COURSE DESCRIPTIONS, SYMBOLS, AND TERMS
Students may not earn credit in a cross-listed course a second time under an alternate prefix.
Information on specific offerings (times, rooms, instructors) will be found in the Class Schedule which is printed in advance of fall and spring semesters and may be purchased in the Bookstore. Experimental and variable topic courses which are offered each semester can be found in the Class Schedule.
Departments indicate the semester in which they expect to offer the course by the use of F (fall), S (spring), F,S (each semester), and A (alternate years). This key is indicated following the course title in this Bulletin. While the university will make every effort to follow this announced schedule, the semester of offering is subject to change without prior notice when unusual circumstances require it.
In general it may be assumed that advances in division level (lower, upper, graduate) correlate with more difficult and challenging academic work. Sometimes, however, disciplines organize their course numbering partly in terms of criteria other than degree of difficulty. It should be noted, too, that some students find introductory courses to be more demanding than advanced, specialized courses. In such courses, a more comprehensive approach and the first exposure to new ways of thinking may be harder for some individuals than covering a smaller, more familiar, area in much greater detail. Also, please note that the 9000-9999 series is designated for professional level courses which award Continuing Education Units (CEUs). CEUs are nationally recognized units of measurement for participation in education and training programs for which academic credit is not awarded. The following course numbering system is used at this university:
0- 99 remedial instruction and non-credit
courses (units and grades earned will not count towards graduation requirements)
100-299 lower division
300-699 upper division
700-899 graduate courses
900-999 joint doctoral courses
9000-9999 professional level courses offered for
Continuing Education units (CEUs); may neither be applied to nor substituted for graduation requirements.
San Francisco State University encourages experimentation and innovation in teaching and welcomes a diversity of approaches. Increasingly and with growing help from students, efforts are being made on the campus to examine, evaluate, and improve the learning experiences.
The system assures students that CAN courses on one participating campus will be accepted "in lieu of" the comparable CAN participating course for the major on another participating campus. For example, a qualified CAN course prefixed as CAN ECON 2 will be accepted for a course prefixed with the same CAN ECON 2 offered on another CAN participating campus.
San Francisco State University participates in the California Articulation Number System. The following SFSU courses have been designated as CAN courses:
SFSU CAN courses are listed in brackets in the course description section of the university Bulletin.
What is course articulation? Course articulation is the written agreement between San Francisco State University and another institution; e.g., either a California community college, a University of California, a California State University, or an independent college or university, to accept a specific course(s) completed at a transfer institution to meet a specific major course requirement at SFSU. Faculty in each discipline review courses and approve all agreements. The agreements authorize the acceptance of one course or a sequence of courses "in lieu of" another for transferring students. Articulated courses are not to be construed as "equivalent" but rather as comparable courses; i.e., the content is such that similar outcomes are assured and advancement to the next level of instruction is appropriate.
What is the California Articulation Number (CAN) System? The California Articulation Number (CAN) System is a cross-reference course identification system for many lower division, transferable courses commonly taught on college campuses.
How does the California Articulation Number System work? The basic premise of the California Articulation Number System is that identically CAN pre-fixed and numbered courses are acceptable "in lieu of" each other for the major. Example: SFSU CFS 252 is identified as CAN H Ec 2 CFS 252. A course from a CAN participating transfer institution identifying their course with the same CAN subject prefix and number, CAN H Ec 2, is considered comparable. Campuses using CAN have access to articulated courses reviewed and approved by colleagues from many other campuses in their discipline.
What should I do? Transfer students, wishing "in lieu of" transfer credit for a SFSU CAN designated course listed in the preceding section, should first consult both their transfer campus(es) catalog for the qualified CAN course(s) successfully completed and the list of SFSU qualified CAN courses to determine course to
course comparability. Students are advised to consult with the major department for course to course comparability credit, course planning, and general major advisement.
For more details and additional information on the California Articulation Number (CAN) System, contact the SFSU department represented in CAN or the Articulation Officer, Office of Course Articulation, ADM 224, Advising Center, SFSU.
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Last modified February 11, 2008 by bulletin@sfsu.edu