Unit Requirements

Credit for academic work at UCSB is expressed in units. Generally, the value assigned to a course is determined at the rate of 1 unit for every 3 hours of student work required each week during a 10-week term. The unit value assigned to a course is determined by the number of class meetings each week and by the student’s class preparation time.

Courses at UCSB are identified by their course number as lower-division, upper-division, graduate, or professional as follows:

*Professional courses do not apply to the bachelor’s degree 
 

Sixty upper-division units are required for degree completion. UCSB courses are considered upper-division if they are numbered 100-199. Graduate courses numbered 200-299 and 500-599 will apply to the upper-division unit requirements. Note for Community College Transfer students: Units from community colleges are applied to the lower-division unit total; community colleges do not offer upper-division courses. 

The university accepts a maximum of 105 quarter units or 70 semester units of lower division credit for college courses completed at two-year colleges or non-UC institutions. Only subject credit for specific lower-division requirements is assigned subsequently. In addition, graduation credit cannot be assigned for: 

• Exercise and Sport Studies 1- courses or their equivalents in excess of six units. 
• Repetition of courses for which credit has already been earned, unless their official descriptions in the General Catalog permit repetition for credit.
• Courses that duplicate material covered in similar courses already completed (such as Communication 87 and any course from PSTAT 5AA-ZZ).
• Lower-division language courses for students who have completed ninth grade or higher in a school that uses that language for instruction.
• Foreign language courses at the same level or lower level than any such courses already completed. 
• 98/99 and 198/199/199AA-ZZ independent studies courses in excess of the 30-unit cumulative limit placed upon these classes.
• University Extension courses numbered other than 1-299.
• Courses graded F, NP, I, IP, or W at the time of graduation.
• Courses not transferable to the University of California.
• Courses from unaccredited schools.
• UC courses numbered 300-499

The college expects students to graduate with no more than 200 units. College policy requires students to secure specific approval to continue enrollment beyond 200 units. College credit earned before high school graduation does not count toward the 200-unit maximum. This includes credit for Advanced Placement, Cambridge A Level examination, International Baccalaureate examinations, and also college or university credit earned while still in high school. In addition, students who are admitted as freshmen and remain continuously enrolled will be allowed 12 regular quarters at UCSB, and students admitted as juniors who remain continuously enrolled will be allowed 6 regular quarters even if they earn more than 200 units during that period. Students are also free to attend summer session. Summer session does not count as a regular quarter in this calculation, but units earned in summer session apply toward the 200-unit maximum.

Note: If students discontinue enrollment at UCSB and earn a large number of units at one or more other academic institutions while they are away, the number of quarters allowed at UCSB will be reduced in proportion to the number of terms completed elsewhere.

Students who think they may exceed both the quarter limitations noted and 200 units may submit a Proposed Schedule for Graduation (found on the Petitions page under Other Petitions & Forms) for consideration by the dean of undergraduate education, but they should understand that approval is granted only in very limited circumstances.