General Studies: Social Science
Program Description
The Social Science major is recommended for transfer students as it provides a basic foundation for subsequent specialization in many liberal arts fields of study. The value of the degree is now recognized by business and industry as it requires a variety of skills demanded in business, education, health, law, and government, as well as the social services.
Learn more about the program on the Business and Social Sciences website.
Program Learning Outcomes
- Students will be able to identify connections and linkages between specific fields of study, events, and ideas and larger studies of specific themes, developments, and topics in anthropology, economics, geography, history, political science, psychology, and sociology.
- Students will be able to critically analyze a variety of primary and secondary sources in the fields of anthropology, economics, geography, history, political science, psychology, and sociology and draw scholarly interpretations from them.
Career Opportunities
The General Studies student should market educational accomplishments as a collection of career transferable skills in communication, the global arena, public service, problem solving, production, and personnel management. Courses in statistics, business principles, computer science, and language arts should be taken as elective units to increase marketability of the graduate to potential employers.
Award Type(s)
- AA = Associate in Arts Degree
Units Required
- Major: 30
Additional Information
Note: Students having difficulty in attaining an associate degree because of timing or availability of classes should consult with a counselor to submit a petition for course substitution.
Associate Degree Requirements
A minimum of 90 units is required1 to complete the associate degree, including:
- Core courses for the major (30 units total)
- Completion of one of the following general education patterns:
- Foothill College General Education
- Summer Session 2025 only–CSU General Education Breadth (CSU GE Breadth)2
- Summer Session 2025 only–Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC)2
- Beginning Fall Quarter 2025–California General Education Transfer Curriculum (Cal-GETC)3
- 1
Additional elective course work may be necessary to meet the 90-unit minimum requirement for the associate degree.
- 2
Summer Session 2025 is the final term during which CSU GE Breadth and IGETC may be used. Please see a counselor for more information.
- 3
Cal-GETC begins in Fall Quarter 2025. Please see a counselor for more information.
Note: A grade of "C" (or "P") or better is required for all core courses used for the degree. In addition, the student must obtain a minimum GPA of 2.0.
Refer to the Associate in Arts & Associate in Science Degree Requirements page for complete information about graduation requirements and catalog rights.
Core and Support Courses
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Core Courses | ||
| Select any combination of 30 units from at least five departments: | 30 | |
| Anthropology | ||
| INTRODUCTION TO BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY | ||
or ANTH 1H | HONORS INTRODUCTION TO BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY | |
| CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY | ||
or ANTH 2AH | HONORS CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY | |
| PATTERNS OF CULTURE | ||
| WORLD PREHISTORY: THE RISE & FALL OF EARLY CIVILIZATIONS | ||
| FIRST PEOPLES OF NORTH AMERICA | ||
| MAGIC, SCIENCE & RELIGION | ||
or ANTH 5H | HONORS MAGIC, SCIENCE & RELIGION | |
| PERSPECTIVES FROM AFRICA | ||
| INTRODUCTION TO ARCHAEOLOGY | ||
or ANTH 8H | HONORS INTRODUCTION TO ARCHAEOLOGY | |
| APPLIED ANTHROPOLOGY | ||
| Economics | ||
| PRINCIPLES OF MACROECONOMICS | ||
| PRINCIPLES OF MICROECONOMICS | ||
| INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL ECONOMY | ||
or ECON 9H | HONORS INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL ECONOMY | |
or POLI 9 | INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL ECONOMY | |
or POLI 9H | HONORS INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL ECONOMY | |
| THE GLOBAL ECONOMY | ||
or ECON 25H | HONORS THE GLOBAL ECONOMY | |
| Geography | ||
| PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY | ||
| HUMAN GEOGRAPHY | ||
| WORLD REGIONAL GEOGRAPHY | ||
| Global Studies | ||
| INTRODUCTION TO GLOBAL STUDIES | ||
or GLST 1H | HONORS INTRODUCTION TO GLOBAL STUDIES | |
| GLOBAL ISSUES | ||
| History | ||
| WORLD HISTORY FROM PREHISTORY TO 750 CE | ||
| WORLD HISTORY FROM 750 CE TO 1750 CE | ||
| WORLD HISTORY FROM 1750 CE TO THE PRESENT | ||
| HISTORY OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION TO 800 CE | ||
| HISTORY OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION: 700-1800 | ||
| HISTORY OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION 1789-PRESENT | ||
| HISTORY OF LATIN AMERICA | ||
| HISTORY OF CALIFORNIA: THE MULTICULTURAL STATE | ||
| HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES TO 1815 | ||
| HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES FROM 1812 TO 1914 | ||
| HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES FROM 1914 TO THE PRESENT | ||
| INTRODUCTION TO MIDDLE EASTERN CIVILIZATION | ||
| HISTORY OF RUSSIA & THE SOVIET UNION | ||
| Humanities | ||
| CULTURES, CIVILIZATIONS & IDEAS: THE ANCIENT WORLD | ||
or HUMN 1H | HONORS CULTURES, CIVILIZATIONS & IDEAS: THE ANCIENT WORLD | |
| CULTURES, CIVILIZATIONS & IDEAS: OF EMPIRES & CONFLICT | ||
or HUMN 2H | HONORS CULTURES, CIVILIZATIONS & IDEAS: OF EMPIRES & CONFLICT | |
| WORLD MYTHS IN LITERATURE ARTS & FILM | ||
or HUMN 3H | HONORS WORLD MYTHS IN LITERATURE ARTS & FILM | |
| TRAUMA & THE ARTS | ||
or HUMN 4H | HONORS TRAUMA & THE ARTS | |
| CULTURES, CIVILIZATIONS & IDEAS: THE MODERN WORLD | ||
or HUMN 5H | HONORS CULTURES, CIVILIZATIONS & IDEAS: THE MODERN WORLD | |
| THE SHOCK OF THE NEW: FROM THE MODERN TO THE CONTEMPORARY | ||
or HUMN 6H | HONORS THE SHOCK OF THE NEW: FROM THE MODERN TO THE CONTEMPORARY | |
| GLOBAL RELIGIONS: CONTEMPORARY PRACTICES & PERSPECTIVES | ||
or HUMN 7H | HONORS GLOBAL RELIGIONS: CONTEMPORARY PRACTICES & PERSPECTIVES | |
| ONCE UPON A TIME? THE IMMORTAL LURE OF FAIRY TALES | ||
| ON THE MOVE: ARTISTIC REPRESENTATIONS OF MIGRANT EXPERIENCE | ||
or HUMN 10H | HONORS ON THE MOVE: ARTISTIC REPRESENTATIONS OF MIGRANT EXPERIENCE | |
| INTRODUCTION TO POPULAR CULTURE | ||
or HUMN 11H | HONORS INTRODUCTION TO POPULAR CULTURE | |
or MDIA 11 | INTRODUCTION TO POPULAR CULTURE | |
or MDIA 11H | HONORS INTRODUCTION TO POPULAR CULTURE | |
| POPULAR CULTURE & UNITED STATES HISTORY | ||
or HUMN 12H | HONORS POPULAR CULTURE & UNITED STATES HISTORY | |
or MDIA 12 | POPULAR CULTURE & UNITED STATES HISTORY | |
or MDIA 12H | HONORS POPULAR CULTURE & UNITED STATES HISTORY | |
| VIDEO GAMES & POPULAR CULTURE | ||
or MDIA 13 | VIDEO GAMES & POPULAR CULTURE | |
| THE ART OF PEACE: NARRATIVE REPRESENTATIONS OF PACIFISM | ||
| ETHICS IN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE | ||
or PHIL 15 | ETHICS IN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE | |
| Political Science | ||
| POLITICAL SCIENCE: INTRODUCTION TO AMERICAN GOVERNMENT & POLITICS | ||
| COMPARATIVE GOVERNMENT & POLITICS | ||
or POLI 2H | HONORS COMPARATIVE GOVERNMENT & POLITICS | |
| INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY/POLITICAL THEORY | ||
or POLI 3H | HONORS INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY/POLITICAL THEORY | |
| INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS/WORLD POLITICS | ||
or POLI 15H | HONORS INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS/WORLD POLITICS | |
| Psychology | ||
| GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY | ||
or PSYC 1H | HONORS GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY | |
| CULTURAL PSYCHOLOGY | ||
| INTRODUCTION TO BIOPSYCHOLOGY | ||
| RESEARCH METHODS & DESIGNS 1 | ||
| CHILD & ADOLESCENT DEVELOPMENT | ||
| PSYCHOLOGY OF WOMEN: SEX & GENDER DIFFERENCES 2 | ||
or WMN 21 | PSYCHOLOGY OF WOMEN: SEX & GENDER DIFFERENCES | |
| PSYCHOLOGY OF PREJUDICE & DISCRIMINATION | ||
| PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS & THEIR TREATMENTS | ||
| SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 3 | ||
| INTRODUCTION TO PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY | ||
| PSYCHOLOGY OF SPORTS | ||
| HUMAN DEVELOPMENT | ||
| HUMAN SEXUALITY | ||
| Sociology | ||
| INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY | ||
or SOC 1H | HONORS INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY | |
| POPULAR CULTURE | ||
| SOCIAL RESEARCH METHODS & DESIGNS 1 | ||
| SOCIAL WORK & HUMAN SERVICES | ||
| SOCIOLOGY OF CRIME | ||
| LAW & SOCIETY | ||
| ALCOHOL & DRUG ABUSE | ||
| MAJOR SOCIAL PROBLEMS | ||
| RACE & ETHNIC RELATIONS | ||
| SOCIOLOGY OF GENDER | ||
| SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 3 | ||
| ASPECTS OF MARRIAGE & FAMILY | ||
| Women's Studies | ||
| INTRODUCTION TO WOMEN'S STUDIES | ||
| WOMEN IN GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE | ||
| PSYCHOLOGY OF WOMEN: SEX & GENDER DIFFERENCES 2 | ||
| Total Units | 30 | |
- 1
The student may complete either PSYC 10 or SOC 10, but not both, to satisfy the core course requirements.
- 2
The student may complete either PSYC 21 or WMN 21, but not both, to satisfy the core course requirements.
- 3
The student may complete either PSYC 30 or SOC 30, but not both, to satisfy the core course requirements.