American River College Requirements for 4-Year Transfer?

What are the academic requirements at American River College for transferring to a 4-year university? Trying to make sure I'm on track with my classes and GPA.

At American River College (ARC), the process of transferring to a 4-year university depends largely on the specific university and major you're interested in. Each university and each major might have unique prerequisites and GPA requirements. Here are some general guidelines:

1. Coursework: For most 4-year universities, you'll need to have completed a certain number of transferable college credits, typically around 60 semester units or 90 quarter units. These should include general education courses (English, Math, Science, etc.) as well as specific prerequisites for your intended major if applicable.

2. GPA: While minimum GPA requirements can vary widely depending on the institution or the major, a competitive GPA is usually 3.0 or above. Some highly selective universities or popular majors may require a higher GPA.

3. 'Golden Four': The 'Golden Four' refers to four courses that you need for admission to most public 4-year institutions in California – A1: Oral Communication, A2: Written Communication, A3: Critical Thinking, and B4: Mathematics/Quantitative Reasoning.

4. The IGETC and CSU Gen Ed requirements: These are sets of classes that community college students can complete to satisfy lower division general education requirements before transferring to most 4-year universities in California. IGETC (Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum) is for students transferring to UC or CSU. The CSU GE Breadth (California State University General Education) is for students transferring to a California State University.

5. Achieve English and Mathematics competency - For CSU, this generally means completing transfer-level English and Mathematics coursework with a C or better.

To ensure you're on the right track and meeting all the necessary requirements for transferring to your choice of universities, it's a good idea to meet with a academic counselor at ARC. They can help you develop an educational plan tailored to your transfer goals. You can also use resources like Assist.org if you're in California, which shows how course credits transfer between California community colleges and universities.

Remember, each 4-year institution will have its own specific requirements for transfer admission which might include applications, essays, letters of recommendation, etc. so it's crucial to research those specifics for your target schools.