Understanding GE Catalog Rights

Understanding Catalog Rights

Description and Definitions

Catalog rights are the policies, requirements, and course/program descriptions that are published in the University Catalog in a specific year. Catalogs are revised each year to include corrections and approved changes, so it is very important for students to look at the appropriate catalog year to make sure they are following the correct major, General Education (GE), and other university-wide graduation requirements.  Students are encouraged to meet with their academic advisors to make sure they are fulfilling the correct requirements and staying on track to graduation. 

Students establish catalog rights for a particular published catalog.  The major catalog and graduation requirements (including GE) catalogs may be different, so a distinction may be made between major catalog rights and GE/graduation requirements (or GE/graduation) catalog rights.  The following information explains the GE/Graduation Catalog Rights. 

Undergraduate students can select their GE/Graduation Catalog Rights from one of the following catalog years:

  1. Continuous Enrollment Catalog Year.  Catalog rights of the year of the first term that continuous enrollment began.  “Continuous enrollment” is defined as enrollment in one semester or two quarters at a California community college and/or CSU campus per year.  If there is a full year during which the student does not complete coursework at a California community college or CSU campus, then the student is considered to have broken their continuous enrollment and will be held to the catalog rights of the term/year that the student returned to CSUEB. 
  2. CSUEB Admission Term Catalog Year.  Students transferring after establishing continuous enrollment may select catalog rights of the term/year that the student begins at CSUEB.  
  3. Graduation Catalog Year.  Catalog rights of the year the student is graduating.  Student must be a graduation candidate in that academic year in order to be granted a Graduation Catalog Year. 
  4. Semester Conversion Catalog Year.  During Fall Semester, 2018, continuing students with catalog rights to the 2017-2018 catalog or earlier may move their GE/graduation catalog year to 2018-2019.  A student can opt to remain on a quarter catalog to complete their major requirements but switch to the semester catalog to complete their GE requirements.  In this case, the student follows the "quarter pattern" of required major courses but the "semester pattern" of required GE courses.  Analogous rules apply to students who use the quarter catalog for graduation requirements and semester catalog for major requirements.  All courses are semester courses from Fall 2018.  Requests to change to the Semester Conversion Catalog Year can be submitted from June 1, 2018 until the end of Summer 2020.   

By default, the most recent CSUEB admission year is used as the GE/Graduation Requirements Catalog.  This is reflected in the student's Degree Audit Report in MyCSUEB.  Students can change/update their GE/Graduation Requirements Catalog Year by submitting the Request to Update GE Catalog Year form.    

Deciding on GE Catalog Rights

icon-gearsIf you are a continuing undergraduate student (i.e., you enrolled in CSUEB prior to Fall 2018 and have not broken continuous enrollment) and still have to complete a number of lower division GE requirements, you may want to switch your GE/graduation catalog rights to the Semester Conversion (Fall 2018) Catalog Year.  If you are a continuing undergraduate student or new transfer student who has completed all lower division GE requirements, you may want to remain on the quarter GE/graduation catalog rights, because the additional Overlay requirements and requirement to meet the 45-48 semester unit minimum for GE under the semester catalog may require you to take more classes if you switch to the semester catalog.  Although the double-counting of GE with major courses goes into effect with semesters, it's important to note that you can't receive GE credit for a course that is not GE-certified, and many major courses have not been approved for GE credit. 

GET the Request to Update GE Catalog Year form.

SEE a comparison chart of the main differences between quarter and semester GE and graduation requirements.  

CONSULT an academic advisor to help you make the best decision on which GE catalog rights you should follow and before you fill out the Request to Update GE Catalog Year Form.