COLTS-U Transfer Center

Building 9, Room 106, 1st Floor
Phone: (650) 306-3463
Email: cantransctr@smccd.edu
Web: canadacollege.edu/transfercenter

Office Hours: By Appointment/Drop-In. The COLTS-U Transfer Center’s mission is to provide transfer information and services to students in order for them to make informed decisions about their transfer goals, to offer services and opportunities that ease their transitions to a four-year university, and to empower students to successfully reach their transfer goals.

Students attending Cañada College may complete lower division course requirements, in the major and general education, in preparation for four-year universities. After completing the course requirements, students may use the credits earned and transfer as an upper-division student to a California State University, a University of California, an in-state Private university, or any institution out of state.

The COLTS-U Transfer Center provides guidance to students with their transfer choices. Some of the services provided by the COLTS-U Transfer Center are: academic counseling that leads students to a four-year university by guiding them with the transfer process such as selecting a major, choosing a university, developing an Educational Plan, supporting with the admissions applications, and more. The COLTS-U Transfer Center provides opportunities for students to connect with universities such as: coordinating the visits of individual university representatives throughout the semester, organizing a college fair that hosts representatives from universities throughout the United States, and scheduling field trips to local universities that familiarize students with those institutions and university partnership programs. The COLTS-U Transfer Center also offers a variety of workshops related to the transfer process and planning. We also offer the UC Transfer Admission Guarantee (TAG) and other dual admission and pathway agreements with CSU schools, as well as private and out-of-state universities.

Transfer Requirements for CSU and UC Campuses:

Colleges and universities have admission requirements specific to the campus and the programs, but in general, to transfer as an upper-division student, students must complete 60 transferable units that may include:

  • Lower Division courses in preparation for the major
  • General Education (GE):
    • CSU General Education Breadth – Students who plan to apply to California State Universities (CSU) only may follow this GE pattern
    • Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) – Students who plan to apply to University of California (UC), and/or California State Universities may follow this GE pattern.
  • Electives–any transferable courses in addition to major and GE courses to meet the 60-unit requirements

Please Note: Students, who are transferring to CSU or UC and complete one of the above GE patterns, may provide a verification of completion of lower division GE courses. To do so, they need to request an official transcript including a full or partial certification of GE courses via WebSMART. Students, who do not file for certification, must follow the local GE pattern at CSU and UC Campuses.

Some of the California private universities may also accept IGETC in lieu of their local GE requirements. For more information, please meet with a counselor and/or visit the university’s website.

Transfer Admission Guarantee (TAG) to University of California (UC)

The UC Transfer Admission Guarantee allows students to sign a contract with participant universities to ensure their admission. To be eligible for a UC Transfer Admission Guarantee, students must have successfully completed a minimum of 30 transferable units, meet the university’s admission requirements for specific programs, complete 60 UC Transferrable units prior to transfer, and file an Admission Application. Students must meet with a Counselor to discuss the transfer option during the first year of attendance. The universities of California (UC) campuses that offer guaranteed admission to students at Cañada College are:

  • UC Davis
  • UC Irvine
  • UC Merced
  • UC Riverside
  • UC Santa Barbara
  • UC Santa Cruz

Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT)

In accordance to Senate Bill 1440, Cañada College currently offers multiple Transfer Degrees, for the AA-T/AS-T. Students who are interested in transferring to California State Universities (CSU) may benefit from completing one of these degrees when applying to CSU campuses. It is crucial for students to contact a counselor and/or the Transfer Center to discuss and plan for this degree as soon as they select their major.

Visit https://canadacollege.edu/transfercenter/index.php for more information, and see a list of current ADT degrees offerings at Cañada College in the "Programs" section of this catalog. More information about the SB1440 and Transfer Degrees is available at https://icangotocollege.com/.

Some of the In-state private universities and out-of- state universities will consider the Associate Degree for Transfer for the admission purposes. 

Transfer to In-State Private University or Out-of-State University

Students may also choose to transfer to a private university in California or an out-of-state university.  The admission requirements and selection criteria for these universities are unique to each campus. Students must follow the university’s admission and course requirements. See an academic counselor and the university’s Transfer and Admission Web page for more information.

University Partnerships:

Cañada College has a partnership with Notre Dame de Namur University in their Bachelor’s Degree Completion Programs and a transfer pathway partnership with San Francisco State University. The NDNU completion programs include Business and Psychology. For more information on NDNU visit: https://canadacollege.edu/university/programs.php. For more information on the SF State AANAPISI ARC Transfer Pathway program visit: https://canadacollege.edu/aanapisi/index.php

How to Apply to a Four-Year University:

The admission requirements and application information is available at each individual university website and at the links provided below:

Articulation Agreements

Articulation agreements are formal agreements between community colleges and four-year universities that define how courses taken at a community college can be used to satisfy a subject matter requirement at a four-year university. In addition to all CSU and UC campuses, Cañada College has Articulation Agreements with the majority of Independent and Private Universities, and out of state universities. See an academic counselor for information on the articulation agreements.

See a list of courses and majors articulated with CSU and UC campuses at www.assist.org.

Transfer in Students

Students who complete lower division courses at another accredited college and/or university may receive unit credit toward a certificate and/or Associate degree. In order to evaluate prior credits, students must request official transcript from all colleges/universities attended to be sent by mail to our SMCCD Transcript EvaluS.T.A.R.ation Services (TES) at:

Transcript Evaluation Services   
C/O College of San Mateo    
1700 W Hillsdale Blvd.   
San Mateo, CA 94402  

OR

By Electronic Transcripts to: transevaluation@smccd.edu 

The evaluation of the course work may be used toward:

  • Associate degree and Certificates, CSU GE breadth certification; and/or IGETC Certification.
  • For more information about TES visit http://smccd.edu/transeval/

S.T.A.R. Program

Phone: (650) 306-3407
Email: hom@smccd.edu
Web: canadacollege.edu/aanapisi/arc.php

Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander S.T.A.R. Program

The Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) S.T.A.R. Program (Success, Transfer, Access, Relevance) Program supports persistence, transfer and completion by providing first-year experience programs, transfer pathway programs and culturally responsive support for our Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, first-generation and low-income (historically underserved) students.

  • ARC (Access, Relevance and Community) transfer pathway program to SF State
    • University visits & transfer workshops
    • Peer mentors
  • AANHPI cultural events and immersion experiences
  • AANHPI leadership opportunities and conferences

Please visit the website for more information: https://canadacollege.edu/aanapisi/