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Secondary Education » College Readiness

College Readiness

Graduation Requirements
 
The chart below depicts the differences between PYLUSD graduation requirements, CSU and UC Eligibility Requirements, as well as NCAA eligibility requirements.
Graduation Requirements comparison chart
College Readiness
 
University of California and California State University Systems
 
The A-G / College Entrance Requirements are a sequence of high school courses that students must complete (with a grade of C or better) to be minimally eligible for admission to the University of California (UC) and California State University (CSU). They represent the basic level of academic preparation that high school students should achieve to undertake university work.
 
The purposes of the A-G / College Entrance Requirements are to ensure that entering students:
  • Can participate fully in the first year program at UC and CSU in a broad variety of fields of study;
  • Have attained the necessary preparation for courses, majors, and programs offered at UC and CSU;
  • Have attained a body of knowledge that will provide breadth and perspective to new, more advanced studies; and 
  • Have attained essential critical thinking and study skills.

If you're interested in entering the University of California as a freshman, you'll have to satisfy these requirements:


Complete a minimum of 15 college-preparatory courses (a-g courses), with at least 11 finished prior to the beginning of your senior year.


The 15 courses are:

a. History/social science

2 years

b. English

4 years

c. Mathematics

3 years

d. Laboratory science

2 years

e. Language other than English

2 years*

f. Visual and performing arts

1 year

g. College-preparatory elective

(chosen from the subjects listed above or another course approved by the university)

1 year

*or equivalent to the 2nd level of high school instruction

  

Earn a grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or better (3.4 if you're a nonresident) in these courses with no grade lower than a C.

 

Meet the examination requirement by taking the ACT Plus Writing or the SAT Reasoning Test by December of your senior year. We don't require SAT Subject Tests, but certain programs on some campuses recommend them, and you can use subject tests to satisfy the "a-g" requirements listed above.  

 

California students

If you're a state resident who has met the minimum requirements and aren't admitted to any UC campus to which you apply, you'll be offered a spot at another campus if space is available, provided:



  • You rank in the top 9 percent of California high school students, according to our admissions index, or
  • You rank in the top 9 percent of your graduating class at a participating high school. We refer to this as "Eligible in the Local Context" (ELC).
 
 
 
 
 
Open the PDF files attached to this page see which courses at each school meet these requirements.
 
California State University Early Assessment Program (EAP)
 
The California State University (CSU), which draws its students from the top third of California’s high school graduates, has long accommodated large numbers of incoming students who need remedial education in English and mathematics. While having well over half of incoming students requiring additional preparation is a common occurrence in all states, the CSU and public school leadership believe that an early intervention strategy will help increase the college readiness of high school students.

The CSU has worked with the State Board of Education (SBE) and the California Department of Education (CDE) to develop the Early Assessment Program (EAP). EAP incorporates the CSU’s placement standards into existing high school standards tests in English and mathematics. 
 
 
 
Other College Readiness Resources
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
College Readiness
College Readiness