Prospective students intending to pursue an Associate of Arts degree from Pasco-Hernando Community College must fulfill a few prerequisites. Applicants must submit a completed application along with a $25 application fee, as well as official transcripts verifying completion of a high school diploma or GED equivalent, and transcripts from any college that students might have attended before applying to PHCC. Transcripts must arrived in a sealed envelope directly from the student's educational institution. Students must also submit transcripts from the ACT, ASSET, SAT or FCELPT standardized college assessment exams. Scores must not be older than two years.
PHCC aspires to adequately train students for professions in the real world, continued education at a four-year college or university, and advanced degrees, should students choose to pursue them. The school has implemented the following learning objectives to achieve these goals: Students will be thoroughly trained in communications, critical thinking, scientific and quantitative reasoning, information literacy and technological fluency, and cultural literacy and global awareness.
To earn a AA degree, PHCC students must complete 60 credit hours, as well as pass the College Level Academic Skills Test (CLAST), which tests students in English, Mathematics, Essay and Reading. Of the 60 credit-hour requirement, 36 hours must be in general education courses and 24 credit hours (electives) can be in any course in the 1000 or 2000 level. All general education courses must be completed with a "C" or above to count towards graduation, and students must have a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or above to qualify for degree completion.
Of the 36 required general education credits, students must complete a certain amount of credits in the following subjects: nine credit hours in communications, six credit hours in mathematics, six credit hours in the natural sciences, six credit hours in social and behavioral sciences, six credit hours in the humanities and three credit hours in information literacy and technological fluency.