Where can I find my degree audit?
Run your degree audit
Your degree audit is located on CougarTrack under the "CC Links" menu on the right side of the page. Choose your degree from the Active Programs section, or select a different degree from the "What if I changed my program of study?" drop-down (this shows you a proposed degree audit, it does not change your degree at this point). Click submit to view your active or proposed degree audit.
See the Interactive Degree Audit for detailed instructions on how to read and interpret your audit. You can change your degree program by submitting a Declaration of Major form, which can be found on the under the Academics drop-down on the CougarTrack student page.
Reasons you might not have a degree audit
- You are a new or returning student: You will not have access to the link for degree audit until the first day of classes if you are a new or returning student. If you have maintained continuous enrollment (barring summers off), the link will remain available.
- You are eligible for a catalog year older than 2004: Degree audit is available beginning with the 2004 catalog through the current catalog year. Prior to 2004, degree completion progress was tracked on a hand-written document called a checklist. Students on checklists may choose to move up to a more recent catalog year, thereby gaining access to degree audit.
What is a catalog year?
Degree requirements change from time to time. This does not happen every year, but degree programs are frequently reviewed for relevancy to the field of study and evolving practices within higher education. “Catalog year” refers to the specific degree requirements for your degree at the time of your initial enrollment. Students may stay on their initial catalog year for up to eight years. If your degree is not complete (or is not going to be complete) within eight years of initial enrollment, you must move up to a more recent catalog year.
Any student may request to be moved to a more recent catalog year, but none may select a catalog year that is older than their initial enrollment. Please see your academic advisor for more information.
Why doesn't my audit show my...
Minor requirements?
Minor requirements are not calculated in the overall degree completion totals. The total remaining hours on the degree audit is the number the financial aid department uses to calculate the amount of financial aid needed for each student. Since minor requirements are outside of overall degree requirements, they cannot be calculated in the total remaining hours for the degree.
Overall GPA calculation?
Columbia College does not chart transfer credit grade point average. As a result, the overall GPA section only displays your Columbia College GPA.
Second Major?
If you have a double major, only one will display at the top of your degree audit. Both majors (and any additional majors you may have) and their associated requirements are listed on your degree audit; they appear in order after your degree basic requirements section.
Pre-requisites section?
Pre-requisites are not included in the overall totals or listed on the degree audit unless they also fulfill a specific degree requirement. Please refer to the course catalog, course schedule, syllabi, or your advisor for assistance with pre-requisites.
Do I have to take another class to fulfill 0.3 hours remaining for a requirement?
Probably not.
In most cases, this remainder is the result of transfer work from a school that operates on a quarter-length term (rather than semester-length, as Columbia College does). The translation of quarter hours to semester hours can cause this transfer credit to appear as a decimal. Often this small remainder can be made up by excess hours that the student has earned which could also apply to the degree audit area in question.
Contact your academic advisor to see if you need to submit a waiver form, or to pursue the steps towards adjusting the way your credit applies to the degree audit. Some courses apply to certain degree requirements, when other courses could be applied which work better for your overall requirements.
Does the upper level requirement count the upper level courses required for my major?
No.
You may need more upper level courses in your major, as it is possible for upper level elective hours to apply to your overall upper level requirement, but not to your major area core.
Individual courses applying to more than one area on the degree audit is referred to as double dipping.
What do Optional and Classical mean?
Classical vs. optional general education requirements
Students who completed 36 or more semester hours of transfer credit with a grade of "C" or better prior to their initial enrollment at Columbia College are eligible for the optional general education requirements. Optional general education requirements allow more courses to fulfill the first part of the general education section of the degree audit than the classical general education requirements do.
Why are both classical and optional general education requirements showing up on my audit?
Both classical and optional general education requirements appear on an audit until you are eligible for your first enrollment with Columbia College. The amount of transfer credit you have prior to enrollment at Columbia College will determine your eligibility. You are eligible for optional requirements if you have 36 or more transfer credit hours. You are eligible for classical if you have up to 35 hours in transfer credit. Once your general education requirements have been determined, based on your transfer credit totals, only one set of requirements appear on the degree audit.
Can I switch from optional general education requirements to classical requirements?
Yes.
In some cases, the classical general education requirements allow for more of the student’s transfer credit to apply to the degree requirements. Students who are eligible for the optional general education requirements as a result of carrying 36 or more hours of transfer credit may request to pursue the classical general education requirements. Please see your advisor to discuss the benefits of each set of requirements, and for assistance with requesting the change.
Do I have to take every course in the natural science/math section of general education?
No.
The natural science/math section requires completion of five semester hours. Degree audit lists the three possible ways this requirement may be met:
- two unrelated science lectures (totaling five hours)
- a lecture and lab for the same science course (totaling five hours), or
- one math and one science class (totaling five hours).
Degree audit charts your progress towards completion of all three of these, identifying the requirement as complete as soon as one of the sub-requirements is met. Once the overall requirement is complete, the requirement options that you chose not to pursue no longer appear on your audit.
Why don't the classes I'm taking now show up on my audit?
Degree audit only applies completed credit towards degree requirements. The courses in which you are currently enrolled will apply to your degree audit once grades for the semester have posted. The courses appear at the end of your degree audit under the “Other Courses” section while you are still enrolled in them.