Feb 25, 2026  
DRAFT 2026-2027 College Catalog DRAFT 
    
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DRAFT 2026-2027 College Catalog DRAFT [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Earning a Degree or Certificate

Graduation Requirements

Graduation Awards

Pima Community College (PCC) formally awards the following credentials:

Bachelor of Arts

Bachelor of Applied Science

Associate of Science

Associate of Business

Associate of Fine Arts

Associate of Arts

Associate of Applied Science

Associate of General Studies

Post Degree Certificate

Certificate

Once awarded:

  • The degree type, program of study, and award date will display on students’ transcripts. 
    • The graduation date is the last day of the term from which the student is graduating.
  • Students are issued a diploma, which is mailed to the Permanent Address on file at the time of awarding.

PCC also formally certifies the Arizona General Education Curriculum (AGEC) and indicates completion of the AGEC on student transcripts.  Diplomas are not issued for the AGEC Certification.

Graduation Process

  • PCC automatically identifies candidates for graduation based on students’ declared program of study and their progress on program and course requirements.

  • To be automatically identified as a graduation candidate, a student must be accurately declared in their intended program of study within the first two weeks of the term in which they plan to graduate.  All program and course requirements must show on the degree audit as in-progress or previously completed.

  • A graduation application may be required in special circumstances.

Graduation Requirements

For all Graduation Awards 

Graduation candidates must meet all of the following:

  • Achieve a minimum cumulative 2.0 grade point average (GPA) on a 4.0 scale.
    • Some programs may require a higher program GPA.  See your program display in this catalog for details.

  • Complete all courses with a grade of ‘C’ or higher.

    • Some programs may require higher grades for one or more courses.  See your program display in this catalog for details.

    • P-grades may be used if that was the only grading option for the eligible course and if the P-grade is equivalent to a C grade (2.0) or better.

  • Complete all course requirements as published in the program display for the student’s Catalog of Record (see Catalog of Record information below). 

  • Meet minimum credit hour requirements and minimum in-residence requirements as defined below;

Bachelor Degree

  • Complete a minimum of 120 applicable semester credit hours at 100 level or higher and;

  • Complete at least 30 semester credit hours of program requirements in residence at PCC and;

  • Complete at least 30 upper-division semester credit hours towards program requirements;

    • At least 18 of the 30 upper division credit hours must be taken in-residence at PCC.

Associate Degree

  • Complete a minimum of 60 applicable semester credit hours at 100 level or higher and; 

  • Complete at least 15 credit hours of program requirements in-residence at PCC.

  • If allowable in the program requirements, a maximum of 3 credit hours of courses with an FAW prefix may be used towards a degree (FAW courses may have a letter grade or a ‘P’ grade).

Certificates and Post Degree Certificates

6-24 credit hour certificates

  • Complete at least 6 semester credit hours of certificate requirements in-residence at PCC. 

25 or higher credit hour certificates

  • Complete at least 9 semester credit hours of certificate requirements in-residence at PCC. 

AGEC Certification

  • Complete at least 9 semester credit hours of AGEC requirements in-residence at PCC. 

Catalog of Record

  • Students pursing an Associate Degree, Post Degree Certificate, Certificate, or AGEC Certification must follow a Catalog of Record that complies with Continuous Enrollment rules and is no more than six years old.

  • Students pursing Bachelor Degree must follow a Catalog of Record that complies with Continuous Enrollment rules and is no more than eight years old.

  • Rules for maintaining continuous enrollment: 

    • A semester in which a student earns course credit will be counted toward continuous enrollment (W and F grades do not count). 

    • Failure to enroll or earn credit in three consecutive regular (fall or spring) semesters breaks continuous enrollment for a student.

      • Enrollment in the intervening summer terms may be used to maintain continuous enrollment status. 

    • Continuous enrollment may be maintained at any Arizona public or tribal community college or university. 

  • If continuous enrollment is not maintained, the student must meet the requirements for graduation of the catalog in effect at the time they re-enroll or any subsequent catalog of continuous enrollment. 

  • Students may graduate according to the requirements of the catalog in effect at the time of initial enrollment or according to the requirements of any catalog in effect during subsequent terms of continuous enrollment. (Students accepted to a program through a selective admissions process will be admitted under the current catalog at the time of admission to the program.) 

  • Students who elect to change their program of study must follow and may only graduate according to the catalog in effect at the time of the change, or any subsequent catalog if they maintain continuous enrollment. 

  • Students may not follow a catalog older than 6 years from the current academic year even if they have been continuously enrolled. 

Time Limit for Coursework

For areas of study in which the subject matter changes rapidly, material in courses may become obsolete or irrelevant. Coursework is subject to review based upon requirements of program accreditation agencies or changes in course learning outcomes by the student’s major department. In cases where courses were completed prior to student entry in their program of study, additional work may be required to ensure competency in the updated learning outcomes. 

Earning Multiple Degrees

Students seeking more than one degree are encouraged to speak with an advisor to ensure that the additional time and resources are beneficial to employment and/or transfer.

  • Students earning a second Bachelor Degree must complete a minimum of 30 unique credit hours compared to the previous degree with a minimum of 30 credit hours in-residence at PCC, 18 of which need to be upper-division.

  • Students earning more than one PCC Associate Degree must complete a minimum of 15 unique credit hours compared to the first degree.

  • Students may not earn the Associate of General Studies at the same time or after earning any other Associate Degree or higher.

  • Students may not earn a transfer degree (AA, AFA, AB or AS) after earning an equal degree or higher from a regionally accredited college or university.

Academic Distinction

Students graduating with an Associate Degree and who have completed 30 credit hours at Pima Community College are granted honors designation if they meet certain overall institutional grade point averages: 

  • 3.500 to 3.749 grade point average = Graduation with Honors 

  • 3.750 to 3.899 grade point average = Graduation with High Honors 

  • 3.900 to 4.000 grade point average = Graduation with Highest Honors 

These designations will be shown on diplomas and listed on the student’s official transcripts.