit, at all Arizona public universities according to the Course Applicability System for the academic year in which the course was taken. All courses included in the AGEC block must be completed with a grade of "C" or better. Upon completion of the AGEC, the community college will certify achievement of the block on the official institutional transcript. The  community college district of the college certifying completion of the AGEC will determine the residency requirement for the AGEC.

The certified AGEC is transferable from one Arizona public community college to another Arizona public community college as well as from an Arizona public community college to an Arizona public university.

The AGEC is reviewed and monitored each academic year by the General Education Articulation Task Force (GEATF). The GEATF is comprised of representatives from each Arizona public community college district and university. The GEATF reports to the Academic Program Articulation Steering Committee (APASC).

Back to the AGEC Requirements.