For Students

Students who enter any Florida public college or university as an undergraduate degree-seeking student for the FIRST time in Summer/Fall 2021 or after must earn credit in an approved civic literacy course AND achieve a passing score on a designated civic literacy assessment.

• All first-time in college (FTIC) degree seeking students who entered USF starting in Summer B/Fall 2021 or later
• Transfer students who entered USF (or another Florida public college or university) as an undergraduate degree-seeking student in Summer B/Fall 2021 or later, including:
  • Students with an AA degree.
  • Students pursuing an additional bachelor’s degree.
  • Students who transferred from out-of-state.
  • Students who transferred from a private college or university in Florida.

How to meet this requirement:

Students entering Summer B/Fall 2021 and later must satisfy BOTH the Civic Literacy course and assessment requirements.

The course requirement may be met by doing one of the following:

• Completing POS2041 American National Government with a grade of “D-“ or higher.
• Completing AMH2020 A History of the United States Since 1877 with a grade of “D-“ or higher.
• Receiving accelerated credit through completion of one of the following:
  • Advanced Placement Government and Politics: United States exam with a score of 3 or more.
  • Advanced Placement United States History exam with a score of 4 or more.
  • CLEP American Government exam with a score of 50 or more.
  • Cambridge AICE History, US History c. 1840-1990 (A-Level) with a score of A-E.
  • IB History: History of America with a score of of 5-7.

The assessment requirement may be met by doing one of the following:

• Scoring 3 or higher on the Advanced Placement Government and Politics: United States exam.
• Scoring 4 or higher on the Advanced Placement United States History exam.
• Scoring 50 or higher on the CLEP American Government exam;
• Scoring 60% or higher out of 100 on the US Citizenship and Immigration Services Naturalization Test (Civic Literacy Exam) is available through Canvas. There is no cost to students for the test itself.

Note to students graduating from a Florida high school:

Course requirement: The following students are considered to have met the course requirement portion of Civic Literacy and are NOT required to take an additional course at USF.

• Students earning a D- or higher in POS2041 or AMH2020 via high school dual enrollment at a Florida postsecondary institution.
• Students earning high school credit through Advanced Placement Government and Politics or Advanced Placement United States History.

Assessment requirement: High school students who pass the Florida Civic Literacy Exam taken in a United States Government course are exempt from the postsecondary testing requirement.

Students who enter any Florida public college or university as an undergraduate degree-seeking student for the FIRST time in beginning Fall 2018 through Summer 2021, must earn credit in an approved civic literacy course OR achieve a passing score on a designated civic literacy assessment (not both).

• All FTIC (first time in college) undergraduate degree-seeking students who enrolled at USF in Fall 2018 or later must meet the requirement.
• Transfer students who entered USF (or another Florida public college or university) as degree-seeking in Fall 2018 or later must meet the requirement, including:
  • Students with an AA degree.
  • Student pursuing an additional bachelor’s degree.
  • Students who transferred from out-of-state.
  • Students who transferred from a private college or university in Florida.
    
    
• Students who transferred to USF from another Florida public college or university who were enrolled as undergraduate degree-seeking students prior to Fall 2018 are not subject to the requirement.

How to meet this requirement:

Students entering beginning Fall 2018 through Summer 2021 must satisfy the Civic Literacy requirement by doing ONE of the following:

• Scoring 3 or higher on the AP exam for POS 2041: American National Government,
• Scoring 4 or higher on the AP exam for AMH 2020: American History II,
• Scoring 50 or higher on the CLEP American Government Exam,
• Completing Cambridge AICE History, US History c. 1840-1990 (A-Level) with a score of A-E,
• Completing IB History: History of America with a score of of 5-7,
• Scoring 60% or higher on a test based on the US Citizenship and Immigration Services Naturalization Test with supplemental questions developed by the Florida Board of Governors, or
• Completing POS 2041: American National Government or AMH 2020: American History II with a grade of "D"- or higher.

Students who have not met one of the requirements above (and are not enrolled in POS 2041: American National Government or AMH 2020: American History II) are auto-enrolled into the Civics Literacy Prep and Test Canvas Course which provides:

• Preparation materials for the Civic Literacy Test and
• Access to the Civic Literacy Test

Out-of-state students transferring to an SUS institution during the 2021-22 academic year or thereafter, who have never previously enrolled in a public Florida institution (SUS or FCS), must meet the new civic literacy requirement, which includes both a course and an exam.

For in-state students or students that have been previously enrolled in a Florida public institution and are transferring back to a System institution, refer to the "Who must meet this requirement" section of this webpage to determine their cohort and civic literacy requirements.

No, because the initial enrollment in a Florida public institution (SUS or FCS) was prior to fall 2018.

Enrollment in a Florida public institution (SUS or FCS) prior to graduating from high school does not exempt a student from having to meet the civic literacy requirement. These students would still be considered FTIC upon their enrollment in a Florida public institution.

Board of Governors office staff worked with the Department of Education, Office of Articulation, and the Florida College System to ensure that the FASTER system has a common notation. Transcripts will have Yes/No/Exempt indicators to show whether the civic literacy requirement has been satisfied.

During the 2021-22 academic year, Board of Governors office staff will continue to work with the Department of Education, Office of Articulation, and the Florida College System to discuss potential changes. Additional information may be forthcoming.

If a student has never enrolled in an SUS or FCS institution prior to fall 2018, yes. For students who enroll at a Florida Public College/Univeristy for the first time in fall 2018 and thereafter, refer to the "Who must meet this requirement" section of this webpage to determine their cohort and civic literacy requirements.

The secondary FASTER transcripts will be updated to reflect if the student passed the civic literacy assessment.

All sections of eligible courses (POSX041 and AMHX020), regardless of mode of delivery, must provide opportunities for synchronous discussions at least every other week when offered during the fall and spring terms. Courses offered during the summer should provide the equivalent minimum number of opportunities.

According to section 1007.25 (5)(b), Florida Statutes, courses identified as satisfying the civic literacy requirement, in this case POSX041 and AMHX020, must align with the competencies listed in the subsection beginning in fall 2018. Institutions should follow internal procedures to modify course outcomes to align with the competencies and work with the Office of Articulation to update the course profile(s) in the Statewide Course Numbering System (SCNS) database.

According to section 1007.25 (4)(b)(1), Florida Statutes, courses must include such opportunities in order to be eligible for meeting the civic literacy requirement beginning with courses offered during summer B 2021.

If POSX041 or AMHX020 do not align with a student’s program of study, the options available will depend on the student’s first entry into a Florida public institution:

• The institution should encourage the student to consider demonstrating competency through one of the approved assessments to avoid possible excess credit hours.
  
  
• Academic advisors should inform students of the graduation requirement to complete both a civics literacy course and civics literacy assessment and work to include POSX041 and AMHX020 as part of the general education requirements to avoid excess hours.

Students first entering a Florida college or university for the first time in fall 2018  - summer A 2021 may take an approved exam in lieu of these courses or they have the option to take POS X041 and AMH X020 at a Florida college or university outside their home institution through the Transient Student Admission Application on Florida Shines. 

Students first entering a Florida college or university in Summer B2021 or after have the option to take POS X041 and AMH X020 at a Florida college or university outside their home institution through the Transient Student Admission Application on Florida Shines. 

Yes but the course must be completed with a grade of "C-" or higher to satisfy both General Education and Civic Literacy. If credit is earned with a grade lower than "C-", the course will only satisfy Civic Literacy requirement.

Only the Naturalization Test - Civics (U.S. History and Government) is available for use for students enrolled in an SUS institution. The Florida Civics Literacy Exam is still in development by the Florida Department of Education and has not yet been approved for use by SUS institutions.

An authorized SUS institution representative may obtain an approved version of the assessment from Florida Virtual Campus, at no cost to the institution.

Institutions must administer all 100 questions of the Naturalization Test – Civics (U.S. History and Government), which includes supplemental questions developed collaboratively by the SUS Board of Governors office staff, the FCS office staff and the Lou Frey Institute, and incorporated into the test. An authorized SUS institution representative may obtain an approved version from the Florida Virtual Campus.

Institutions may choose to administer the approved version of the Naturalization/Citizenship Test – Civics (U.S. History and Government) in any format. Test administration can be given in, but not limited to, a learning management system (LMS), a paper-based examination, or another format that is designed to meet the needs of students with special needs. Institutions should ensure that the test is administered in a manner that maintains the integrity of the test and its content.

At USF, you can complete the Civic Literacy Prep and Test Course in Canvas. This course provides preparation materials for the Civic Literacy Test, as well as access to the test. 

USF provides the approved version of the U.S. Naturalization/Citizenship Test – Civics (U.S. History and Government) at no cost to students via Canvas.

Yes. Institutions are required to maintain records of each student’s final passing score on the test. The scores, however, will not be noted on the transcript.

This test can be repeated. Students are allowed unlimited attempts of the U.S. Naturalization/Citizenship Test – Civics (U.S. History and Government) in Canvas. A failing grade on this assessment does not impact a student's GPA.

Students are allowed unlimited attempts of the U.S. Naturalization/Citizenship Test – Civics (U.S. History and Government) in Canvas. 

No. Students who took the U.S. Naturalization/Citizenship Test to become a U.S. citizen will not have met the Civic Literacy requirement, as that test does not include the competencies as required by section 1007.25(4)(b)(2).