Prerequisite

A prerequisite is a course or qualification that must be completed with a minimum grade of "C" or "Pass", before you register for another course. The skills or knowledge taught in the prerequisite course are necessary for your success in the next course.

All prerequisites are enforced at Southwestern College and must be cleared before enrollment into programs or courses with prerequisites. 

• You can satisfy a prerequisite by completing the required course(s) at Southwestern College or by completing equivalent coursework at another regionally accredited college or university.
• Some prerequisites are satisfied through the Southwestern College Multiple Measures Placement process or through external assessments, such as Advanced Placement examinations. Visit the Placement and Prerequisites Center for more information. Visit the Placement and Prerequisites Center for more information.  
• If you completed a prerequisite course at another regionally accredited college or university, you need to complete an External Course Prerequisite Evaluation form prior to registration. Please visit Prerequisites website or email the Placement and Prerequisites Center for information about completing this process.
• You can use unofficial transcripts, official transcripts, or other reports of final grades from another college to verify that you have satisfied a prerequisite..  

Please note:  External coursework that needs to be formally evaluated for credit and/or graduation needs to be documented with official transcripts. Transcripts must be mailed directly to Southwestern College from the other institutions to be considered an official transcript. Credits and equivalencies will be evaluated by the SWC Evaluations Department.

The Assessment and Prerequisites Center is located in the Cesar E. Chavez Student Services Building (68) in room 68-205 on the second floor.

Students have a right to challenge prerequisites under certain circumstances. For more information, see the Requisite Challenge section (BP 7025).

Corequisite

A corequisite is a course which you are required to take during the same semester as another course e.g. BIOL 100 and BIOL 101. 

All corequisites are enforced at Southwestern College. If you do not enroll in all listed corequisites, you will be dropped from the courses requiring the corequisites.

Similarly, if you are enrolled in courses that are corequisites and you drop one course, you will be dropped administratively (or by computer) from the other course.

Students may challenge corequisites. For more information, see Requisite Challenge section (BP 7025).

Prerequisites for Language, Art, Performance, and Other Skills Acquisition Courses

For some language, art, or skills acquisition courses, students can satisfy prerequisites with certifications, departmental review of a portfolio of work and/or audition.

For these courses, please contact the faculty in the relevant discipline for a prerequisite clearance. If needed, email SWCPrerequisites@swccd.edu for help identifying faculty members to complete a placement evaluation.

When the prerequisite evaluation is complete, the Southwestern College faculty member will complete an Instructor Skills Memorandum to Assessment and send it to the Placement and Prerequisites Office from their Southwestern College email address. This will confirm a successful demonstration of skill has been completed by the student. The Prerequisites office will use the information in the Skills Memorandum to clear the prerequisite according to the Faculty's determination.

Limitation on Enrollment

A limitation on enrollment may be any of the following:

• A tryout or audition required prior to enrollment in a course. These include public performance or intercollegiate competition (including, but not limited to, band, orchestra, theater, competitive speech, chorus, journalism, dance, and intercollegiate athletics).
• Enrollment in an honors course or an honors course section.
• Blocks of courses or blocks of course sections, Learning Communities, for which enrollment is limited so specific groups of students who enroll together in that set of classes. Learning Communities include Puente, Umoja, Bayan, CHEL, etc.
• A limitation that restricts enrollment because of statutory, regulatory, or contractual requirements. For example, some courses may require a student to have a valid driver license, health clearance, nursing license, certificate, etc.

Limitations on enrollment are enforced at Southwestern College.

Students may challenge limitations on enrollment. For more information, see Requisite Challenge below (BP 7025).

Recommended Preparation

Recommended preparation is previous training or coursework that helps a student successfully complete a subsequent course. Completion of the recommended preparation course with a grade of “C” or better increases student success. To improve your chances for success, you are strongly encouraged to follow recommended preparation whenever it is listed in the class schedule. Enrollment may not be denied to any student not meeting a recommended preparation.

Recommended Concurrent Enrollment

Recommended concurrent enrollment is a course that a student should complete—but is not required to complete—while enrolled for another course. Enrollment in such a course improves student success. You are strongly encouraged to follow recommended concurrent enrollment whenever it is listed in the catalog to improve your chances for success in Southwestern College courses. Enrollment may not be denied to any student not meeting a recommended concurrent enrollment.

Requisite Challenge

The Requisite Challenge process allows students to challenge any course requisite. You may file a challenge based on one or more of the following reasons:

• You have the knowledge or ability to succeed in the course despite not satisfying the course requisite through college coursework. You must provide documentation that explains/demonstrates that you have the background, skills, or abilities to succeed in the desired course.
• You will be subject to undue delay in attaining the goals of your educational plan due to a limitation on enrollment or because the prerequisite or corequisite course has not been made reasonably available. Consideration is typically given only when either:
  1. the prerequisite/corequisite has not been offered for two consecutive semesters, or
  2. the prerequisite/corequisite is necessary for graduation, transfer, or a certificate, but the requisite is unavailable due to the number of course sections offered.
• The prerequisite, corequisite, or limitation on enrollment has been established in violation of Title 5 regulations and/or the Southwestern Community College District’s process for establishing prerequisites, corequisites, and limitations.
• The prerequisite, corequisite, or limitation on enrollment is discriminatory or is being applied in a discriminatory manner.

Students may file a Requisite Challenge Form through the Placement and Prerequisites Center. You must provide compelling evidence to support your challenge. You will need to attach documents (transcripts, evidence of work experience, etc.) and information necessary to support the challenge. The Requisite Challenge Form will be forwarded to the appropriate School Dean or designee for determination. Ten working days (15 days during summer) subsequent to your submitting the challenge form, results may be picked up at the Placement and Prerequisites Center or, at your request, the results will be emailed to you.

A student wishing to appeal the decision of the dean may request a meeting with the appropriate School Dean, Department Chair, and the Vice President for Academic Affairs or designee.