Home Catalog Graduation and Transfer Preparing to Transfer Transfer to a Private or Out-of-State College

Transfer to a Private or Out-of-State College

American River College's Counseling and Transfer Services can support you in evaluating transfer requirements and articulation agreements to many independent, private, or out-of-state colleges to which you want to transfer. Most four-year institutions give full credit for general education courses and other courses designated for transfer at community colleges. The key is to start early so that you can develop a plan for your options.

See ARC’s Articulation Agreements for the most up-to-date information regarding courses that are considered comparable to many independent, private, and out-of-state colleges.

Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities (AICCU)

The Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities (AICCU) is made up of more than 80 independent, private non-profit colleges and universities in California. Many have unique and specific transfer requirements. Visit AICCU's Choosing a College website to learn more about their campuses.

Many AICCU colleges and universities offer guaranteed admission when you earn an Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT) from a community college. You can view a full list of AICCU ADT Participating Institutions and majors accepted.

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) were created primarily to serve the higher education needs of the Black community, however, they are open to students of all ethnicities. HBCUs are located in the South and on the East Coast and award bachelor's degrees in many fields; many award master's and doctorate degrees as well. (Source: California Community Colleges Transfer Guarantee Pathways to HBCU. To learn more about the History of HBCU campuses, please visit History of Black Higher Education in America.)

Any California community college student with a GPA of 2.0 or higher (note: certain partner HBCUs will require a higher GPA) is guaranteed admission to all partner HBCU institutions using either of the following two options:

Complete an associate degree for transfer (ADT) using the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) or the California State University General Education Breadth pattern.
Complete a minimum of 30 UC or CSU units.

Resources

HBCU: How to Qualify
California Community Colleges HBCU Partner Schools
Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) – The WUE is an agreement among the 16 member states and territories of the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE), through which over 160 participating public colleges and universities provide significant nonresident tuition savings for Western students. In addition, many out-of-state colleges participate in the WUE, which offers discounts to California students in certain majors. To learn more about WUE and eligibility, visit the WICHE’s major/program search feature.