2024-25 Catalog

A.S. Graduation Requirements

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

  1. Complete a prescribed course of study in one of the career programs described on the following pages.
    Each program includes a minimum of 15 credits of general education course work.
    A maximum of 12 credits in college-level English as a Second Language for Academic Purposes (EAP) and a maximum of four credits in  SLS 2940H SERVICE LEARNING may be applied toward an A. S. degree.
    A maximum of four credits in internship courses may be applied toward an A.S. degree; if a degree program requires more than four internship credits, the additional credits may be applied toward the degree.
  2. Satisfy entry testing requirements and complete, with a minimum grade of C, all required mandatory courses in reading, mathematics, English and English for Academic Purposes.
  3. Complete successfully the course SLS 1122 NEW STUDENT EXPERIENCE as described in the Testing Placement Charts page in this catalog if your entry test scores place you in developmental courses in reading, mathematics, and English. This requirement also applies if you choose to begin your course work with entry-level, developmental courses in reading, mathematics, and English rather than complete entry testing. 

  4. Earn a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 2.0 in: 

  • All earned credit hours at Valencia (Institutional GPA)
  • All earned credit hours (Overall GPA)
  • All earned credit hours that apply toward the degree (Program GPA)

5. Satisfy the civic literacy requirement. As per Florida Rule 6A-10.04213, prior to the award of an associate or baccalaureate degree, students initially entering a Florida College System institution in the 2022-23 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:

  • Successfully passing POS 2041 U.S. GOVERNMENT or AMH 2020 U.S. HISTORY 1877 TO PRESENT or
  • Successfully passing a prescribed assessment:

    • AP Government & Politics: United States Test** (passing score =3), or

    • AP United States History Test** (passing score = 4), or

    • CLEP American Government** (passing score = 50)
      *The Department of Education has provided guidance that the Civic Literacy requirement is based on the student's governing catalog year (e.g., it is for all students who have a catalog year of Fall 2022 or after even if they had previously attended a Florida public institution).
      **Receiving a passing score will satisfy both the FCLE and course requirements.

6. Submit official transcripts of all college course work, including course work attempted following initial enrollment at Valencia.

7. Complete, at Valencia, at least 25% of the college-level credits required for the degree.

8. Obtain a degree audit through your Atlas account and review it for readiness to submit your application for graduation.

9. 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 the minimum number of college-level credits for your degree, including all courses for which you are registered, in order to submit a graduation application.

10. Fulfill all financial obligations to Valencia.

Important Notes:

  1. State rule 6A-10.0315 lists the required PERT score to be considered college level as 114, and placement into mathematics is based upon the student’s meta major.  In order to satisfy the state mandate to be at college level, a student must have college level scores on PERT, SAT or ACT, or must have completed MAT 0022C DEVELOPMENTAL MATHEMATICS COMBINED or MAT 0028C DEVELOPMENTAL MATHEMATICS II.  All students must be at college-level mathematics in order to graduate with an Associate’s degree.  Associate in Science students whose program of study does not require mathematics must still meet this requirement.
  2. Valencia graduates students at the end of each Fall, Spring and Summer Full Term, and holds an annual commencement ceremony at the end of Fall and Spring term.
  3. 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 Career Program Advisors' offices. Students affected by the change in requirements should contact the appropriate Program Advisor, Program Director, or Academic Dean to discuss degree requirements and education plan options.
  4. You may earn any number of Associate in Science degrees from Valencia College. In addition, you may earn one Associate in Arts degree at Valencia. However, 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. 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.