Academic Catalogs

Graduation Requirements

Catalog Rights and Continuous Enrollment

Continuous Enrollment

Continuous enrollment/attendance is defined as enrollment in credit courses in at least one primary semester (Fall or Spring) or two quarters each academic year at any California community college, or institutionally accredited college. 

Any absence from the college/district, including attendance at another institutionally accredited institution of higher learning, shall not be considered an interruption in attendance, if the absence does not exceed two years. Attendance is established by any transcript entry of A, B, C, D, F, P, NP, W, MW, I or EW. Documented Military Withdrawal (MW) will not be considered an interruption of continuous enrollment.

Catalog Rights

A student maintaining continuous enrollment/attendance may for purposes of meeting Coastline College graduation requirements elect to meet the requirements in effect at the college either based on:

  • The catalog year in effect at the time they began taking credit courses at Coastline.
  • Any catalog year in effect during the student’s continuous enrollment in credit courses.
  • The catalog year in effect at the time they file an application for a credit-based degree or certificate. (This is the only option available to a student who is not continuously enrolled at the time they petition to graduate.)

When program required courses in a catalog year are discontinued, college authorities may authorize or require substitutions for those courses. In rare circumstances, Coastline may require a student to change their program of study to complete the requirements in effect at the time of the change. Students should meet with a Counselor to review their program requirements when these situations occur.

Catalog rights may be superseded when:

(1) A program in which an outside agency or licensing body requires that students complete specific courses within an established time frame or

(2) Vocational program requirements change to comply with industry standards.

A college may therefore prescribe that particular requirements be met within as few as seven years of the date of award of the degree.

Classification of Students

Students are classified as follows:

  • Freshman: A student who has completed fewer than 30 units.
  • Sophomore: A student who has completed 30 or more units.
  • Part-time Student: A student enrolled in fewer than 12 units.
  • Full-time Student: A student enrolled in 12 or more units.

Student Status

  • New Student: No previous enrollment record at Coastline College.
  • Continuing Student: Enrolled continuously at Coastline College from one primary term to the next primary term.
  • Returning Student: Previously enrolled at Coastline College, however missed at least two primary terms of attendance.

General Education Philosophy

General Education Degree-Level Student Learning Outcomes

The term “general education” refers to a broad-based and comprehensive program that introduces students to the major areas of higher education: the humanities, fine arts, social sciences, and natural sciences. The general education program is the basis for all degree programs at Coastline College and is designed to help students develop the knowledge and skills that will contribute to their intellectual, personal, and professional growth.

Upon completion of a degree-level program, students will be able to:

  1. Demonstrate understanding and appreciation for the visual and performing arts
  2. Demonstrate ethical civic, environmental, and social responsibility
  3. Demonstrate ability to apply critical thinking and analysis
  4. Demonstrate innovative thinking, adaptability, and creative problem-solving skills
  5. Demonstrate understanding and respect for cultural and global diversity
  6. Demonstrate information competency
  7. Use effective communication and interpersonal skills
  8. Use scientific and quantitative reasoning

Multiple Majors

A student completing the requirements for more than one major may earn more than one Associate degree. When completing concurrent majors, the student simultaneously completes all academic requirements for his/her majors and graduates with two (or more) degrees in the same semester. Students must list all desired degrees on the Graduation Petition form.

Additional Associate Degrees

Students who already possess an Associate degree from Coastline College may be awarded an additional degree upon completion of the following:

  1. All requirements of a major or area of emphasis in a different field of study. Coursework from the previous major may be applied toward the new major.
  2. General Education units earned from a previous Associate degree may be applied toward subsequent Associate degrees. If there has been a break in enrollment from when the last Associate degree was awarded, the student must complete the General Education requirements in effect at the time the student re-enrolls.

Duplicate Degrees

Students are not permitted to acquire duplicate associate degrees or ADT degrees in the same major, within the Coast Community College District.

Petition for Graduation

An Associate Degree, Associate Degree for Transfer, Certificate of Achievement, Certificate of Accomplishment, and/or Certificate of Specialization are not automatically awarded. To receive their degree, a student must file a petition for graduation during their final semester prior to the application deadline as noted on the Coastline Graduation Webpage

Petitions are available in the Admissions Office and online in the Graduation page. Military and corporate program students may obtain a graduation petition online at the Coastline Military Programs and Services website.

All official transcripts from other educational institutions must be on file at the time students submit the graduation petition. If final courses are being completed at another school, this must be indicated on your Petition to Graduate form and official transcripts must be sent to Coastline once final grades are received. It is the responsibility of the student to have transcripts sent to Coastline College.

Students may petition for graduation during the Spring, Summer, or Fall terms. Degrees are granted based on when the student applies and not by when they completed the requirements. Visit the Coastline Graduation webpage to review petition filing period dates.

Note: If a break in enrollment occurs (resulting in the loss of Catalog Rights) students must comply with the competency, general education and major course requirements in effect at the time the student resumes attendance in order to meet Graduation requirements.

Career Education Programs

Career Education programs can be found on the  Coastline College Career Education webpage.

Global Society Requirement*

Course Title Units
Complete at least 2.5 units of the following:
ANTH C100Cultural Anthropology3
ANTH C150World Cultures3
ANTH C175Global Perspectives of Food and Culture3
ARAB C180Elementary Arabic 15
ARAB C180AElementary Arabic 1A2.5
ARAB C180BElementary Arabic 1B2.5
ARAB C182Conversational Arabic3
ARAB C185Elementary Arabic 25
ARAB C185AElementary Arabic 2A2.5
ARAB C185BElementary Arabic 2B2.5
ARAB C280AIntermediate Arabic 1A2
ARAB C280BIntermediate Arabic 1B2
ARAB C285AIntermediate Arabic 2A2
ARAB C285BIntermediate Arabic 2B2
ART C100Survey of Art: Prehistory through Late Gothic3
ART C101Survey of Art: Renaissance to Contemporary3
ART C103History of Asian Art3
ART C104The History of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist Art3
ART C105Introduction to Art3
ART C109The History and Appreciation of Italian Renaissance Art3
ART C176Survey of East Asian Brush Painting3
CHIN C180Elementary Chinese 15
CHIN C185Elementary Chinese 25
CJ C148Multicultural Studies in Criminal Justice3
CMST C150Intercultural Communication3
FN C177Global Perspectives of Food and Culture3
FREN C180Elementary French 15
FREN C185Elementary French 25
FREN C280Intermediate French 14
FREN C285Intermediate French 24
GEOG C185Cultural Geography3
HIST C115Latin American History and Culture3
HIST C161World History 13
HIST C162World History 23
HIST C180Western Civilization 13
HIST C185Western Civilization 23
HSVC C100Introduction to Human Services3
HUM C100Introduction to the Humanities3
HUM C110Humanities through the Arts3
HUM C135History and Appreciation of the Cinema3
ITAL C180Elementary Italian 15
ITAL C185Elementary Italian 25
JAPN C180Elementary Japanese 15
JAPN C185Elementary Japanese 25
MUS C103World Music3
PHIL C100Introduction to Philosophy3
PHIL C113Environmental Ethics: Philosophical Approaches to Sustainability3
PSCI C183Introduction to International Relations3
PSCI C185Comparative Government and Politics3
SOC C100Introduction to Sociology3
SPAN C160Spanish for Spanish Speakers 15
SPAN C165Spanish for Spanish Speakers 25
SPAN C180Elementary Spanish 15
SPAN C180AElementary Spanish 1A2.5
SPAN C180BElementary Spanish 1B2.5
SPAN C185Elementary Spanish 25
SPAN C185AElementary Spanish 2A2.5
SPAN C185BElementary Spanish 2B2.5
SPAN C280Intermediate Spanish 14
SPAN C285Intermediate Spanish 24
VIET C160Vietnamese For Vietnamese Speakers5
VIET C180Elementary Vietnamese 15
VIET C185Elementary Vietnamese 25
VIET C280Intermediate Vietnamese 14
VIET C285Intermediate Vietnamese 24

*This requirement is waived for students completing an Associate Degree for Transfer (see Transfer Information for Associate Degree for Transfer).