The "a-g" course list must be published each year and accurately reflect the courses being offered. UC encourages high schools, districts and programs to begin updating their course list early.
A high school's “a-g” course list is an important component of the UC and CSU admissions application and evaluation process. In addition to verifying the college-preparatory coursework reported in the application, admissions evaluators use the course list to gain a better understanding of the applicant's academic achievements in light of the opportunities available at the student’s high school.
The “a-g” course list annual update checklist
1. Verify your school’s demographic information.
The demographic information must be verified and submitted to publish your “a-g” course list for the upcoming year and before any course revisions or new courses can be submitted.
2. Submit new courses for “a-g” approval.
New courses submitted for the first time require the submission of subject-specific course content information, such as a course purpose, outline and key assignments.
3. Revise existing courses.
Basic revisions to a course, such as a change in course title, transcript abbreviation, category or grade level, do not require the resubmission of a course's content description.
4. Keep track of unsubmitted, under-review and reviewed courses.
Use the "Draft," "Submitted" and "Results" sections on the Online Update website to track the progress and results of your course submissions.
5. Check your course list for accuracy.
Before the update cycle closes, verify that your "a-g" course list is accurate. Your course list should include all courses available to your students for the upcoming academic year. Courses not taught for the given year should be removed. Check that all course titles and transcript abbreviations match those used in your student information systems and course catalogs. Errors in “a-g” course lists can disadvantage prospective University of California and California State University (CSU) applicants.
The Online Update website
All new course submissions and course list updates to an “a-g” course list are submitted using this website.
No changes to your “a-g” course list?
Submission of an updated version of your school’s demographic information will roll forward all approved courses from the previous year and publish the upcoming year’s “a-g” course list.
Sample courses
Samples of courses approved in the “a-g” subject areas are available for reference as you prepare your own course for UC approval.
New schools
California high schools are eligible to establish an “a-g” course list if they are a diploma-granting institution and are accredited, or a candidate for accreditation.