A (brief) Overview of CA College System

This is a (brief) overview of the university/college system in the Unitied States with a focus on state of California for World of Wildlife roleplayers. For context, the roleplay world is inspired by California, with the main university, Animal Academy, based on typical four year universities in the state. This guide is to help roleplayers who are not familiar with how colleges in the US (specifically CA) works or need a quick refresher. This is based on my experience and knowledge of the system and is subject to change over time! [Please do not use this as a guide for college! You should reach out to a school counselor instead] 

Please use this as a guide for inspiration and not as hard and fast rules for roleplay! 

_{created 6/4/2023}

_{edit 6/5 = forgot some stuff, rephrased a few things}

• The term university and college are used interchangeably, though university usually refers to locations of higher education, ie. 4 year universities. This is opposed to 2 year (community) colleges. 

• The US divides their degrees based on how many years of study and are listed in the order of acquirement. In other words, you need to have a Bachelor's Degree before getting a Master's Degree (Associate's Degree can become a Bachelor's Degree, but it is not necessary to get the Bachelor's if the student decides to go straight into that program) 
  • Associate's Degree = 2 year program
  • Bachelor's Degree = 4 year program
  • Master's Degree = 2-4 year program (needs Bachelor's - usually same major as Bachelor's)
  • Doctorate's (PhD) Degree = 4-6+ year program (highest level of education) 

• The US also has certificate programs and programs specific to certain majors. This is a small list of common programs (definitely not all of them!) 
  • Trade School Certificate Program (ex. nursing, automotive tech, plumber, other trades, etc.)
  • Medical School Certification (this includes Veterinarians, Dentists, specialists, general practitioners, etc.) 
  • Teaching Certification (for teachers, etc.) 
  • Law School/Bar Exam Certification (lawyers, etc.) 

• There are several different types of schools available (again this is based on CA's system) 
  • Trade school = for students who want a certificate program for a trade
  • 2 Year (Community) College = 2 year program colleges that grant an associate's degree (note that CA has made most of these colleges free for 2 years) = ex. PCC, ELAC, etc. 
  • 4 Year College = 4 year program colleges that grant a Bachelor's degree, some offer Masters/PhD as well. This category has 2 major public options 
    • University of CA (UC) = ex. UCLA
    • California State University (Cal State) = ex. Cal State LA  
  • Ivy League Colleges = more common in the east coast US states as some of the 4-year CA colleges are comparable to Ivy League colleges = ex. UCLA, UC Berkley, etc. 
  • Private Colleges = can be any of the above combinations of colleges but are privately run as opposed to state run (most if not all need to be non profit) = ex. USC 

• Students attending college are expected to take a certain number of units before they graduate. Typically in the CA public college system (UC/CalState) the requirements are at around 180 units of classes (with classes ranging from 4-6 units, depending) 
  • Students are required to choose a major of study. These depend on availability in the university! (undeclared is a "major" - though it will guide students towards choosing one in the end)
  • Along with taking the classes within their major, students need to take lower division and upper division electives that are outside of their major. This is to encourage a well rounded education for students. 

• Classes are organized by requirements and are usually indicated by the number. The number systems for classes vary DRAMATICALLY from school to school but most schools I have seen use the following number system = 
  • >1 (less than 100) = classes that are high school level, prior to college level, for students who need to get HS diploma 
  • 1 (101, 1001, etc.) = 1st year classes, these usually need to be taken first before moving on to the next level classes, lower divisions
  • 2 (201, 2001, etc.) = next level of classes, 1st and 2nd year students usually take these but it is not uncommon for even 4th year students to take them, upper divisions
  • 3 (301, 3001, etc.) = next level of classes, occasionally upper divisions, these are usually major specific classes and are more difficult
  • 4 (401, 4001, etc) = as a 4th year student you may take one of these, graduate level classes (for students pursuing a Master's Degree)
  • 5+ (501, 5001, etc) = graduate/PhD level only

• Schools in the US use the A-F or the 4-point system for grades. (some very rare US colleges will do a no grade system but its almost obsolete today)
  • A = 100% - 90% [4]
  • B = 89% - 80% [3]
  • C = 79% - 70% [2]
  • D = 69% - 50% (a failing grade) [1]
  • F = 49% - below [0]

• We also refer to the years a student is in by the following terms = 
  • 1st year student = Freshman
  • 2nd year student = Sophomore
  • 3rd year student = Junior
  • 4th year student = Senior
  • Master's Student = Master's Candidate
  • PhD Student = PhD Candidate

• 
  
  • Baccalaureate = Bachelor's Degree
  • Post Baccalaureate = anything after the Bachelor's degree  

• Fun fact, for each graduate level (Bachelors, Masters, PhD) graduating students wear different types of regalia. Bachelor's students graduate with a cap and gown with the colors of their school and usually a sash. Master's graduates wear a hood with the colors of the major they are graduating with (stripes added for additional degrees). PhD students wear a completely different garb with the colors of their school and major. For Bachelor's students tassels go right to left when graduating = left symbolizing that the graduate has graduated! After this as a Master's student the tassel stays on the left symbolizing the Bachelor's degree.