Colorado Community College System & APU Education Partnership

Colorado Community College System (CCCS) and American Public University (APU) have a partnership in education for transfer credit, enabling CCCS students who have graduated on or after May 1, 2010 to apply their completed coursework towards an APU online degree program.

The table below demonstrates various APU degree programs and the number of credit hours you will receive towards completing your degree based upon your associate degree obtained at CCCS. As you can see, most APU bachelor’s degrees are 120 – 123 credit hours, and your CCCS degree will get you half way there!

* Students must select remaining courses at APU at the upper level (300-499)

If you are not eligible to take advantage of the block transfer because you did not complete one of the degrees listed above, you may still be eligible to receive credit for other coursework completed. To find out how, please complete the information request form. Or, visit our admission's site for community college transfer students and graduates.

Next Steps

• Apply today at no cost
• Download your admissions checklist

We want you to make an informed decision about the university that's right for you. For more about our graduation rates, the median debt of students who completed the program, and other important information, visit www.apus.edu/disclosure.

• Why Choose APU?

  Academic Quality meets Affordable Tuition

  American Public University (APU) is a distinguished leader providing quality and affordable online education to motivated students worldwide. APU is a member of the regionally accredited American Public University System. Here’s why more than 100,000 students make us their school of choice today.

  • No application fees
  • Textbooks are provided at no cost to all undergraduate students earning academic credit
  • Affordable tuition that is 20 percent less than the average four-year public university’s in-state rates according to the College Board’s 2010-2011 study
  • Save time and money by transferring previous education and training credits
  • Financial aid and military benefits accepted
  • Nationally recognized for quality online education and effective practices 
  • Experienced faculty who are respected practitioners in their field of study
  • 96% of APU seniors say they are satisfied or very satisfied with their education
  • 97% of APU seniors say they would recommend APU to friends and colleagues

  To get started, complete our no-fee application now.

• About Colorado Community College System

  The Colorado Community College System (CCCS) comprises the state’s largest system of higher education and its career and academic programs in the 13 state community colleges serve more than 151,000 students annually. The system’s colleges include: Arapahoe Community College, Colorado Northwestern Community College, Community College of Aurora, Community College of Denver, Front Range Community College, Lamar Community College, Morgan Community College, Northeastern Junior College, Otero Junior College, Pueblo Community College, Pikes Peak Community College, Red Rocks Community College and Trinidad State Junior College.

  Each of the thirteen community colleges is individually accredited by The Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools to award the associate degree. The official statement of accreditation for each college is published in that college’s individual catalog. In addition to regional accreditation, numerous instructional programs of the colleges have earned accreditation from national and state agencies, industry councils, and/or professional associations.

  For more information, visit http://www.cccs.edu/.

Video Spotlight

APU Feature Video
Just what is online learning all about? Hear from our faculty and students about how APU achieves academic excellence each day through online learning and take a tour of our virtual campus and classroom.

Tuition and Fees

Our combined tuition, fees, and books are roughly 15% less for undergraduate, and 33% less for graduate students than the average in-state cost at a public university.

Among the 10 leading providers of online education, we are on average 42% lower for undergraduate and 33% lower for graduate students.

View the Comparison Guide to help assess and choose the school that best fits your needs.

¹Tuition figures based on lowest possible tuition rates for ten leading regionally accredited providers of online education. In-state tuition information provided by the College Board. Undergraduate tuition assumes 10 classes per year over 4 years, with bachelor’s degrees requiring between 120 and 124 semester hours (39-40 courses and 1-4 labs) depending on the program. Graduate tuition assumes 6 classes per year over 2 years with degrees ranging from 36 to 48 semester hours (12-15 courses) and require a comprehensive exam, a capstone project, or an integrative practicum.

²For detailed information on late registration, go to the student handbook under "registration."

³Transfer Credit Evaluation Fee waived for all United States Active Duty Military, Guard, and Reserve personnel.

⁴Effective Sept 1, 2012 a $50 Technology Fee will be charged for all future undergraduate and graduate level course registrations, including audited courses. The fee is not applicable for Comprehensive Exam courses. An APUS grant will cover the fee for Active Duty Military, Reservists, National Guard, Vocational Rehabilitation (VOCA), VA and VA Chapter 33 students and anyone using military tuition assistance (TA).

⁵Our Undergraduate Book Grant provides textbooks, e-books, and other course materials at no cost for undergraduate-level courses for credit. All students must obtain their own software when required for a course or program.

Block Transfer Awards – Student FAQ

Q. What degrees at APU may I enroll in under a block transfer agreement?
A. This will vary depending upon what each partner community college offers, so please check the list that is specific to your college.

Q. What degrees must I have earned in order to be eligible for block transfer?
A. This may vary with each community college partnership depending upon the structure of their programs, but normally it will be students who earned an Associate of Arts degree or an Associate of Science degree. Any Applied Science degrees would likely not be eligible as they usually include a very low number of General Education courses.

Q. Does it matter when I earned the Associate degree from my community college?
A. Yes, only students who earned the degree after the date specified in each agreement are eligible. This is to ensure the degree is based on the requirements that were reviewed for the agreement.

Q. Am I eligible for a block transfer agreement even if I already enrolled at APU prior to the effective date of the agreement?
A. No, transfer agreements only apply to students who enroll in a degree program at APU on or after the effective date of the agreement, but you may be eligible if you are changing your major now into an eligible program.

Q. I went to more than one college in the past, and earned my Associate degree at my community college using credit transferred. Am I still eligible for the block transfer even if I didn’t take all of my courses towards my Associate degree at the community college where I officially earned the degree?
A. Yes, our block transfer agreements will be based solely on the final degree earned, and we will not distinguish between students who completed all of their courses at the partner schools and those who attended multiple schools in the past.

Q. If I attended multiple colleges, or even just took extra courses and earned more than the number of hours required for my Associate degree, can I get more credit than the agreed upon block?
A. No, as students are transferring based on their common degree requirements, they cannot receive individual course transfer credit outside of the block agreement.

Q. Do I need to have a certain GPA or a minimum grade on all courses in order to be eligible for the block transfer?
A. No, we will be screening for the degree earned only, and not for a minimum GPA. If you earned any grades below C for some courses, but were still eligible for the A.A. degree, it will not matter, as no course specific work is looked at during a block transfer.

Q. If I transfer to APU under a block transfer agreement, can I also submit other documents for credit review such as AARTS , training certificates, or CLEP?
A. No, if you transfer under a block transfer, you are not eligible for any other transfer credit. As the credit was transferred as a block without any course by course review, there would be no way to prevent credit being earned here for a course for which you had already received credit in the past, or if credit for that same course had already applied towards your previous Associates degree.

Q. What happens if I transfer to APU under a block transfer agreement but then later change my major?
A. If the new major is not eligible for block transfer, the block transfer would no longer be valid, and a new standard TCE evaluation will need to be done. However, if you are changing to an APU degree that is also included in the block transfer agreement with your community college, you may still be eligible for a block transfer award, although it may be specific to your new major.

Q. If I want to transfer in under a block transfer agreement, can I also enroll in a minor and/or certificate with their APU degree?
A. No, if you select to add a minor or certificate to your degree program, you are no longer eligible for block transfer, as you would be is using up most of your elective hours with the certificate and/or minor requirements.

Q. What is the standard block transfer award?
A. The numbers could vary a bit by partner colleges, as some community colleges have a minimum hours requirement for all of their Associate degrees that is higher than 60, but generally a block transfer would include 34 hours of General Education and 26 hours of electives. Some block transfers that are mapped out between specific programs may include some hours towards ‘major’ courses, and award less elective hours then.

Q. What if I have taken a course, like Calculus, and now Calculus is required as a prerequisite to another course I need to take here, but I am being blocked from registering?
A. Since the block transfer grants the same 60 hours to every student regardless of which courses each student actually took, we can not give credit for specific courses. You may follow the prerequisite waiver policy though, and have our Registrations office at Registrar@apus.edu help you have the prerequisite confirmed. The prerequisite can then be waived so you can take the course you want, but you will not get credit specifically for Calculus.

Q. As a block transfer student, will I be blocked from online course registrations that have ENGL101 as a prerequisite?
A. No, since this prerequisite is common to all of our B.A. programs, the block transfer functionality will automatically recognize that the ENGL101 course is now waived for these students, allowing them to continue to register themselves online.