Frequently Asked Questions

Incoming transfer students are required to attend transfer New Student Orientation (NSO) to learn about the university, meet with an advisor, plan a class schedule, and register for classes. For more information, please contact NSO.

If you have completed both your General Education level English Composition and Mathematics courses with a grade of "C" or higher, please disregard the note for developmental needs. These notes are placed by default until the Office of Admissions and Records has completely evaluated your transcripts and issued you credit for the appropriate GE level requirements.

CSUDH utilizes a college advising student success model. Under this model, students benefit from having their advisor in their respective college.

Transfer students should plan on meeting the college advisor at minimum on the following three occasions:

• First semester of enrollment
  • Students must attend Transfer New Student Orientation before meeting with advisor
• After completion of second semester
  • This is a great time to reevaluate your education plan and revisit academic and/or professional goals with an academic advisor
• Before submission of a graduation application
  • Ensure all GE, unit, GPA, and GWAR requirements, and a post-graduation plan are in order

Remember to schedule a meeting with your major department on a regular basis for major-related requirements.

Not necessarily. It is important that you meet with a college advisor during your first semester at CSUDH to ensure all lower division General Education requirements have been met. Additionally, all students are required to complete nine units of upper division General Education coursework.* These nine units consist of one course in each of the following disciplines: humanities, natural science, and social science. These courses must be completed at CSUDH, as upper division coursework is not offered at the community college level.**

*Course substitutions may apply for students majoring in the sciences. Please consult with an academic advisor.

**Students transferring from a sister CSU should consult with an academic advisor before completing upper division GE coursework.

By the first week of the semester, your transfer coursework will be available through the Academic Requirements Report within your My.CSUDH student portal. The Academic Requirements Report is an online tool which allows you to see completed, in progress, and outstanding degree requirements. While the Academic Requirements Report is a great tool for course planning, it should not be used as a substitute for academic advising.

• Log into My.CSUDH
• Click on Student Center on the top left side of the screen
• Click on the drop-down menu labeled Other Academic on the left side of the screen
• Select Academic Requirements
• Click Go
• Click the blue Expand All button once the report loads

Certification is the official notification from a California Community College or authorized institution that a transfer student has completed courses fulfilling lower-division General Education requirements. The CSU GE-Breadth and the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) certification are both accepted.

The Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR) is satisfied by passing the Graduation Writing Exam (GWE) or by taking appropriate writing certification course(s): ENG 350, or IDS 397 and IDS 398. Students with 75 units or more must satisfy the GWAR as soon as possible. If transfer students have satisfied this requirement at another CSU campus prior to admission to CSUDH, please contact the Testing Center, WH A-210, (310) 243-3909 for more information about the GWE.