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Explaining the A-G Requirements for College Admissions
The University of California (UC) and California State University (CSU) require entering freshmen to complete certain courses in high school. These courses are called the "a-g" courses because of the letter each subject area is assigned: "a" is for History/Social Science, "b" is for English, and so on. To receive "a-g" credit, a high school course must be certified through the UC course approval process and a student must receive a C- or better in the course.
Here is the list of "a-g", with the number of years required in each subject. UC recommends additional years in some areas as indicated.
- History/Social Science (2 years)*
- English - College Preparatory English Composition and Literature (4 years)
- Mathematics - (3 years at least through Int. Math III, CSU and UC recommend 4 years)
- Laboratory Science - 1 year of Biological Science and 1 year of Physical Science (2 years, UC recommends 3 years)
- Language Other than English (2 years of the same language, UC recommends 3 years)
- Visual/Performing Arts - (1 year)
- College Preparatory Elective (1 year) * Redlands High School graduation requires 3 years of History/Social Sciences and students applying to schools in Texas are advised to take 4 years.
Students must earn a grade of C- or better for each course to meet the subject area requirement. Note that any course earned with a D or F may be repeated. Other than repeating a course, some courses may be satisfied through validation. Validation is when a student satisfies a requirement for a particular course by successfully completing more advanced coursework. This only applies in the following situations:
Validation of a Math, Language, or Chemistry Course:
- Math: Earning a grade of C- or better in the first semester of Int. Math II can replace both semesters of Int. Math I. Earning a grade of C- or better in Trigonometry or Pre-calculus validates the entire high school college preparatory requirement.
- Language Other than English (LOTE): Earning a grade of C- or better in a second semester of a higher-level course replaces a lower-level course. A higher-level LOTE course can replace the appropriate number of years based on the level. A college course can replace a high school LOTE course. The level of validation, or replacement, depends on the college course prerequisite and description.
- Chemistry: Earning a grade of C- or better in the second semester of Chemistry will replace the first semester.
This is a list of all Redlands High School course a-g approved: RHS a-g Approved Courses