Pending Governing Board Approval, 8/27/19. For the most current information regarding common policies degree requirements, log on to https://
curriculum.maricopa.edu/curriculum/degrees-certificates/associate-degrees/academic-policies
Degree Requirements | CGCC Catalog & Student Handbook 2019-2020 1 5 1
• Credits completed toward these minimums must be in courses numbered 100 or above with a grade of "C" or
better. These credits must include a minimum of 35 in satisfaction of the requirements of the Arizona General
Education Curriculum (AGEC) along with a maximum of 6 credits towards MCCCD's Additional Requirements.
• Detailed degree requirements are maintained by the Center for Curriculum and Transfer Articulation (CCTA); refer
to the program search at https://curriculum.maricopa.edu/. Advisement checksheets are maintained at https://
curriculum.maricopa.edu/curriculum/degrees-certificates/associate-degrees/academic-degree-checklists-aa-as-
abus-ags.
General Education Requirements
The AGEC requirements include a designated number of courses approved for each of the following areas:
Core
• First Year Composition [FYC],
• Mathematical Applications [MA], Computer/Statistics/Quantitative Applications [CS] (CS not required for Associate
in Science),
• Literacy and Critical Inquiry [L],
• Humanities, Arts and Design [HU],
• Social-Behavioral Sciences [SB], and
• Natural Sciences (Science Quantitative [SQ], Science-General [SG]).
Awareness Areas
• Cultural Diversity in the U.S. [C]
• Global [G] or Historical [H] Awareness
• Note that there are three different AGECs each aligning with a different subset of associate Degrees--AGEC-A for the
Associate in Arts degree (and major-specific pathway maps), AGEC-B for the Associate in Business degree (and major-
specific pathway maps), and AGEC-S for the Associate in Science degree (and major-specific pathway maps). For some
types of AGECs/Associate degrees, students are allowed to choose from a broad list of courses; for others the courses
are more restricted or even specified.
• A single course can simultaneously count toward a Core Area, one or more Awareness Areas, MCCCD Additional
Requirements and, for some degree types, other lower division courses used to meet the degree requirements. For
example, CRE101 may be used to satisfy both the MCCCD Reading Requirement and the Literacy and Critical Inquiry
area [L] of AGEC core. While multiple requirements can be met with a single course, the credits are only counted one
time toward the required minimum for the degree.
• Except for the Associate in Science degree, a single course cannot be used to satisfy more than one AGEC Core Area.
• The AGEC-A and AGEC-B require a minimum of 35 credits and the AGEC-S requires a minimum of 36 credits, however,
the AGEC credit count within the total credits for a degree may be under these minimums if courses are also applied
toward Required Courses or Restricted Electives and the credits are counted in those areas. Awareness Areas and
MCCCD's Additional Requirements may also be shared with AGEC Core Areas. Optimizing credits in this way is often
recommended because some programs and universities limit transferable credits at 64.
Coursework beyond General Education
• For some degree types, the additional coursework required to complete the degree is specified while others offer
the student more latitude. See degree checksheets for more complete description. Consultation with an academic
advisor about course selection is always recommended.
• Oral Communication and Critical Reading are MCCCD Additional Requirements required for Associate in Arts and
Associate in Science degrees and the major-specific pathway maps within the AA and AS degrees. Refer to the
Program (Degree) Search at curriculum.maricopa.edu for acceptable options to meet these requirements for
individual degree programs.
