Degree Requirements

Unit Requirements

  • Minimum units required to graduate:
    B.A. = 120-semester units minimum
    B.S. = 120 units minimum
  • Residence Requirement: 30 units minimum at SF State, including 24 units upper-division, and 12 units in the major (lower- or upper-division).
  • Upper-Division Requirement: 30 units minimum.

Maximum Unit Restrictions

  • Maximum Units for Community College Work: 70 units.
  • Maximum Units by Examination or Evaluation: 30 units.
  • Maximum Units CR/NC: No more than 24 units earned at SF State and applied toward the undergraduate degree may be taken for a grade of CR. Major courses only offered as CR/NC are not included in the 24 unit maximum.
  • Maximum Units for Courses Numbered "685" and Titled "Projects in Teaching . . ." That may be Applied to the Baccalaureate Degree: 4 units.

Grade Point Average

  • Minimum Grade Point Average: 2.0 in all college work, SF State work, and the major.

Major Requirements

Graduation Requirement in Writing Proficiency

All students must demonstrate competency in writing skills as a requirement for graduation. At SFSU, each baccalaureate degree program requires a Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR) course. These courses are identified with a GW after the course number and must be completed with a grade of C- or better to meet the requirement.

General Education Requirements – 43 units minimum

  • Special requirements can apply to each Area of the GE Program. Transfer students are subject to different GE requirements than are students admitted to SF State as first-time freshmen. See the GE section of this Bulletin for specific policies and course requirements.

SF State Studies Requirements

  • Undergraduate students must complete courses that cover the four areas of SF State Studies: American Ethnic and Racial Minorities (AERM). Environmental Sustainability and Climate Action (ESCA), Global Perspectives (GP), and Social Justice (SJ). Courses designated to cover these areas can be found in General Education (GE) courses, major or minor courses, Complementary Studies courses, or elective coursework. As SF State Studies designated courses can be found throughout the curriculum at SF State, it is expected that the great majority of students will be able to plan to complete these requirements while completing other degree requirements. The only exception for completing the SF State Studies requirements applies to students who transferred from a California Community College with a verified AA-T or AS-T degree and are pursuing a similar approved major at SF State. These students do not need to complete the SF State Studies requirements.
  • Students studying abroad can petition to have the Global Perspectives area of the SF State Studies requirement met with a study abroad course.

American Institutions Requirement

  • The American Institutions requirement consists of two categories:
    • U.S. History
    • U.S. and California Government
  • Students who begin at SF State as first-time college students will satisfy US History by completing a Lower-Division Area 4 course with USH in the General Education program.