Graduation Requirements

Responsibility for meeting the requirements for graduation with an Associate in Arts degree rests with the student. To be awarded an A.A. degree from Valencia College a student must have an active student record and do the following:

  1. Complete 60 eligible college-level credits which may include the following:
  2. Complete the 36 credits of General Education described in the A.A. degree course requirements section. Honors sections of general education courses will satisfy this program requirement.
  3. Complete the 24 credits of electives described in the A.A. degree course requirements section.
  4. Satisfy the foreign language proficiency requirement described in the A.A. degree course requirements section.
  5. Satisfy the civic literacy requirement. As per Florida Rule 6A-10.04213, prior to the award of an associate in arts or baccalaureate degree, students initially entering a Florida College System institution in the 2021-22 school year*, and thereafter must demonstrate competency in civic literacy prior to graduation by:
    a. receiving a passing score on the Florida Civic Literacy Exam (FCLE), and
    b. successful completion of one of the following:
  6. Satisfy entry testing requirements and complete, with a minimum grade of C, all required mandatory courses in reading, mathematics, English and/or English for Academic Purposes.
  7. Earn a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 2.0 in:
  8. Submit official transcripts of all college course work, including course work attempted at other institutions following initial enrollment at Valencia.
  9. Complete at Valencia at least 25% of the college-level credits required for the degree.
  10. Complete with a grade of C or better the courses which satisfy the Gordon Rule requirements (6A-10.30 Florida Administrative Code):
  11. Obtain a degree audit through your Atlas account and review it for readiness to submit your application for graduation.
  12. Submit an application for graduation online through Atlas by the deadline date listed in the Academic Calendar in the online official catalog. You must have at least 60 college-level credits, including all courses for which you are currently registered, and meet all GPA requirements in order to submit your graduation application.
  13. Fulfill all financial obligations to Valencia.

Important Notes:

  1. Valencia awards degrees to students at the end of each Fall, Spring, and Summer Full Term, and holds commencement ceremonies annually at the end of Fall and Spring Term.
  2. Your governing catalog is the Valencia College catalog in effect at the time of your initial enrollment in associate or bachelor’s degree credit courses as a degree-seeking student at Valencia. A Valencia catalog is valid for five academic years provided you are continuously enrolled as defined in the glossary of this catalog. If you are applying to a limited access program and the admissions requirements change within your five year catalog time period, you will qualify for a transition plan to the new requirements. Your governing catalog will be updated to the Valencia College catalog in effect at the time of your enrollment in the limited access program. You may officially declare any subsequent catalog as your governing catalog and follow its requirements for your initial degree or certificate program until that catalog expires. If you change your degree or certificate program, your governing catalog will be the catalog in effect at the time of your change. If you add a degree or certificate program, the new program will be governed by the catalog in effect at the time of the addition while the governing catalog for the original program will remain unchanged. If your governing catalog has expired, your new governing catalog will be the catalog in effect in your next term of enrollment. Should the District Board of Trustees approve changes in program requirements to be effective within the academic year, the revised requirements will be available in the catalog, academic departments, and Student Success Coaches offices. Students affected by the change in requirements should contact the appropriate Student Success Coach, Program Director, or Academic Dean to discuss degree requirements and education plan options.
  3. You may earn one Associate in Arts degree from Valencia. If you have earned an Associate in Arts or Bachelor’s degree from an institution that has regional accreditation in the U.S., you are not eligible to be awarded an Associate in Arts degree from Valencia. If you have earned an Associate in Arts or Bachelor’s degree in a foreign country, you are eligible to earn an Associate in Arts degree at Valencia College. (In addition to the Associate in Arts degree, you may earn any number of Associate in Science degrees.)
  4. If you want to earn more than one degree at Valencia, you may complete the first degree and then pursue another degree or you may pursue two degrees at the same time. Whenever possible, a course will be applied to more than one degree.
  5. You will not receive grade forgiveness for any course that counts toward your degree and is repeated after you have been awarded the degree from Valencia.

Valencia College provides equal opportunity for educational opportunities and employment to all. Contact the Office of Organizational Development and Human Resources for information.

P.O. Box 3028, Orlando, Florida 32802
407-299-5000
© 2024-25 Valencia College

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The Gordon Rule

State Board of Education Rule 6A-10.030, the Gordon Rule, requires that students complete with grades of C or better 12 credits in designated courses in which the student is required to demonstrate college-level writing skills through multiple assignments and six credits of mathematics course work at the level of college algebra or higher. These courses must be completed successfully (grades of C or better) prior to the receipt of an A.A. degree and prior to entry into the upper division of a Florida public university.

General Education

Click read more to see Gen. Ed. courses.