What SMC Students Should Know About Transfer

With students preparing to transfer to a four-year university, Santa Monica College (SMC), continues to lead #1 in transfer University of California (UC) transfers for 34 consecutive years, according to the 2023-2024 data released by the UC Information Center.

After the 2025 graduation, SMC continued to have more students accepted into Cal State University (CSU), University of Southern California, and Loyola Marymount University (LMU) than any other community college from the West Coast.

Students intending to transfer should follow SMC’s articulation agreement with CSU and UC college system, known as the CSU General Education Pattern or Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC), which requires a minimum of 60 transferable units with a C-grade or higher. 

The Transfer Center, located at the Student Services Center, is the main outlet for transfer support.Their office offers one-on-one counseling appointments, application workshops and various university visits and talks. 

Counselors also help students build their academic plans for completing the general education requirements, or IGETC for transfer. Students can schedule their counseling appointment in person, online through the SMC Transfer Center website, or by calling the transfer center office. 

Dr. Janet Robinson, the faculty leader for transfers at SMC, said taking advantage of all the resources the campus provides is the key to a successful transfer story.

“So if a student really locks in, sees a counselor on a regular basis, builds a rapport with all of their instructors, takes advantage of all the resources available to them on campus, and does well in their classes. I think that would be a recipe for transfer success,” she said. 

According to Robinson, students should stay motivated and hopeful as the counselors are there to help.“We want to support them the entire step of the way until they leave us to head to a four-year university.” 

For completing general education requirements, counselors encouraged students to explore academic planning resources available online, such as ASSIST.org, to keep track of required courses and credits.

In addition to other transfer resources, SMC participates in the UC Transfers Admissions Guarantee (TAG) program for students who maintain a strong grade point average. 

For more information about SMC’s Transfer Center, workshops, and its services, students can visit the college’s website or email Dr. Janet Robinson, the Transfer Center Coordinator..