Frequently Asked Questions

Adding new courses

How do I add courses to previous academic years?

Schools, districts, school networks, and UC/CSU extended learning programs can add courses to previous academic years.

For new course submissions, you will have the option to add the course to previous years (if eligible) on the last page of the course submission form. 

For already approved courses:

  1. Go to the Course or Reference List page.
  2. Click the menu button to the very right of the course you would like to add to previous academic years.
  3. Select “Add course to a previous year”.
  4. Select the years you would like to add it to and click Save.

We’re teaching an online course purchased/licensed from an online course publisher. How do we add online publisher courses to our school’s course list?

Please see UC's updated online course publisher policy for information on how to self-report online publisher courses to your A-G course list. 

How do I activate an archived course?

  1. Go to the Course List page.
  2. Click the menu button in the top right corner and select “Course Archive”.
  3. Select the plus icon to the very right of the course you’d like to activate.
  4. Complete the submission form and submit course to UC or forward to your course/reference list manager to submit to UC.

Note: When activating archived courses, make necessary edits to the course information and description to make sure it meets current A-G course criteria and submission requirements.

We have a course that was not approved during the last course submission period. How do we resubmit the course?

You will need to start a brand new course submission using the "Add a brand new course" feature and copy/paste the course content from the not approved course as needed.

How can we add a course on one school’s course list to another school’s course lists within the district/school network?

Please make sure you work with your schools’ course list managers and district/school network reference list manager to determine the best course of action for your schools and district.

If the course is district-owned (shaded yellow), follow the steps in “How do I add a school to a district-owned course?”

If the course is school-owned and your district/school network has centralized management, your district/school network reference list manager must follow the steps below:

  1. Go to the Reference List page.
  2. Click the menu button to the very right of the course.
  3. Select “Convert to district-owned course”.
  4. Follow the steps in “How do I add a school to a district-owned course?”

If the course is school-owned and your district/school network has joint management, the course list manager for the school that owns the course must follow the steps below:

  1. Go to the Course List page.
  2. Click the menu button to the very right of the course.
  3. Select “Convert to district-owned course”.
  4. Follow the steps in “How do I add a school to a district-owned course?”

Are there any sample courses I can reference when writing a new A-G course submission?

Yes! If you have a user account in the A-G CMP, you can view approved A-G courses through the "Course Search" feature.

  1. After logging into the A-G CMP, select Search from the menu options at the top of the screen.
  2. Type a course title or key words in the search window
  3. Click Filters to view filter options for refining your search. 

You can also find sample courses on A-G Policy Resource Guide under the Update your A-G List tab in the left-hand navigation. 

  1. Click on Update your A-G list.
  2. Click on Writing A-G Courses.
  3. Scroll down to the section titled, "Sample course descriptions" 
  4. Click on the available links to read annotated excerpts of course descriptions, one for each subject area

 

 

How do I add program (such as AP, IB, AVID, regional ROPs, UCCI, etc.) courses to my school’s course list?

  1. Click Add a New Course and select Add a program course.
  2. Select the appropriate program from the dropdown menu.
  3. Begin typing the course title and results will begin to populate.
  4. Select the course and click Continue.
  5. Complete the submission form and submit course to UC or forward to your course/reference list manager to submit to UC.

To see which programs have A-G reference lists, visit the A-G Reference List website (https://hs-articulation.ucop.edu/agcourselist/referencelist).

I'm seeing this message under Awaiting Course/Reference List Manager to Submit: There are no users at your institution who can submit forwarded courses to UC for review. What do I need to do so the course gets submitted?

If the course or reference list manager listed for for your institution is correct, please have them email us at HSArticulation@ucop.edu so we can fix their user permissions.

If your institution does not have a course or reference list manager listed, please email us with the name of the user who should be listed as the course or reference list manager. If they don't already have an A-G CMP user account, please have them register for a user account on the A-G CMP login page before emailing us.

Once you have a course or reference list manager listed, they will see the course under "Awaiting My Submission". They will be able to open the course draft and submit the course to UC for review.

We missed the course submission deadline and a course was left off our list, what can we do?

You will need to wait until the annual submission period opens on February 1 to submit the course. Schools, districts, and school networks can add the course retroactively up to three previous academic years when the submission period opens.

For seniors who are taking courses that were not submitted by August 31st and who intend to apply to the University of California, we recommend they self-report the course. They can check the “I don’t see my courses” button in the UC admission application, and then manually enter the course/grade. They can then add clarifying information in the “Additional Comments” section of the application. You may choose to provide common language that students can copy and paste to use in their clarification. 

If you have other questions about admissions policy or evaulations, please contact askUC@ucop.edu.

How do I add district or school network-owned course to a school's course list?

If you are a district/school network reference list manager, please do the following:

  1. Go to the Reference List page.
  2. Click the menu button to the very right of the course.
  3. Select “Add / remove school”.
  4. Select “+ Add school”.
  5. Select the school from the dropdown menu and add transcript abbreviation(s) and click “Save”.

If you are a school user, please contact your district/school network reference list manager to add your school to the course.

What do I need to include in my course description?

Course descriptions must include:

  • Course Overview: 3-5 sentences describing the overarching content and goals of the course
  • Course Content for each unit: Provide evidence the course meets A-G subject area criteria
    • Unit summary (one for each unit in the course): What students will learn
      3-5 sentences describing the topics being addressed that demonstrate the critical thinking, depth, and progression of the content covered.
    • Unit assignment (one for each unit in the course): How students demonstrate learning
      3-5 sentences summarizing an example of a key assignment from this unit and covering how a student will complete this assignment, what a student will produce, and what the student will learn.
    • Unit lab (One for each unit in the course; only for science (D) courses):
      Example of a teacher-supervised, hands-on laboratory activity that involves inquiry, observation, analysis, and write-up. Briefly describe the activity and how it directly relates to and supports the student learning outcomes of this unit (2-4 sentences).

Use the unit(s) and key assignment(s) to demonstrate that the course meets the subject-specific course criteria on the A-G Policy Resource Guide. Be sure to show how the unit(s) and key assignment(s) support students to:

A - History / social science

  • Engage in research and analysis by formulating questions to serve as the basis for productive investigation.
  • Evaluate and communicate information through a variety of written and oral assignments.
    Examine how and why societies change and the different ways (economic, political, cultural, and social) we can explain those changes.
  • Explore the building blocks of different societies and/or identify the defining features of different political systems.
  • Examine how societies obtain, produce, and distribute their resources and services and/or analyze the impact of environmental or geographical change on societies.

B - English

  • Read extensively (excerpts as well as full-length texts) across a variety of genres, non-literary as well as literary, including informational texts.
  • Engage in writing exercises in which they respond to varying demands of audience, purpose, genre, and discipline through a recursive process that may involve gathering evidence and evaluating its validity.
  • Develop essential critical listening skills, and practice speaking in large and small groups.

C - Mathematics

  • Apply mathematical knowledge in a way that allows them to analyze and understand a broad array of phenomena (i.e., math is more than just rote memorization of definitions, algorithms, and/or theorems).
  • Use mathematics to grasp and persevere in solving unfamiliar problems, justify their solutions to those problems, and understand the purpose behind each concept and skill they apply.
    • Find and use patterns of reasoning or structure, make and test conjectures, try multiple representations (e.g., symbolic, geometric, graphical) and approaches (e.g., deduction, mathematical induction, linking to known results).
    • Make abstractions and generalizations and verify that solutions are correct, approximate, or reasonable.
  • Use mathematical models to guide their understanding of the world around us.

D - Science

  • Ask questions (for science) and define problems (for engineering), and then construct explanations and design solutions.
  • Develop and use models to solve scientific problems; plan and carry out investigations.
  • Observe, analyze, and interpret data; use mathematics and computational thinking.
  • Formulate arguments and conclusions, and support them with reason and evidence.
  • Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information.
    • Read a variety of domain-specific scientific and technical texts.
    • Write clearly and coherently using the language conventions of scientific discourse (e.g., laboratory reports).
    • Discuss scientific ideas with other students.

E - Language other than English

  • Express their own meaning and stances in the target language, working on speaking and listening in a variety of interpersonal contexts.
  • Develop an appropriate cultural interpretation of meanings that occur in written, spoken, and/or signed (American Sign Language, ASL) form.
  • Create and present oral, written, and signed (ASL) messages in a manner that facilitates interpretation by members of the other culture.

F - Visual and performing arts

  • Develop and refine artistic techniques and methods in order to interpret, analyze, and conceptualize artwork.
  • Acquire and use written, verbal, or nonverbal communication skills in a variety of forms and contexts to convey meaning through the production, performance, presentation, and/or exhibition of works of art through active practice, rehearsal, and/or creation.
  • Study and gain an understanding of the social, cultural, and historical contributions and dimensions of the arts.
  • Use artistic processes and a variety of theoretical perspectives to analyze and share formal critiques on the aesthetic choices, impact, and purpose of works of art.
  • Apply theories, artistic processes, technologies, and methodologies from within one art form to another arts/media form and academic disciplines.

G - College-preparatory elective

  • Read and write within the context of the course in meaningful ways.
  • Solve problems (including laboratory work, as appropriate) specific to the discipline(s).
  • Develop analytical thinking and research skills.
  • Develop oral communication and listening skills.