General Education Courses are the courses that provide the well-rounded educational foundation for a college graduate. General Education coursework is taken regardless of the student’s program (major) and is usually broken into subject groups such as English Composition, Mathematics, Science, Social Sciences, and Humanities.
Transferability of General Education Courses
Because General Education Courses are more commonly shared across institutions and programs, they are usually the most likely to meet course equivalencies. This also makes these courses ideal for a student just starting in college or still undecided about a program major.
The 30-Credit Transfer Framework
The 30-Credit Transfer Framework provides a list of general education courses that are preapproved by all PA College Transfer schools. Students may select up to 30 credits to transfer toward a degree at any PA College Transfer institution.
Students should select a range of courses from all six categories according to the guidelines below. Students should consult an academic advisor prior to enrolling in more than 30-credits or exceeding the category requirements.
Certain majors have specific general education requirements prescribed by their program requirements. It is the student’s responsibility to work with an advisor to select appropriate courses as they relate to the major.
| Category 1 (select 1) | English Composition |
| Category 2 (select 1) | Public Speaking |
| Category 3 (select no more than 2) | Precalculus
Calculus I
Statistics
College Algebra |
| Category 4 (select no more than 2) | General Chemistry I and II
General Biology I and II
General Physics I and II
Anatomy and Physiology I and II
Introduction to Astronomy |
| Category 5 (select no more than 2) | General Psychology
Developmental Psychology
Intro to Sociology
Modern Social Problems
American Government
History of Western Civilization I and II
Principles of Macroeconomics
Principles of Microeconomics
U.S. History I and II |
| Category 6 (select no more than 2) | Intro to Music
Intro to Theatre
Intro to Philosophy
Ethics
Elementary Spanish I and II
Painting I
Drawing I
Intro, World, or American Literature |
Search 30-Credit Transfer Framework Courses by Institution
- Go to Course Equivalencies
- Enter Transfer From College
- Enter Transfer To College as “PA TAOC Standards”
- OPTIONAL: Narrow search in Advanced search options