Frequently Asked Questions

The search bar used when building a new degree plan relies on keywords in the degree's official title. If you are unsure of the title or keyword searching doesn't seem to pull up the result you would expect, try the Browse link instead.

Inside you'll find an alphabetical list of all currently available plans in Degree Planner. 

Clicking the link on any listed plan will give you some basic information about that plan and will provide a description of the degree. 

If you cannot find your degree and no other degree listed is a good match for your specific program, then likely your degree is not currently in Degree Planner. You will need to work with your advisor to craft your specific plan, which may or may not be available inside Degree Planner. 

Degree Planner is designed to help guide you to appropriate courses that will help complete your degree. Required courses, if you have met the prerequisites for them, will automatically populate into your plan.

Elective courses, or certain required courses that provide you with several options to satisfy them, are represented in your plan as placeholders.

Clicking into a placeholder will give you a list of options that satisfy that specific elective in the quarter the placeholder is in. Drag and drop the placeholder into another quarter to see a different list of options available.

If you are looking for a specific course, you can use the + Add Course link found in the top left corner of your Courses timeline.

Here you can search for any course to add to your plan, using either the course number or title. Course numbers use NO SPACES in Degree Planner (ENGL& 101 is ENGL&101).

If the selected course can be used to satisfy a part of your plan, Degree Planner will automatically assign it as such in your plan. 

Be careful - not all courses can be used in every plan and not all courses listed are consistently offered. Some plans provide very restrictive options and adding a course outside those options will not count towards the completion of your degree. Ask your advisor if you have questions about which courses to choose and how to best satisfy all your degree requirements.

If you are searching for a course using the search bar, it will be looking for either:

• Course number using NO SPACES, i.e., COL 101 is COL101 in Degree Planner
• Official course title

If you are searching inside an elective placeholder and cannot find a course, then it is likely that course is not available in the quarter the placeholder is in. Try moving the placeholder to another quarter and try searching again. If the course can still not be found, then it either does not satisfy the placeholder requirement or we no longer actively offer that course. You can only put curses in your plan that we reasonably expect to be offered again.

If you are searching inside + Add Course link from the Courses page and cannot find a course, be sure you are not using spaces with the course number and be sure you are using the official title of the course. If it still cannot be found, then it must not be in the catalog. If you believe this to be in error - use the link to report this below:

Degree Planner: Report a Problem

Yellow and red banners represent a serious problem with your plan, where you have either not adhered to an approved plan or your plan does not satisfy all the degree requirements needed. You will need to update to your plan to get it in working order. Use the link below to find more details on the types of errors and warnings you can troubleshoot on your own:

Common Errors in Degree Planner and How to Fix them

Please confer with your advisor for more detailed help crafting your plan to make sure you stay on track for graduation.

Degree Planner automatically saves broad changes you make to your plan - you do not have to do anything when you shift courses around or make elective decisions. There is a save button when you look at course details inside your plan.

You only need to click the save button if you change something in your course details, by either changing the term or changing the section selected. These are the only instances where you will need to 'Save' something in Degree Planner.

Degree Planner attempts to create balanced plans; however, each degree and student history is different. These subtle differences can cause plans to become unbalanced. Degree Planner is also making plans based on recommendations that are also not one-size-fits-all. The design of Degree Planner compensates for this and allows you to move things around to best fit your needs.

You do not have to always adhere to the timeline Degree Planner creates for you - it is designed for you to change things, so do not hesitate to change things. Degree Planner will always make sure your plan is viable and will provide warnings and errors when a plan is not working.

It is highly recommended you work with your advisor to help refine your plan, as your advisor can provide more specific insights into what courses to pick, when to take them and ensure the plan aligns with your intended future. 

Degree Planner is a planning tool inside of Starfish. It is designed to help you plan out your degree and choose the courses that can meet your requirements. It does NOT register you for courses. It does NOT drop courses for you. You must do those actions in ctcLink. 

Ideally you should craft a plan in Degree Planner - choosing the courses and sections that best meet your needs, then on your registration date, use Degree Planner as a guide to make registration in ctcLink easy. Degree Planner will update your plan nightly with any courses you have registered for or dropped, so you should see those updates in your plan.

Degree Planner is a tool for planning and exploration. Your advisor and the advising office are your best resource to get help developing your plan and help you craft the details needed to have you successfully graduate with your degree. 

Shoreline Advising

An Approved Plan is a status in Degree Planner that indicates that an advisor has reviewed and approved a plan for you. You can recognize it by the green status icon in your plan list:

If you are a degree-seeking student looking to get a credential at Shoreline College, then you do need to have an approved plan. Students in this category need to have an approved plan by the end of their 2nd quarter or a registration hold will be placed on their account. Approved plans come in many stripes, which of which may not be available in Degree Planner. Please consult with your advisor about making a plan if you believe you may be subject to a registration hold without one.

If you are non-degree seeking, a post-baccalaureate or undecided student, an approved plan is not needed.  

If the credential you are seeking is available within Degree Planner, you can make a plan and electronically submit it for approval to your advisor. You can follow the instructions in this article: Getting an Approved Plan for details about how to make and submit a plan for approval. If your credential is not listed in Degree Planner, please consult with your advisor for details about how to make an approved plan.

Yes, but you must be careful. Choosing courses that fulfill placeholders in your plan will not automatically switch your plan out of approval, but most other changes will. This means changing things in your approved plan will often result in the plan no longer being approved, and you will need to re-submit your plan for approval once you have made your changes. Note that any changes you make together with your advisor will not automatically switch your plan out of approval. You will get a warning whenever you are attempting a change in your plan that will disqualify it from approval. Be judicious about changes you intend to make and try to limit the re-submissions needed for your advisor to approve your plan.