Course Prerequisites

There are two types of prerequisites: 1.) Recommended and 2.) Required.

Recommended prerequisites include courses(s) that provide students with further instructions or additional information essential to student success. Students are not prevented from registering for courses that have a recommended prerequisite.

Required prerequisites include courses(s) a student must complete before registering for a specific course and must be met at the point of registration.

Prerequisites are usually introductory courses that students must have successfully completed in order to take certain college courses. For example, students must provide proof of successful completion of ENGL 1301 to be eligible to enroll in ENGL 1302. A prerequisite may also be a specific score on tests such as TSI, STAAR, TAKS, ACT or SAT.

Often prerequisites may be met by transferring in a course from another college. Therefore, students are strongly encouraged to turn in their official transcripts early to the Admissions Office in order for the transcript(s) to be evaluated, and posted to their academic record in the automated student system.

If you are unable to register for a course there may be several reasons, such as:

• The Registrar's office has not received your official transcript or test scores; or
• The Registrar's office received your official transcript, but it has not been evaluated yet; or
• The minimum grade requirement was not met on your required prerequisite(s).

Contact your college admissions office if you believe any of the reasons listed above may have occurred.

Many technical courses have specific skill levels that must be achieved in order to enroll in a more advanced technical course. These skills are evaluated solely by the professor teaching the course.

Students are expected to either successfully complete courses or meet assessment standards in order to meet the required course prerequisites. The college reserves the right to administratively withdraw students who have not met the specific required course prerequisites, unless the student is TSI exempt or waived. In such cases, students may register for another course.