California’s independent colleges and universities are an excellent choice for many students. The Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities (AICCU) is comprised of over 85 independent, nonprofit colleges and universities, which collectively educate nearly 200,000 undergraduates, comprising 21% of all bachelor's degrees awarded in the state of California. In addition, independent colleges and universities award 55% of all graduate degrees. There are a wide variety of institutions in this group from large research universities like Stanford, the University of Southern California (USC), and to smaller local institutions like California Lutheran University (CLU) and Westmont. There are Catholic, Christian, Jewish, and non-religious institutions. There are colleges specifically for the arts, like California Institute of the Arts (Cal Arts), and those that focus on technology, like California Institute of Technology (Cal Tech) or health sciences, including nursing. Independent institutions often have smaller class sizes and their endowments allow them to offer large financial aid packages including scholarships and grants that make them affordable even though their tuition costs are much higher than public universities. 75% of AICCU member institutions are Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSI) or Emerging HSIs and 79% are Yellow Ribbon Institutions. 

To see the colleges and universities available and their locations in California, visit the AICCU website. For assistance in creating an educational plan that prepares you to transfer to an independent college or university, students should schedule an appointment with a counselor in the Counseling Department.

ASSIST 

For the first time ever, starting in Fall 2024, the first cohort of 27 independent California colleges and universities will be incorporated into ASSIST so students and transfer counselors can see the full scope of transfer options. More institutions will be incorporated in the future.

Associate Degree for Transfer Pathway

The Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT), also known as the Degree with a Guarantee, is a transfer pathway articulated between California Community Colleges (CCC), the California State University (CSU), and participating AICCU institutions. A college student, graduating with an Associate in Arts for Transfer (AA-T) or an Associate in Science for Transfer (AS-T) in one of the 36 ADT majors, is guaranteed admission, at junior standing, to complete their degree.

What Does an ADT to an AICCU mean?

The ADT Commitment is the Independent California College and University sector’s adaptation of the ADT pathway. While similar to the CSU ADT, there are also some differences due to the independent nature of the state’s nonprofit institutions:

• Unlike CSU, AICCU institutions are not part of a system and each campus has its own admission and graduation requirements.
   
• If an ADT transfer student meets all the requirements of admission to a participating institution, admission is guaranteed to that college as opposed to a system.

The ADT Commitment is:

• Guaranteed admission for the ADT students meeting admission requirements;
• Guarantees a minimum of 60 semester/90 quarter units will transfer;
• Guarantees the student starts with junior standing.
• For a full list of AICCU ADT Participating Institutions and majors accepted, click here.