American Cultures (AC)

What is the American Cultures (AC) requirement?

• AC is a Berkeley campus requirement - the one course that all undergraduate students at Cal need to take in order to graduate.
  
  
• AC courses are a cornerstone of the Berkeley curriculum, providing integrative and comparative analyses of race, culture and ethnicity in the United States. There are many courses that can satisfy the requirement, both lower (#1-99) and upper division (#100-199).
  
  
• The AC requirement may be taken for a letter grade of C- or better, or on a Passed/Not Passed basis.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q - Can I also use my AC course to satisfy one of the L&S breadth requirements?

A - Yes. For example, you might take History 7A, Intro to U.S. History, to satisfy your AC requirement. This course would also satisfy your L&S requirement of Historical Studies, and if you plan to major in Political Science, History, or another major that has a prerequisite in American History, this would also satisfy a major prerequisite. Although most students complete the University's American History requirement during high school, if you did not, then History 7A would satisfy that requirement too.

Seven-Course Breadth

American History and American Institutions