Minimum CSU Admissions Requirements

In order to qualify as an upper-division (junior-level) transfer to CSU, students must meet the following requirements:

• Complete 60 units of CSU transferable coursework;
• Earn a minimum 2.00 GPA in all CSU transferable coursework (2.40 for CA non-residents);
• Complete at least 30.0 units of general education courses;
• Complete 4 core areas of GE with a grade of "C" or better;
• Oral communication
• Written communication
• Critical thinking
• Mathematics
• Be in good standing and eligible to reenroll at the college you attend prior to transfer.

General Education (GE)

Students have two options for completing GE in preparation for transfer to CSU. The first option is the California State University General Education Breadth (CSU GE-B)

The second option is the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC). Students must complete at least 30.0 units of general education to qualify for transfer, but completion of an entire GE pattern, either CSU GE-B or IGETC is frequently recommended. GE courses that must be completed with a "C" or better for admission include:

• Oral communication
  CSUGE-B Area A1 or IGETC Area 1C
• Written communication
  CSUGE-B Area A2 or IGETC Area 1A
• Critical thinking
  CSUGE-B Area A3 or IGETC Area 1B
• Mathematics
  CSUGE-B Area B4 or IGETC Area 2
• GE Certification

The certification of GE is the official notification from Community Colleges verifying that a transfer student has completed courses satisfying lower-division general education requirements. It is separate from a student transcript.

Students must complete the General Education Certification Request Form.
Mission College completes certification for both CSUGE-B and IGETC

Major Preparation

In general, most CSU campuses do not review for major preparation as part of the admissions decision. In order to reach the 60.0 unit minimum needed to qualify for upper-division transfer, students are encourage to complete as much of the lower-division major preparation courses for their program as possible.
Find out which CSU campuses offer a degree in your major.

Use ASSIST to find out what major courses are needed to transfer to your CSU of choice in your particular major.

Impaction

An undergraduate major or campus is designated as impacted when the number of applications received from fully qualified applicants during the initial filing period exceeds the number of available spaces. Such majors or campuses are authorized to use supplementary admission criteria to screen applications. Supplementary admission criteria could include, but is not limited to:

• Local area admissions priority
• GPA thresholds
• Major preparation requirements

Major impaction means that the number of applications from fully eligible students to a designated major on a CSU campus during the initial filing period far exceeds the number of spaces available in that major.

Campus impaction means that a campus has exhausted existing enrollment capacity in terms of the instructional resources and physical capacity of the campus.

The following universities have declared impaction in all majors:

• Cal State Fullerton
• San Diego State
• San Jose State
• Cal Poly - San Luis Obispo

Learn more about impaction within the CSU system.

Review the list of impacted majors at each CSU.

Learn more about the impaction criteria at each individual CSU.

Special Admissions Programs

TAA & TAG

There are two types of transfer agreements:

Transfer Admissions Agreement (TAA); and
Transfer Admissions Guarantee (TAG).
Both the TAA & the TAG secure a place for a student at the campus specified in the agreement, as long as the student meets the required conditions. There are currently no CSU campuses in the local Bay Area that offer a Transfer Admission Agreement..

Transfer Degrees: Associate in Arts for Transfer (AA-T) & Associate in Science for Transfer (AS-T)

California Community College students that have earned an AA-T or AS-T are guaranteed priority admission over all other transfer students when applying to a local or non-impacted campus or priority admission consideration to an impacted campus when applying to a CSU baccalaureate (BA) degree program that has been deemed similar to the student's community college area of emphasis. Mission College currently has 16 AA-T and AS-T degrees available.

Apply to a CSU

To apply to a CSU campus, students must complete an online application form.

Standard Application Dates

Fall: October 1 – November 30
Winter (quarter only): June 1 – 30
Spring: August 1 – 31
Summer: begins February 1

Check the CSU Filing Status Report to find out which campuses are currently accepting applications.

Upcoming Deadlines 

Upcoming deadlines to Apply to a CSU

Winter Quarter 2021: Applications for Winter 2021 are accepted beginning June 1, 2020.

Spring 2021: Applications for Spring 2021 are accepted beginning August 1, 2020.

Fall 2021: The priority application filing period for Fall 2021 will be October 1 - November 30, 2020.