Degree & Certificate Requirements

Degrees Designed to Transfer

McLennan Community College offers the Associate of Arts, Associate of Science, and the Associate of Arts in Teaching degrees, which are designed to transfer to bachelor's degree programs at senior-level institutions.

Students who plan to obtain a bachelor's degree should take classes at MCC that meet the requirements of the senior institution at which the degree will be completed. Students are encouraged to work with advisors to plan their course work.

Texas public senior colleges and universities are required to accept up to 66 hours — or one-half of the bachelor's degree requirements if that constitutes fewer than 66 hours of credits — transfer credits earned by a student in a community or junior college. Additional course credits may be accepted in transfer at the discretion of the receiving institution.

  • Transfer Credit

    Students enrolling in 12 or more semester hours or those who have completed 24 semester hours of credit should establish a degree plan with an academic advisor at McLennan Community College. This plan will help ensure that credits will transfer to a particular senior college and will apply toward the selected major course of study at that college. A change in major may result in previously acquired credits not counting toward requirements of the new major.

    Questions or problems relating to course transfer matters should be directed to MCC's Director of Student Development by email at advise@mclennan.edu or calling 254-299-8614.

Degree Requirements

  • Requirements for the Associate of Arts (A.A.) Degree
    1. Credit for 60 academic semester hours of college work, excluding developmental courses. Such credit include:
      1. Fulfillment of the 42-hour core curriculum as part of the 60-hour total.
      2. At least 25 percent of academic credit hours earned in college-level courses through MCC.
    2. A grade point average of at least 2.00.
    3. Successful completion of the College's Developmental Education Plan for the Texas Success Initiative.
    4. Payment of all financial obligations to the College.
    5. Successful completion of a College Success/Learning Framework course, either PSYC 1100/1300 or EDUC 1100/1300 (this course will also count toward core completion).
  • Requirements for the Associate of Science (A.S.) Degree

    Students wishing to complete the Associate of Science degree will fulfill the same requirements listed for the Associate of Arts degree. In addition, the student will be required to complete at least 15 hours of college-level mathematics and/or science courses.

  • Requirements for the Associate of Arts in Teaching (A.A.T.) Degree

    The Associate of Arts in Teaching (A.A.T.) degree is a Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board-approved collegiate degree program consisting of lower-division courses that transfer to baccalaureate programs leading to initial Texas teacher certification. Requirements for the A.A.T. degree include:

    1. Credit for at least 60 semester hours of college work, excluding any developmental courses. Such credit shall include the following:
      1. Fulfillment of the 42-hour core curriculum as part of the total hours.
      2. MATH 1350 and 1351, along with MATH 1314 as a prerequisite.
      3. EDUC 1301 and 2301.
      4. At least three additional semester hours of science.
      5. At least 25 percent of semester hours must be earned in college-level courses through MCC.
    2. An overall and institutional grade point average of at least 2.00.
    3. Successful completion of the College's Developmental Education Plan for the Texas Success Initiative.
    4. Payment of all financial obligations to the College.
    5. Successful completion of a College Success/Learning Framework course, either PSYC 1100/1300 or EDUC 1100/1300 (this course will also count toward core completion).

General Education Core Curriculum

The 75th Texas Legislature mandated that Texas colleges and universities each develop a core curriculum of classes in "Liberal Arts, Humanities, Sciences, and Political, Social and Cultural History that all undergraduate students (except students in specifically designated 'Fields of Study') are required to complete before receiving an academic undergraduate degree." (Texas Education Code, Chapter 61, Subchapter S, "Transfer of Credit").

The core curriculum at MCC contains a variety of courses that encourage breadth of study so that students can reflect upon diverse individual, scientific, political, economic, social, and other cultural aspects of life. The core curriculum represents (1) the first steps students take in pursuit of a broad-based education; (2) the fundamental requirements of the Associate of Arts and the Associate of Science degrees; and (3) the commitment of each institution of higher education in Texas to help students transfer their core curriculum courses between schools.

    • Guidelines
      1. The first 42 hours completed in the core curriculum will be designated as such on the student's MCC transcript.
      2. The core curriculum for MCC will be evaluated two years before the institution's compliance report is due at the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.
      3. In fulfilling the Life & Physical Science requirements, the student will take two four-hour lab science courses with six hours satisfying the Life & Physical Science requirement and the additional two hours carrying over to the Component Area Option.
      4. Students who plan to obtain a bachelor's degree should consult with an academic advisor to arrange a program to meet the requirements of the senior college where the degree will be completed.
      5. A D grade earned in a core course at MCC will satisfy degree requirements for the Associate of Arts, the Associate of Science or the Associate of Arts in Teaching degrees. However, students should be aware that some receiving institutions may not accept the D grade for fulfillment of their degree requirements.

McLennan Community College Core Curriculum (https://www.mclennan.edu/arts-and-sciences/core.html)

Degrees & Certificates Designed for the Workforce

McLennan Community College offers course work designed to prepare students to enter specific occupational areas at the end of a one- or two-year period of specialized training or to continue their education at a four-year institution. Suggested courses of study for each of these options are included in this section, which focuses on workforce programs that lead to a certificate or an Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree. Each student should, however, see a faculty advisor or program director at the earliest opportunity in order to effectively plan his or her program.

  • General Education Requirements

    Each A.A.S. degree program has at least 15 semester hours of general education with credit hours from each of the following three areas: humanities or fine arts (language, philosophy and culture, or creative arts), social or behavioral sciences (or American history or government), and natural sciences (life and physical sciences) or mathematics/computer science.

  • Requirements for the Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) Degree
    1. Credit for a minimum of 60 semester hours of college work excluding developmental courses. Such credit will include:
      1. Completion of the required course of study specified in the approved degree plan for one of the workforce curricula or approval by the appropriate dean.
      2. At least 15 semester credit hours (SCH) of general education  selected from the college’s Core Curriculum and must include at least 3 SCH in each area:
        1. Humanities/Fine Arts (i.e., Communication; Language, Philosophy, and Culture and Creative arts.
        2. Social/Behavioral Sciences (i.e., American History; Government/Political Science; and Social Behavioral Sciences, and
        3. Natural Sciences/Mathematics (i.e., Mathematics or Life and Physical Sciences).
      3. At least 25 percent of semester hours earned in college-level courses through MCC.
      4. Successful completion of the college's Developmental Education Plan for the Texas Success Initiative.
    2. A grade point average of at least 2.00 in the workforce curriculum completed.
    3. A minimum grade of C in each major course in the workforce curriculum completed. A major course is a course that has the prefix of the program (i.e., POFT courses are major courses for all of the Office Technology Careers Program degrees or certificates). A minimum grade of C will be required for related courses when specified in the catalog course description as a prerequisite.
    4. A minimum grade of C will be required for courses transferred from another college or for substitution to satisfy degree requirements.
    5. Payment of all financial obligations to the College.
  • Requirements for a Certificate in Workforce Education
    1. Completion of a required approved plan for a Certificate of Completion, including at least 25 percent of semester hours of credit earned at MCC or approval by the appropriate dean. Developmental courses may not be used to meet requirements for a certificate.
    2. A grade point average of at least 2.00 in the curriculum completed.
    3. A minimum grade of C in each major course in the workforce curriculum completed. A major course is a course that has the prefix of the program (i.e., POFI, POFL, POFM, and POFT courses are major courses for all of the Office Technology Careers Program degrees or certificates). A minimum grade of C will be required for related courses when specified in the catalog course description as a prerequisite or as specified in the certificate plan.
    4. Payment of all financial obligations to the College.

Gainful Employment

Federal regulation requires all institutions that receive Title IV funds to disclose the information for financial aid eligible programs that prepare students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation. While all of the programs at McLennan Community College prepare students for employment or transfer, the U.S. Department of Education requires disclosure on specific programs.

Gainful Employment information is provided for each Workforce program that offers an A.A.S. degree or certificate at MCC. This information helps students determine the career outlook and costs associated with each program so they can make informed decisions about their career choices.

For more information about MCC’s Gainful Employment program, go to https://www.mclennan.edu/gainful-employment/.

Achieve Texas

Achieve Texas is an education initiative designed to prepare all students (preschool through college) for a lifetime of success. It allows all students to achieve excellence by preparing them for secondary and postsecondary opportunities, career preparation and advancement, meaningful work, and active citizenship.

This initiative uses the 16 federally defined career clusters of the States' Career Clusters initiative as the foundation for restructuring how schools arrange their instructional programs. A Career Cluster (https://www.txcte.org/binder/career-cluster-pages) is a grouping of occupations and broad industries based on commonalities. All clusters have been cross-walked with the U.S. Department of Labor occupational classification system at  https://www.onetonline.org/.

Most MCC degrees have been linked to a career cluster.

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