YOUR ACADEMIC PLAN
A Preliminary Planning Worksheet for Bergen Community College Students
YOUR ACADEMIC PLAN
A Preliminary Planning Worksheet for New Freshmen
Bergen Community students all design their own Academic Plan with guidance from faculty and
advisors. An Academic Plan can be focused (like a major), broad or a combination of both. Your
Academic Plan is a living, breathing organism that will evolve and adapt to changes over time,
just like you. That’s why Bergen Community encourages you to explore many subjects and stay
flexible as you decide where to focus your studies. A strong Academic Plan includes study in a
variety of subject areas. Your Academic Plan should build on your past experiences, your hopes
for your college education and your goals for your life after Bergen Community. This worksheet
is a tool to help you begin your academic planning.
STEP 1: What do you want out of college?

List 3 goals you have for college (Don’t worry, this answer is not set in stone. Your
goals can be specific or general).
1.
2.
3.

What are your long range goals at this time? Check off one goal below and follow its
course of action.

Goal
Transfer to a four year university
after graduation from BCC
Graduate from BCC and seek
employment (no plans for transfer to
a four year university)
Enroll in a Health Professions
Program
Complete a program of 12 to 30
credit hours in a specialized
discipline.
Action
Enroll in an AA or AS program (Choose
from list in catalog*)
Enroll in an AAS program (Choose from
list in catalog*)
Enroll in AS.PS.GEN, learn
requirements for Admissions Process
and take appropriate prerequisite
courses
Enroll in a One Year Certificate or
Certificate of Achievement Program
(Choose from list in catalog*)
* Access Bergen’s most current catalog at www.bergen.edu
* BCC’s curriculum is divided into two types of degrees and certificate programs
(Transfer, Career and Certificates). The Programs from A-Z section in the catalog helps
you locate programs in your areas of interest. For example, Accounting contains
programs in both the AAS and AS programs.

At this time, what academic subjects do you see as the main emphasis of your
studies?

What strengths do you have that can help you accomplish your goals?

In what areas do you need to improve or explore in more depth to accomplish your
goals?

With your goals, academic interests, strengths and areas for improvement in mind,
list the top three program choices that will help you balance these priorities.
Remember to choose programs appropriate to your interests and beginning in the
appropriate semester.
CHOICE #1CHOICE #1
Program Name
Major Areas of Study
How it builds on
strengths/improvement
CHOICE
#2
CHOICE #2CHOICE #1
Program Name
Major Areas of Study
How it builds on
strengths/improvement
CHOICE
CHOICE #3CHOICE #1
Program Name
Major Areas of Study
How it builds on
strengths/improvement
CHOICE
STEP 2: Planning your courses for your program
Students should use the Academic section of the catalog at www.bergen.edu

Basic Skills Courses:
Review your scores from the Accuplacer Test. Based on your test results, list below
the courses you are required to take. Be sure to include them in your Academic Plan
every semester until they are completed.
EBS:
________________
________________
MAT:
________________
________________
________________

Additional Courses:
1. Review your program’s course requirements in the Catalog under the
“Academic Programs” section.
2. Select courses you’d like to take in addition to your Basic Skills Courses.
3. Review the “Course Descriptions” section in the Catalog to be sure you meet
the pre-requisites for the additional courses you’ve selected and include them
in your Academic Plan.

Meet with a Faculty Advisor or Academic Counselor to review this worksheet.

Register for the courses you select at your assigned registration time. The student
who registers on time is more likely to get his/her first choice of courses that fulfill
their program requirements and meets the needs of their schedule.

Log on to your Portal at least three times per week to check all information coming
in.
STEP 3: Staying on Track

Calculating your G.P.A.
Your grade point average (GPA) is calculated by dividing the total amount of quality
points earned by the total amount of credit hours attempted. Your grade point
average may range from 0.0 to a 4.0. Grades have the following point values:
A = 4.0
B+ = 3.5
B = 3.0
C+ = 2.5
C = 2.0
D = 1.0
Course
Credit Hours
Grade
Grade Points
Biology
4
A
16
English 101
3
C
6
Mathematics 3
F
0
Psychology
B
9
3
13 Total Credit
Hours
E=0
F=0
31 Total
Quality Points
 31 divided by 13 = 2.38 gpa

Academic Fair A once a semester event that precedes registration where faculty
from designated programs offered provide program details and are available to
meet with students and answer questions.

Job Fair A once a semester event where employers visit campus to offer
internships, jobs and information about their companies to students and alumni.

College Fair A once a semester event where 50 or more colleges and universities
visit campus to meet with students and provide information on their college’s
programs, entrance requirements, scholarships and admission.

Center for Student Success Visit the Center for Student Success at any time
throughout the year if you need academic counseling, transfer counseling, or career
counseling.

Cerullo Learning Assistance Center The CLAC offers you one-on-one
appointments, drop in assistance, study groups, workshops, in-class tutoring,
supplemental instruction, online tutoring, conversation groups. They also have
separate centers for Writing and for Math and Science. All of these services are
FREE because they are built in to your tuition and fees.
STEP 4: Gain experience in your program and your interests

Cooperative Education: Apply your classroom learning to “real life” work
experience. Work in a professional environment related to your major and career
goals while you earn academic credit.

Service Learning: Become involved in your community through service. Work with
your professors to relate your academic work to community service.

Online Studies: Take classes from the convenience of home or office. Log in any
time of the day and any day of the week to do your class work on your schedule.
Online learning is ideal for individuals with children at home, who work full-time, or
may want to take a course that is not offered at a time they can attend.

Study Abroad: Study abroad can be incorporated into your Academic Plan through
programs, exchanges and individual study. Study abroad requires advanced
planning and Academic Advising assistance.

Student Life: Students are encouraged to join any of the 50+ clubs and
organizations and participate in the many programs offered by the Office of Student
Life.