Guidance & Counseling Center - "Working together for student success."
Degrees and Certificates - How They Work!
There are three academic objectives you can complete at Victor Valley College: Occupational Certificates, the Associate's Degree, and transfer to a university. Counselors are available to advise you on setting your educational goals and selecting courses to meet your particular needs. You can find more information about your academic options in the College Catalog. Some people confuse the College Catalog with the Class Schedule (WebAdvisor). They are both available in hard copy and online, and you really need both: the Catalog tells you about all the college's programs, rules, services, and so on, while the Schedule tells you the days, times, and location classes are offered during the fall, spring, and summer terms. The most current and updated class schedule for the current term can be found on WebAdvisor: http://webadvisor.vvc.edu/.
Occupational Certificates
Certificates of Achievement are designed to prepare students for specific occupations. The number of units required varies from program to program. Certificates include only the required technical courses (no General Education courses); some programs have prerequisites. To identify the exact courses required, look in the Catalog for the program you're interested in.
What many people do is complete a certificate program, then sometime later (even years later!), come back to school and use those courses again as the major for an associate's degree--or even as preparation for transfer. Other people work on certificates and the requirements for a degree at the same time. We can help you figure out what would work best for you.
Graduation with an Associate's Degree
Students can earn an Associate's Degree and, with careful planning, also meet some or all of the requirements for transfer to a four-year college or university.
Graduation generally requires the equivalent of two years of full-time study which leads to an Associate in Science (A.S.) or Associate in Arts (A.A.) degree. Note that for most people, a "two-year degree" actually takes longer than two years - it just depends on how fast you go.
For an overview of programs available, please refer to "Programs of Study" in the Victor Valley College Catalog. Also, you can visit the different departments' webpages on this site.
REQUIREMENTS FOR GRADUATION WITH AN ASSOCIATE DEGREE The college's graduation requirements allow students to earn an associate's degree and, with careful planning, simultaneously meet requirements either for an occupational certificate or for some or all of the requirements for transfer to a four-year college or university, or both. Students who wish to transfer should check with their intended institution regarding which courses meet that school's requirements.
General Requirements (Section A) Tip: If you're going to transfer to a university, keep in mind when you plan your courses that you can save time by fitting your transfer university's pre-major and general education course requirements into VVC's graduation requirements; that is, use the courses THEY require, in order to meet VVC's requirements. We can help you sort that out. Courses for Your Major (Section B) General Education (GE) Requirements (Section C) Physical Education (PE) (Section D) Any activity or non-activity (lecture) PE course of 1 unit or more will fulfill this requirement. Completion of military basic training fulfills this requirement (a copy of the student's form DD214 or other documentation must be on file with the Office of Admissions). Health 102 (GE Category I) or PE 103 (GE Category III) can simultaneously satisfy the General Education category and the PE requirement. Athletics courses are not used to fulfill the PE requirement. A maximum of 4 units of PE activity courses will count toward the degree. Electives (Section E) Application for Graduation Second Degree or Additional Degrees 1. Students must complete an additional 18 units from an approved departmental major for each additional degree Catalog Under Which You Graduate |
Four Year College or University
Students can generally complete the first two to three years of a bachelor's degree at a community college, like VVC, while simultaneously pursuing their associate's degree. To determine the exact courses you need to take here in order to satisfy requirements at your intended transfer institution, consult with a counselor, with VVC's Transfer Center, and, of course, with the transfer institution itself. For more information about transferring, please visit the Transfer Center (Bldg. 55) or the Transfer Planning pages of this website.
TRANSFERRING TO A FOUR-YEAR COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY Students can generally complete the first two to three years' worth of a bachelor's degree at a community college, like VVC, while simultaneously earning an associate's degree. To determine the exact courses you need to take here in order to satisfy requirements at your intended transfer institution, find your major in the the grey-shaded section of the Catalog, "Programs of Study." If your school (or major) is not listed, you will need to make further inquiries. Consult with a counselor, with VVC 's Transfer Center and, of course, with the transfer institution itself. An excellent website for exploring majors and finding out more specific information about transferring to UC and CSU campuses is www.assist.org. Plan to spend some time on that site, as there's so much available there. For private colleges and universities in California, check out www.californiacolleges.edu. There are four major types of universities or four-year schools to which community college students transfer: The University of California (UC) system, the California State University (CSU) system, private institutions, and out-of-state institutions. University of California (UC) California State University (CSU) Private and Out-of-State Institutions Nontraditional Degree Programs Locally in the Victor Valley, there are small, off-campus universities whose main campuses are located elsewhere. You can view a list of Four-Year Universities in the High Desert here. For more information about transferring, please visit the Transfer Center located in Bldg. 55. |
The Victor Valley College Catalog, which contains a wealth of practical information on Programs of Study, Course Descriptions, General Education and Graduation Requirements, can be accessed online or can be purchased at the VVC Rams Bookstore.
Last Updated 1/3/17