The Uniform Certificate of General Studies (UCGS) is a one-year college program in which all courses are transferable and satisfy lower-division general education requirements at any Virginia public institution of higher education. The Passport is a component of the UCGS and is therefore a subset of courses in the UCGS. The UCGS consists of seven course blocks. To satisfy the UCGS students are required to complete the appropriate number of courses in each block as described below. Student course selection should be carefully considered since the UCGS program is not designed to capture the complexities of individual programs of study at the four-year institutions. Students should be advised to take the UCGS course that best suits their intended program of study at the four-year institution.

Students enter the UCGS program by meeting the usual general admission requirements established by the College. After entering, students must next take any recommended developmental courses. Finally, to earn the Certificate, students must complete approved college-level courses with a grade point average of at least 2.0 or better, all courses must be completed after May 2020.