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General Studies, AA

Program at a Glance

Program

General Studies, AA

Format

Online, Hybrid

Total Units

60

Requirements

No SAT or ACT Required

Spring ’26 Early Application Deadline

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November 8

$462

Per Unit

Program Overview

The Associate of Arts (AA) in General Studies provides a well-rounded foundation of knowledge and skills that prepares students for employment and/or further academic study. The program is especially suited for working adults seeking to build academic credentials while progressing toward a bachelor’s degree. The program provides flexibility for students to select pathways to bachelor’s degree programs in psychology, accounting, business, and management and allows for generous transfer credit.

Student Learning Outcomes
Curriculum
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In the core courses and directed electives of general education, students develop AI fluency and essential competencies in written and oral communication, critical thinking, quantitative reasoning, and information literacy. General education also develops ethical reasoning and the responsible use of emerging technologies and artificial intelligence. Free electives in the degree allow for the development of foundational disciplinary knowledge in psychology, accounting, economics, management, finance, and data analysis, including artificial intelligence, to support analysis and decision-making in academic, professional, and everyday contexts.

Step Up to a Bachelor’s Degree

In the process of completing the AA, students fulfill the general education and liberal studies requirements of GGU’s bachelor’s degrees, while also developing skills and knowledge outcomes in communication, critical thinking, media and information literacy, and quantitative fluency. A flexible course of study is designed to maximize the number of transfer credits counted toward degree completion.

Student Learning Outcomes

Students who complete the Associate of Arts in General Studies will be able to:

  • Write clearly and coherently for professional audiences, including contexts that involve AI-mediated drafting and collaboration.
  • Speak clearly and deliver clear, organized presentations appropriate to audience and context.
  • Interpret quantitative information, evaluate statistical claims, and use computational tools to analyze problems.
  • Analyze arguments, weigh evidence, and evaluate claims, including those produced by AI systems, with appropriate critical awareness and rigor.
  • Locate, evaluate, and ethically use information from human and AI sources to support inquiry and decision-making.
  • Identify ethical dimensions of professional and personal dilemmas and decisions, including those raised by emerging technologies, and apply principled frameworks to navigate and address them.
  • Apply psychological, social, and economic perspectives to analyze and interpret behaviors, ways of thinking, and systems.

Curriculum

The program includes a 30-unit general education structure composed of 9 units of required core courses, 15 units of competencies and ethics directed electives, and 6 units of general studies free electives. The remaining 30 units are free electives, which may include transfer credit. GGU courses that may be used to complete free electives are organized into pathway groups aligned with bachelor’s degree programs in accounting, business, management, and psychology. Students may select courses from any pathway group to complete the 30 units of free electives.

Each course listed carries three semester units of credit, unless otherwise noted. A cumulative grade-point average of 2.00“C” or higher is required in all courses taken at Golden Gate University.

Students must complete 30 units of undergraduate coursework, which may include transfer credit, to fulfill this requirement. GGU courses that may be taken to complete the Free Electives are organized into four pathway groups. Pathway groups guide students to courses that will satisfy degree requirements in BS in Accounting, BS in Business, BA in Management, and BA in Psychology. Students may take courses from any pathway group to satisfy the 30 units of Free Electives.

General Education courses may count toward bachelor’s degree program requirements. However, general education courses that double count toward general education and program requirements count only once toward total degree units. Students must complete the total number of required units in a program to earn an AA or bachelor’s degree.

BS in Accounting Pathway
ACCTG 1A

Introductory Financial Accounting – 3 unit(s)

ACCTG 1B

Introductory Managerial Accounting – 3 unit(s)

ACCTG 100A

Intermediate Accounting I – 3 unit(s)

ACCTG 100B

Intermediate Accounting II – 3 unit(s)

ACCTG 102

Accountants Professional Responsibilities and Ethics – 3 unit(s)

ECON 1

Principles of Microeconomics – 3 unit(s)

ECON 2

Principles of Macroeconomics – 3 unit(s)

FI 100

Financial Management – 3 unit(s)

MGT 100

The Manager as Communicator – 3 unit(s)

MGT 140

Management Principles – 3 unit(s)

MGT 141

Organizational Leadership – 3 unit(s)

MGT 173

Human Resource Management – 3 unit(s)

BS in Business Pathway
ACCTG 1A

Introductory Financial Accounting – 3 unit(s)

ACCTG 1B

Introductory Managerial Accounting – 3 unit(s)

BUS 240

Data Analysis for Managers – 3 unit(s)

ECON 1

Principles of Microeconomics – 3 unit(s)

ECON 2

Principles of Macroeconomics – 3 unit(s)

FI 100

Financial Management – 3 unit(s)

ITM 125

Management Information Systems – 3 unit(s)

MGT 100

The Manager as Communicator – 3 unit(s)

MGT 141

Organizational Leadership – 3 unit(s)

MGT 145

Law of Contracts, Sales and Commercial Transactions – 3 unit(s)

MGT 173

Human Resource Management – 3 unit(s)

MKT 100

Principles of Marketing – 3 unit(s)

BS in Management Pathway
ACCTG 1A

Introductory Financial Accounting – 3 unit(s)

ACCTG 1B

Introductory Managerial Accounting – 3 unit(s)

BUS 240

Data Analysis for Managers – 3 unit(s)

ECON 1

Principles of Microeconomics – 3 unit(s)

ECON 2

Principles of Macroeconomics – 3 unit(s)

MGT 100

The Manager as Communicator – 3 unit(s)

MGT 140

Management Principles – 3 unit(s)

MGT 141

Organizational Leadership – 3 unit(s)

MGT 173

Human Resource Management – 3 unit(s)

MKT 100

Principles of Marketing – 3 unit(s)

OLHS 110

Emotional and Social Intelligence at Work – 3 unit(s)

OLHS 115

Diversity and Inclusion in Organizations – 3 unit(s)

PSYCH 143

Psychology of Leadership – 3 unit(s)

BS in Psychology Pathway
OLHS 115

Diversity and Inclusion in Organizations – 3 unit(s)

PSYCH 10

Introduction to Psychology – 3 unit(s)

PSYCH 102

Lifespan Development: Theories and Applications – 3 unit(s)

PSYCH 108

Research Design and Experimental Methods – 3 unit(s)

PSYCH 113

Psychology and Technology – 3 unit(s)

PSYCH 115

Introduction to Biopsychology – 3 unit(s)

PSYCH 120

Principles and Methods of Counseling – 3 unit(s)

PSYCH 121

Abnormal Psychology – 3 unit(s)

PSYCH 125

Psychology of Death, Dying, and Bereavement – 3 unit(s)

PSYCH 143

Psychology of Leadership – 3 unit(s)

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