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Programs of Study

Students have access to a wide variety of educational programs at SCC, SFCC, and the off-campus center. A student may choose to complete the first two years of four-year degree programs, select among career and technical program offerings, or upgrade skills in preparation for work or college.

In order to give students an idea of some of the possibilities open to them, a number of suggested programs of study are provided on the following pages. The programs outlined are intended to provide general information. Students should seek detailed information from a counselor, adviser, the campus Counseling Center or Transfer Center.

Students who plan to transfer to a four-year institution after completing the first two years at SCC, SFCC, or the off-campus centers, are strongly advised to consult with the community college counselor or academic adviser as well as the four-year institution they plan to attend. Requirements may vary according to the program and transfer institution.

More detailed information about the following can be found on subsequent catalog pages.

Collaborative Opportunities

American Honors (AH)

Community Colleges of Spokane, partnering with American Honors (AH), offers high-achieving students rigorous, interactive online courses that lead to transfer opportunities through its network of top-tier four-year university partners. American Honors classes are taught by SCC and SFCC faculty dedicated to promoting scholastic excellence. A variety of AH classes are offered each term.

For more information, contact SCC, (509) 533-7038 or SFCC, (509) 533-3524.

CCS Destination Eastern

CCS Destination Eastern is a joint admissions program for academically eligible students who want to earn the first two years of a four-year degree at SCC, SFCC or an off-campus education center, then transfer to Eastern Washington University (EWU) to complete their bachelor’s degree. Students enrolled in this program receive specialized joint counseling and advising, quarterly transcript evaluation and registration as an incoming junior at EWU upon completion of the AA-DTA degree. There are admissions requirements, and space in this program is limited to 100 students.

For more information, contact a counselor at SCC or SFCC, or e-mail ccsdestination@ccs.spokane.edu.

University Articulations

Community Colleges of Spokane has transfer articulation agreements that provide a "value-added" component to a traditional transfer program by allowing additional transfer credits, optional instructional delivery, preferred admission, etc. View current transfer articulation agreements online.

Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE)

Community Colleges of Spokane participates in the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) reduced-tuition program for students who are residents of the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) participating states. The CCS WUE rate is considerably lower than many state WUE rates, and does not have restrictions on transfer students. Residents of WICHE states can gain affordable access to two- and four-year college programs outside of their home state; while at the same time, allowing colleges and universities to avoid costly duplication of programs and facilities. WUE participating states include Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, Wyoming and the US Pacific territories and freely associated states. For additional information about WUE participating colleges and their programs, visit www.wiche.edu/wue.

For information about WUE at CCS, visit the webpage at www.ccs.spokane.edu/WUE.aspx.

Degree and Certificate Requirements

Graduation Requirements

Students who plan to receive a two-year degree or a one-year certificate must file a Graduation Application with the graduation evaluator. Students should apply for a degree when they have completed 50% of the degree requirements.

Filing a Graduation Application provides the student with the opportunity to review and check his or her degree or certificate requirements. It allows the student an opportunity to plan or change his/her course schedule to ensure completion of all requirements. It also ensures that all degrees/certificates earned will be correctly posted to the student’s transcript.

Degrees/certificates will not be awarded if the student has not fulfilled all financial obligations to the college.

Residence Credit Requirement

Residence credits are SCC or SFCC credits earned at the college granting the degree or certificate. Residence credit is not associated with where the student lives or resides. Prior Learning credit awards do not count toward the residence credit requirement.

The CCS residence credit requirement for the Direct Transfer Agreement (DTA) degree or the Associate in Science-Transfer (AS-T) degree is: At least 30 credits must be earned from Spokane Community College or Spokane Falls Community College with at least 15 credits earned at the college awarding the degree.

The CCS residence credit requirement for all other degrees or certificates is: At least one-third (33%) of the credits must be earned from the college awarding the degree or certificate. Courses must have been earned within the last four years and must be specific to the program of study as determined by the department. If the student demonstrates satisfactory competence in the program of study, the department may petition the appropriate academic administrator to waive program specific requirements.

Time to Degree

A student is eligible to graduate either (1) by completing the degree requirements in effect at the time of initial enrollment within four academic calendar years, or (2) by completing the requirements in effect at the beginning of the last continuous (summer quarter excepted) enrollment, or (3) by completing the most recent requirements in effect during the quarter of graduation.

A candidate for a degree may include courses newly approved to meet degree requirements even though the course approval comes after the credit has been earned.

In instances where changes in professional degrees and certificates make the above guidelines inappropriate, the respective division administrator, working with the individual student, shall determine which degree requirements to follow.

Transfer Degree Programs

Transfer degrees include Associate in Arts-Direct Transfer Agreement (AA-DTA), Associate of Science-Transfer (AS-T), Associate of Applied Science-Transfer (AAS-T), and Associate of Fine Arts (AFA). See Transfer Degree Programs for more details and Major Related Program degrees.

Career and technical degrees include the Associate in Applied Science (AAS) in a particular state-approved career and technical program. Career and technical certificates also are offered in state-approved programs and Certificate in Fine Arts (CFA) is also offered.

Bachelor degree options at CCS now include the Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) providing upper-division coursework in an applied field. This degree builds upon career and technical associate degrees.

See Program Outlines for more details.

Direct Transfer Agreements

Associate in Arts (AA-DTA)

The Direct Transfer Agreement (DTA) Associate Degree, sometimes called the Associate in Arts or Associate in Arts and Sciences, is the community college degree designed to transfer to most bachelors of arts degrees at Washington's four-year institutions. In order for the agreement to be valid for transfer, however, it is essential that the degree be completed. Otherwise, each course taken may be evaluated by the receiving institution separately, and some courses may not be accepted for transfer that would have been with a completed degree. For this reason students are strongly advised to complete the appropriate transfer degree prior to transfer.

Transfer guides are available from counselors and at the SCC and SFCC Transfer Centers. Students planning to transfer should consult these guides as well as information provided by the four-year institutions. Completion of recommended courses in a pre-major for transfer does not necessarily assure a student admission to a four-year institution or a specific program. Some colleges use screening procedures (cumulative GPA, test scores, major GPA, etc.) for acceptance into certain majors and programs.

Many four-year institutions have an admissions requirement of two years of a single foreign language in high school or two to three quarters of a single foreign language in college. Additional foreign language courses may be required for graduation. Students should check this requirement carefully for the institution to which they plan to transfer.

Lower-division major requirements vary among four-year schools. Therefore, students should consult the four-year institution to which they plan to transfer for specific program requirements. Careful planning is important in order to meet specific requirements.

For most majors in the arts, humanities and social sciences, the Direct Transfer Agreement provides the best pathway. Degrees based on the DTA -- degrees structured under the DTA umbrella -- provide:

  • Priority consideration in the admissions for most humanities and social science majors in most four-year institutions ahead of non-degreed transfers.
  • Completion of lower division general education requirements.
  • Credit for all courses completed within the DTA up to and in some cases beyond 90 quarter credits.
  • Opportunity to explore several fields of study through the category of up to 25 quarter credits of elective courses.
  • Opportunity to complete prerequisites for a future major.

For more information, see the transfer program outlines section of this catalog. For a description of courses, see the course descriptions section of this catalog.

Reciprocity Agreement

Washington community and technical colleges (CTCs) offer reciprocity to students transferring within the CTC system who are pursuing the Direct Transfer Agreement (DTA) degree or the Associate in Science-Transfer (AS-T) degree. Students who completed an individual course that met distribution degree requirements or fulfilled entire areas of their degree requirements at one college will be considered to have met those same requirements if they plan to complete the same degree when they transfer to another community or technical college in Washington. These degree requirements include Communication Skills, Quantitative Skills, or one or more Distribution Area requirements. Students must initiate the review process and must be prepared to provide necessary documentation. For complete information, students should contact an academic adviser at SCC, SFCC or the off-campus centers.

Direct Transfer Agreements/Major Related Programs (DTA/MRP)

To help transfer students better prepare for the junior year, two-year and four-year institutions work together to create transfer associate pathways outlining the appropriate courses in order for students to be well prepared to enter the major upon transfer - Major Related Program (MRP) pathways follow one of the two statewide transfer agreements - the DTA format or the Associate in Science (AS-T) format.

Several MRP degrees follow the DTA guidelines and thus share the same benefits as described above, but provide specific preparation for the specific majors identified:

Students interested in learning more about any of the MRP requirements in any specific area should seek advising from experts in those disciplines, counselors or the SCC and SFCC Transfer Centers. Students completing one of these MRPs will have that specific degree posted on their transcript; the more general DTA will not be posted. For more information, see the transfer program outlines section of this catalog.

Associate in Science-Transfer (AS-T)

The Associate in Science-Transfer (AS-T) degree is intended for students majoring in engineering and science who wish to transfer as juniors to four-year institutions in Washington.

Students who earn this degree will transfer with about half of the lower division general education courses required by four-year institutions. Remaining general education courses may be taken after transferring. This degree allows students to concentrate on fulfilling pre-major coursework in their intended field of study. A number of different options are offered with two basic tracks.

The Associate in Science Transfer (AS-T) Degree #1 is designed to prepare students for upper division study in the areas of biological sciences, environmental/resource sciences, chemistry, geology, and earth science. Completing the AS-T degree will prepare students for upper division study; it does not guarantee students admission to the major. Track 1 degrees offered at SCC and/or SFCC include:

The Associate in Science Transfer (AS-T) Degree #2 is designed to prepare students for upper division study in the areas of engineering, computer science, physics, and atmospheric science. Completing the AS-T degree will prepare students for upper division study; it does not guarantee students admission to the major. Track 2 degrees offered at SCC and/or SFCC include:

For more specific information on these MRPs, see the transfer program outlines section of this catalog. It is highly recommended that students meet on a regular basis with an instructor in the discipline, a counselor or academic adviser at SCC, SFCC or the off-campus centers, to be sure that requirements specified in these degrees are met.

Associate of Applied Science-Transfer (AAS-T)

Some career and technical programs of study may offer an Associate in Applied Science-Transfer (AAS-T) degree that is designed to provide transfer opportunities for students desiring to continue on toward achieving a baccalaureate degree at specific universities. An AAS-T degree is a degree awarded in a career and technical discipline that contains a minimum of 20 transferable general education credits in communications, quantitative reasoning, and social science, humanities or science. Not all programs offer the AAS-T. Consult with a program faculty member or an academic adviser/counselor to determine if your program of study offers an AAS-T and into which four-year institutions it transfers. AAS-T degrees do not transfer to all four-year institutions.

For more information, see the program outlines section of this catalog.

Associate in Fine Arts (AFA)

A primary purpose of the Associate in Fine Arts is to offer a program of study applicable for transfer to a four-year institution. While the Associate in Fine Arts (AFA) degree does not satisfy the general education requirements for most four-year institutions, all courses are transferable. Students should consult the catalog and/or transfer manual of the school to which they plan to transfer before selecting courses.

The AFA degree prepares students to transfer to a four-year institution with a minimum of 90 quarter credits, which include many general university requirements. Students may earn an AFA in art, drama or music. Students are encouraged to meet with an art adviser before enrolling.

For more information, see Art, Drama, or Music in the program outlines section of this catalog.

Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS)

The Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) degree is an applied baccalaureate degree providing upper-division coursework in an applied field that may be offered at a community or technical college. These degrees build upon professional-technical associate degrees (AAS, AAS-T, AS-T) providing a clear pathway for students who may be place bound or have difficulty finding a transfer opportunity for their associate degree. The BAS degree also helps address an employers need to successfully recruit qualified applicants who have both job-specific technical skills as well as the skills learned through a baccalaureate program. In addition to serving the needs of employers, BAS programs are beneficial to employees already working in technical fields who wish to be promoted to higher level management or to specialized positions which may require a bachelor's degree.

Bachelor of Applied Science degrees offered at SFCC include:

For more specific information on these BAS degrees, see the transfer program outlines section of this catalog. It is highly recommended that students meet on a regular basis with an instructor in the discipline or a counselor or academic adviser at SFCC, to be sure that requirements specified in these degrees are met.

For more information, see the program outlines section of this catalog.

Washington 45


The list of courses in Washington 45 does not replace the Direct Transfer Agreement, Associate in Science Tracks I and II or any Major Related Program agreement, nor will it guarantee admission to a four-year institution.

A student who completes courses selected from within the general education categories listed below at a public community, technical, four-year college or university in Washington State will be able to transfer and apply a maximum of 45 quarter credits toward general education requirement(s) at any other public and most private higher education institutions in the state.1

For transfer purposes, a student must have a minimum grade of C or better (2.0 or above) in each course completed from this list.

Students who transfer Washington 45 courses must still meet a receiving institution’s admission requirements and eventually satisfy all their general education requirements and their degree requirements in major, minor and professional programs.

"First Year Transfer List" of general education courses:

  • Communications (5 credits) - ENGL& 101, ENGL& 102
  • Quantitative and Symbolic Reasoning (5 credits) - MATH& 107, MATH& 148 or MATH& 151
  • Humanities (10 credits in two different subject areas or disciplines2) - PHIL& 101, MUSC& 105, DRMA& 101, ENGL& 111, or HUM& 101
    For colleges that use History as a Humanities: HIST& 116, HIST& 117, HIST& 118, HIST& 146, HIST& 147, HIST& 148
  • Social Science (10 credits in two different subject areas or disciplines) - PSYC& 100, SOC& 101, POLS& 101, POLS& 202
    For colleges that use History as a Social Science: HIST& 116, HIST& 117, HIST& 118, HIST& 146, HIST& 147, HIST& 148
  • Natural Sciences (10 credits in two different subject areas or disciplines) - BIOL& 100, BIOL& 160 with lab, ASTR& 100, ASTR& 101 with lab, CHEM& 105, CHEM& 110 with lab, CHEM& 121 with lab, CHEM& 161, CHEM& 162, ENVS& 100, ENVS& 101, PHYS& 114, GEOL& 101 with lab
  • Additional 5 credits in a different discipline can be taken from any category listed above.

NOTE: Although these courses are listed under categories, the actual course may satisfy a different general education category at a receiving institution.

1 Many private non-profit colleges and universities have distinct general education requirements. Students should check with institution(s) they plan to attend regarding application of transfer credits that will meet general education requirements.

2 Disciplines are sometimes called subject or subject matter areas and designated by a prefix (i.e. PHIL for Philosophy and POLS for Political Science).

Need more information?
Phone: 509-434-5162
Email: CCSInfo@ccs.spokane.edu