MISSION: Northland Pioneer College provides educational excellence that is affordable and accessible for the enrichment of communities across northeastern Arizona.

General Education Certificate of Proficiency

A fulfillment of the Arizona General Education Curriculum (AGEC)
AGEC Transfer Program

Thinking about a university but not sure where to start? The newly designed General Education Certificate of Proficiency from Northland Pioneer College is the smart choice for a smooth transition! Here’s why: 

  1. COST SAVINGS: Save thousands by completing foundational courses to meet the state's AGEC transfer curriculum at Northland Pioneer College, where tuition is more affordable. Take the same classes for up to 74% less than you would at a state university! Invest wisely in your future! 
  2. SMALLER CLASS SIZES: Enjoy personalized attention and direct support from instructors, making your learning experience engaging and impactful. 
  3. FLEXIBILITY & EXPLORATION: Discover your true passions while exploring different fields of study and gaining valuable skills. Perfect for students who want to explore options before committing to a major. 
  4. SEAMLESS TRANSFER: All Arizona state universities will accept the AGEC curriculum in NPC's General Education Certificate of Proficiency as a complete unit, meaning you transfer as a junior, putting you on track to complete your bachelor’s degree in less time. 
  5. START IN HIGH SCHOOL: You can start taking college-level classes to complete the AGEC requirements while simultaneously completing High School! 

Guaranteed Transferability

AZ Transfer

AGEC stands for Arizona General Education Curriculum, a state-wide block of lower division courses that fulfill general education requirements at Arizona’s public community colleges:  Arizona State University (ASU), Northern Arizona University (NAU), and the University of Arizona (UA).

Completing NPC's General Education Certificate of Proficiency is the best way to make your credits count for most transfer degrees. Work with an advisor to maximize the applicability of your courses to the degree you want to pursue at a university. 

Completion of the General Education Certificate of Proficiency fulfills requirements for the Arizona General Education Curriculum (AGEC) for the Associate of Arts (AA), Associate of Arts in Early Childhood (AAEC), Associate of Arts in Elementary Education (AAEE), Associate of Business (ABus), and Associate of Science (AS) degrees.

See NPC's college catalog for details.

Always speak to an NPC academic advisor to ensure you are taking the right courses! Also see AZtransfer.com for additional information.

Why complete the General Education CP?

When you complete NPC's General Education CP (fulfill the AGEC), all admission requirements are waived at all Arizona public universities. This means that you are unconditionally admitted to any Arizona public university of your choice. Arizona residents need to have a minimum transfer GPA of 2.5. NOTE: This does not mean that the college or university will accept ALL transferable courses. Please see an advisor to discuss which courses will be counted toward the university’s graduation requirements.

Save money by completing your lower-division requirements at NPC. On average, Northland Pioneer College's tuition rates are about one-third of the Arizona public universities’ tuition.

NPC classes are generally smaller than university freshman and sophomore liberal studies classes.

If you have high school concurrent enrollment credits, transfer credits from another accredited college or university, and/or CLEP credits that satisfy our General Education requirements, these credits may be counted toward the AGEC and General Education CP at NPC. An academic advisor can assist in determining whether those credits can be applied toward AGEC requirements.

What happens if you don’t complete the AGEC requirements, offered through the General Education CP?

  • You will need to meet ALL standard university admission requirements.
  • You will need to complete university requirements, which may not be the same as Northland Pioneer College’s General Education requirements.
  • Your General Education courses will be evaluated on a course-by-course basis using the Course Equivalency Guide (CEG) and may not meet the specific general education requirements at the university.

NPC Requirements

The General Education, Certificate of Proficiency (CP) requires a minimum of 32 hours of course credits with a grade of “C” or better in all courses and a minimum cumulative grade-point average (GPA) of 2.5 on a 4.0 scale.

Some courses have placement requirements or prerequisites that may result in coursework beyond 32 credits. These courses, too, require a grade of “C” or better. For information about prerequisites, see an academic adviser.

In most general education courses, special emphasis is placed on developing written communication skills with intensive writing requirements. These courses also emphasize developing and engaging in critical thinking around course topics.  Race and ethnic issue awareness are embedded throughout the general education requirements. 

Students who satisfactorily complete the General Education CP will have the AGEC designation noted on their transcripts. NPC’s district has set the minimum in-residence credits for an AGEC at 15 credits. However, students should follow the CP graduation requirement that 75 percent of their credits are required to be in residence. This percentage exceeds the 15-credit minimum.

NPC General Education Certificate of Proficiency • Total Credits: 32 credits

General Education Courses
 Arts and Humanities 6 credits
(Select two courses under Arts and Humanities in the General Education Course Options.)
 Written and Oral Communication • 6 credits
  • ENL 101 College Composition I • 3 credits
  • ENL 102 College Composition II • 3 credits

 Natural Sciences • 4 credits
(Select one course under Natural Sciences in the General Education Course Options.)

 Quantitative Reasoning • 3 credits
Select one of the following:

  • MAT 142 College Mathematics with Contemporary Applications • 3 credits
  • MAT 152 Advanced Algebra • 3 credits

Or any course under Quantitative Reasoning in the General Education Course Options for which MAT 142 or MAT 152 is a prerequisite.)

 Social and Behavioral Sciences • 6 credits
(Select two courses under Social and Behavioral Sciences in the General Education Course Options. Between Social and Behavioral Sciences and Institutions in the Americas, students must take courses within at least two different prefixes.)

 Institutions in the Americas • 3 credits
(Select one course under Institutions in the Americas in the General Education Course Options. Between Social and Behavioral Sciences and Institutions in the Americas, students must take courses within at least two different prefixes.)

 Additional Requirements • 4 credits
Select one of the following:

  • Language 4 credits
    (One Language course in the General Education Course Options.) OR 
  • Natural Sciences 4 credits
    (One unduplicated course under Natural Sciences in the General Education Course Options.)

General Education Courses At NPC

(Also see NPC's Catalog General Education Course Options)

(*) Courses listed in two categories can only be used to fulfill a requirement in one category.
Written and Oral Communication
  • ENL 101 College Composition I (required for AGEC) • 3 credits
  • ENL 102 College Composition II (required for AGEC) • 3 credits
UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED IN A SPECIFIC CERTIFICATE OR DEGREE PROGRAM, completion of any one of the following ENL or SPT courses fulfills the Written and Oral Communication requirement for the second communication course for the Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree.
  • ENL 109 Technical Writing • 3 credits
  • SPT 110 Fundamentals of Oral Communications • 3 credits
  • SPT 120 Public Speaking • 3 credits
Language
  • FRE 101 Elementary French I • 4 credits
  • FRE 102 Elementary French II • 4 credits
  • GER 101 Elementary German I • 4 credits
  • GER 102 Elementary German II • 4 credits
  • LAN 171 Navajo I • 4 credits
  • LAN 172 Navajo II • 4 credits
  • LAN 201 Navajo III • 4 credits
  • LAN 202 Navajo IV • 4 credits
  • SPA 101 Elementary Spanish I • 4 credits
  • SPA 102 Elementary Spanish II • 4 credits
  • SPA 201 Intermediate Spanish I • 4 credits 
  • SPA 202 Intermediate Spanish II • 4 credits
Arts and Humanities
  • ART 101 Understanding Art • 3 credits
  • ART 115 Art History I • 3 credits
  • ART 116 Art History II • 3 credits
  • ART 215 Native American Art • 3 credits
  • EDU 291 Children’s Literature OR ENL 291 Children’s Literature • 3 credits 
  • ENL 220 World Literature I • 3 credits
  • ENL 221 World Literature II • 3 credits
  • ENL 224 English Literature I • 3 credits
  • ENL 225 English Literature II • 3 credits
  • ENL 230 American Literature I • 3 credits
  • ENL 231 American Literature II • 3 credits
  • ENL 234 Native-American Literature • 3 credits
  • ENL 238 Women’s Literature • 3 credits
  • FDV 150 Introduction to Film OR SPT 150 Introduction to Film • 3 credits
  • FDV 220 Film Aesthetics • 3 credits
  • HUM 150 Humanities in the Western World I • 3 credits
  • HUM 151 Humanities in the Western World II • 3 credits
  • MUS 150 Music Appreciation • 3 credits
  • MUS 250 World Music • 3 credits
  • PHL 101 Introduction to Philosophy • 3 credits
  • PHL 103 Introduction to Logic and Critical Thinking • 3 credits
  • PHL 105 Introduction to Ethics • 3 credits
  • PHL 150 Comparative World Religions • 3 credits
  • SPT 130 Introduction to Theatre • 3 credits
  • SPT 140 Principles of Drama • 3 credits
  • SPT 156 History of Television I • 3 credits
  • SPT 157 History of Television II • 3 credits
Quantitative Reasoning
UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED IN A SPECIFIC CERTIFICATE OR DEGREE PROGRAM, completion of any one of the following courses fulfills the Quantitative Reasoning requirement for any Certificate of Applied Science (CAS) or Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree:
‡ These courses are NOT accepted for transfer credit by all three Arizona state public universities.
  • BUS 133 Business Mathematics OR MAT 103 Business Mathematics • 3 credits
  • BUS 201 Quantitative Methods • 3 credits
  • ‡ HES 101 Basic Technical Mathematics • 3 credits
  • ‡ MAT 101 Basic Technical Mathematics • 3 credits
  • ‡ MAT 109 Algebra I: Introductory • 3 credits
  • ‡ MAT 112 Algebra II: Intermediate • 3 credits
  • MAT 142 College Mathematics with Contemporary Applications • 3 credits
  • MAT 152 Advanced Algebra • 3 credits
  • MAT 160 Introduction to Statistics • 4 credits
  • MAT 161 Algebra-based Mathematics for Elementary School Teachers I • 3 credits
  • MAT 162 Algebra-based Mathematics for Elementary School Teachers II • 3 credits
  • MAT 189 Pre-Calculus Algebra/Trigonometry • 3 credits
  • MAT 211 Technical Calculus • 4 credits
  • MAT 221 Calculus I • 4 credits
  • MAT 231 Calculus II • 4 credits
  • MAT 241 Calculus III • 4 credits
Natural Sciences
Students may transfer either CHM 130 or CHM 151, but not both; therefore, taking CHM 130 and CHM 151 will not satisfy Arizona General Education Curriculum (AGEC) requirements.
  • ANT 104 Biological Anthropology and Human Origins • 4 credits
  • BIO 100 Biology Concepts • 4 credits
  • BIO 105 Environmental Biology • 4 credits
  • BIO 160 Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology • 4 credits
  • BIO 181 General Biology I • 4 credits
  • BIO 182 General Biology II • 4 credits
  • CHM 130 Fundamental Chemistry • 4 credits
  • CHM 151 General Chemistry I • 4 credits
  • CHM 152 General Chemistry II • 4 credits
  • GEO 111 Physical Geography • 4 credits
  • GLG 101 Introduction to Geology I - Physical Geology • 4 credits
  • GLG 102 Introduction to Geology II - Historical Geology • 4 credits
  • GLG 110 Natural Disasters • 4 credits
  • PHY 111 General Physics I • 4 credits
  • PHY 112 General Physics II • 4 credits
Social and Behavioral Sciences
  • ANT 102 Cultural Anthropology 3 credits
  • ANT 120 Buried Cities and Lost Tribes 3 credits
  • ECN 211 Principles of Macroeconomics 3 credits
  • ECN 212 Principles of Microeconomics 3 credits
  • GEO 110 World Regional Geography 3 credits
  • GEO 120 Human Geography 3 credits
  • HIS 101 World History: Prehistory to 1450 CE 3 credits
  • HIS 102 World History: 1450 CE to Present 3 credits
  • *HIS 105 U.S. History to 1877 3 credits
  • *HIS 106 U.S. History Since 1877 3 credits
  • *HIS 114 Introduction to Mexican-American History 3 credits
  • HIS 155 European History to 1750 3 credits
  • HIS 156 European History since 1700 3 credits
  • *HIS 201 History of Women in America 3 credits
  • *POS 110 United States Government 3 credits
  • PSY 101 Introduction to Psychology 3 credits
  • PSY 240 Developmental Psychology 3 credits
  • PSY 250 Social Psychology 3 credits
  • SOC 101 Introduction to Sociology 3 credits
  • SOC 121 Social Problems 3 credits
  • SOC 212 Sex and Gender in Society 3 credits
  • SOC 215 Ethnicity and Race 3 credits
  • SOC 225 Sociology of the Family 3 credits
Institutions in the Americas
  • *HIS 105 U.S. History to 1877 3 credits
  • *HIS 106 U.S. History Since 1877 3 credits
  • *HIS 114 Introduction to Mexican-American History 3 credits
  • *HIS 201 History of Women in America 3 credits
  • *POS 110 United States Government 3 credits