University Graduation Requirements

Other Requirements

Overview of Graduation Requirements

General Graduation Information

UNIVERSITY REQUIREMENTS - Back to Top

All students enrolled in a baccalaureate degree program must fulfill the following university requirements to graduate.

Credit Requirements - Back to Top

A minimum of 120 semester hours is required for graduation with a baccalaureate degree. A minimum of 45 semester hours in upper-division courses is required for graduation. Some programs may require more than 45 upper-division semester hours for graduation; refer to college graduation requirements for the specific number required.

Not more than 60 semester hours in independent learning courses and/or earned by comprehensive examination (including Advanced Placement, College-Level Examination Program, DANTES Subject Standardized Test, and International Baccalaureate Diploma/Certificate exams) are accepted for credit toward the baccalaureate degree.

Grade Point Requirement - Back to Top

A minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.00 for all courses taken at ASU is required to graduate with a baccalaureate degree.

General Studies Requirement - Back to Top

All students enrolled in a baccalaureate degree program must satisfy a university requirement of a minimum of 35 semester hours of approved course work. (See “General Studies.”) For General Studies courses, see the “General Studies Courses,” the course descriptions, the Schedule of Classes, and the Summer Sessions Bulletin.

Students transferring from Arizona community colleges with a certified completion of the appropriate Arizona General Education Curriculum (AGEC) will have satisfied all lower-division General Studies requirements of the baccalaureate degree with which the AGEC articulates. For more details regarding the different versions of AGEC, refer to az.transfer.org/cas/atass/student/agec.html.

Mathematics Requirement - Back to Top

All undergraduate degree-seeking students are expected to fulfill the university’s mathematics requirement by the time they have accumulated 30 hours of credit in residence at ASU. Any student who has more than 30 hours of credit and has not fulfilled the mathematics requirement must enroll in a mathematics course or an appropriate prerequisite course and continue to do so every semester until the mathematics requirement is met. A waiver may be granted for continuous enrollment if there are scheduling conflicts detrimental to the student’s academic progress.

First-Year Composition Requirement - Back to Top

Completion of both ENG 101 and 102 or ENG 105 with a grade of “C” or higher is required for graduation from ASU in any baccalaureate program. International students from non-English-speaking countries may meet the First-Year Composition requirement by completing ENG 107 and 108 with a grade of “C” or higher.

New or Transfer Students. Before new students or transfer students can register for the first time at ASU, they must determine what courses to take to complete the university First-Year Composition requirement; the students must then enroll immediately in composition courses and continue to do so every term until composition requirements are met. Colleges may grant waivers to the immediate and continual enrollment requirement when there are scheduling conflicts detrimental to the student’s academic progress. Transfer students from other Arizona colleges or universities can determine the acceptability of their composition courses by referring to the Course Applicability System in consultation with an academic advisor. Composition courses transferred from out-of-state institutions must be evaluated and approved by the Composition Office.

The transfer student must file an application in the student’s college for Equivalency of First-Year Composition Requirements, along with a transcript and catalog descriptions of the composition courses to be transferred. The application, available in each college, should be filed immediately upon transfer of course work to ASU so that the student is able to enroll in an additional composition course, if required to do so.

For more information, visit the Composition Office in LL 314.

Resident Credit Requirement - Back to Top

Resident credit refers to a course that is offered in a regular semester, winter session, intersession, or summer session. Credit earned through comprehensive examinations is also included when calculating ASU resident hours. Credit earned through independent learning, advanced placement, the College-Level Examination Program, or an International Baccalaureate Diploma/Certificate are excluded when calculating ASU resident hours.

Campus Resident Credit Requirement. Every candidate for the baccalaureate degree is required to earn a minimum of 30 semester hours in resident credit courses at the ASU campus from which the student will graduate.

Guidelines for Determination of Catalog Year - Back to Top

The General Catalog is published annually. Department, school, division, college, and university requirements may change and are upgraded often. In determining graduation requirements, an undergraduate student may use only one edition of the General Catalog but may elect to follow any subsequent catalog. Students maintaining continuous enrollment at any public Arizona community college or university may graduate according to the requirements of the catalog in effect at the time of initial enrollment or according to the requirements of any single catalog in effect during subsequent terms of continuous enrollment. Students may maintain continuous enrollment whether attending a single public community college or university in Arizona or transferring among public institutions in Arizona while pursuing their degrees.

Students transferring among Arizona public higher education institutions must meet the admission, residency, and all curricular and academic requirements of the degree-granting institution.

1. A semester in which a student earns course credit is counted toward continuous enrollment. Noncredit courses, audited courses, failed courses, or courses from which the student withdraws do not count toward the determination of continuous enrollment for catalog purposes. See examples A and B in the “Continuous Enrollment” table.
    
2. Students who do not meet the minimum enrollment standard stipulated in number 1 during three consecutive semesters (fall/spring/fall or spring/fall/spring) and the intervening summer term at any public Arizona community college or university are no longer considered continuously enrolled. (Note that students are not obligated to enroll and earn course credit during summer terms, but summer enrollment may be used to maintain continuous enrollment status.) These students must meet requirements of the public Arizona community college or university catalog in effect at the time they are readmitted or of any single catalog in effect during subsequent terms of continuous enrollment after readmission. See examples C and D in the “Continuous Enrollment” table.
    
3. Students admitted or readmitted to a public Arizona community college or university during a summer term must follow the requirements of the catalog in effect the following fall semester or of any single catalog in effect during subsequent terms of continuous enrollment. See example E in the “Continuous Enrollment” table.
    
4. In areas of study in which the subject matter changes rapidly, material in courses taken long before graduation may become obsolete or irrelevant. Course work that is more than eight years old is applicable to completion of degree requirements at the discretion of the student’s major department. Departments may accept such course work, reject it, or request that the student revalidate its substance. The eight-year limit on course work applies except when program accreditation agencies limit the life of course work to fewer than eight years. Departments may also require students to satisfy current major requirements rather than major requirements in earlier catalogs when completing earlier requirements is no longer possible or educationally sound.
    
5. Enrollment by Arizona community college students in nontransferable courses still constitutes enrollment for purposes of determining whether the student has been continuously enrolled. For example, if a student takes two semesters of cooperative education classes, which are not transferable to the university but constitute continuous enrollment at the community college, the university should consider it continuous enrollment.
    
6. Exceptions made by an institution apply only to the institution that made the exception. For example, if the community college departments accepted credit that was more than eight years old, the university department to which the student transfers has the right and the obligation to reevaluate any credit more than eight years old.
    

Inquiries about these guidelines may be directed to the student’s academic advisor.

Declaration of Graduation - Back to Top

Students must file a Declaration of Graduation (DOG) using the Degree Audit Reporting System (DARS). DARS is an automated process that matches courses a student has completed with the requirements of a particular academic degree program, resulting in a report that shows the student which requirements are satisfied and which requirements remain to be fulfilled, thus providing a guide for efficient selection of courses toward graduation. For example, a student majoring in Biology would request a Degree Audit Report that would show how his or her completed ASU and transfer course work would apply to the Biology degree program.

Each student must submit a DOG form no later than the semester in which he or she earns the 87th semester hour. The DOG process confirms the degree requirements under which the student is enrolled, as indicated on the degree audit report for that academic program and catalog year. The student should review his or her degree audit with an academic advisor to assure an accurate interpretation. Some departments may require the DOG earlier than the 87th hour. Students failing to submit the DOG are prevented from further registration.

Application for Graduation Requirements - Back to Top

The following steps are required to complete the graduation process:

1. Register for the final semester.
    
2. Pay the graduation fee at Cashiering Services. Note the deadline dates listed in the “University Calendar.”
    
3. Submit the fee receipt to the Graduation Section, SSV 140, and apply for graduation. The Degree Audit Report or Program of Study is reviewed at this time and the graduation date and eligibility to graduate are verified.
    
4. Complete all course work listed on the Degree Audit Report or Program of Study by the graduation date.
    

For more information about application for graduation requirements at ASU West, contact ASU West Admissions and Records, UCB 120.

Students must comply with the above requirements to graduate.

The Application for Graduation along with the Degree Audit Report or Program of Study is reviewed to verify graduation eligibility.

Petition for Variance from Degree - Back to Top

Any student wishing to have a college or university degree requirement variance must petition the standards committee of the college in which the student is enrolled.

All petitions must originate with the student’s advisor. Refer to the college sections of this catalog for college and division, school, or department requirements.

Main Campus Standards Committee. This committee advises the Office of the Senior Vice President and Provost regarding undergraduate student petitions that concern university-wide academic requirements. These requirements include but are not limited to requirements on the amount of transfer credit, graduation requirements, limits on credit by examination, and requirements for a second baccalaureate degree (see “Overview of Graduation Requirements,” and “Second Baccalaureate Degree”). To petition for a variance from such university requirements, the normal department, division, school, and college forms and procedures are used. Only petitions that have been denied at the college level are forwarded to the Main Campus Standards Committee.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS - Back to Top

The separate units of the university, such as colleges, divisions, schools, and departments, have specific requirements for graduation that must be satisfied for a baccalaureate degree. For those requirements, see the appropriate General Catalog section. Students are encouraged to consult with an academic advisor in planning a program to ensure that it meets the various requirements. A well-planned program may enable a student to concurrently satisfy a portion of the General Studies requirement together with a portion of a college or major requirement.

OVERVIEW OF GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS - Back to Top

At ASU, students take classes that fulfill four types of requirements. As illustrated in the “Graduation Requirements” diagram, some courses can fulfill two or more types of requirements, but other courses fulfill only one requirement. The total semester hours needed to graduate are represented by the largest circle. The university minimum is 120 semester hours. Some majors, however, require more than 120 semester hours.

Although the three shaded circles are equal in size and the white circle is larger than all three, the total number of semester hours for each type of requirement may vary.

University Requirements. The light gray circle represents university requirements. The General Studies requirement and the First-Year Composition requirement are among the university requirements. For General Studies, a minimum of 35 semester hours in five core and three awareness areas is required. For more information, see “General Studies.”

College Requirements. The medium gray circle represents college requirements. Some colleges and schools have additional requirements, especially the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. It is important to understand the appropriate college’s requirements.

Major. The dark gray circle represents the requirements of the major. The semester hours required for a major may be as low as 30 hours or as high as 63 hours.

Electives/Minor. The white circle represents electives and the requirements of a minor. A minor typically adds an additional 18 to 25 semester hours. Though every student must eventually declare a major, a minor is not required. For more information on minors, see “Minors, Certificates, and Interdisciplinary Studies.” Some courses, while providing semester hours toward graduation, fall outside the shaded circles and are not required in a program for graduation. These courses are electives. Some majors leave no room for electives within the minimum 120 semester hours required to graduate.

GENERAL GRADUATION INFORMATION - Back to Top

Graduation with Academic Recognition. An undergraduate student must have completed at least 60 semester hours of resident credit at ASU to qualify for graduation with academic recognition for a baccalaureate degree.

The cumulative GPA determines the designation, as shown in the “Academic Recognition” table below.

The cumulative GPA for these designations is based on only ASU resident course work. For example, ASU independent learning course grades are not calculated in the honors GPA. All designations of graduation with academic recognition are indicated on the diploma and the ASU transcript. Graduation with academic recognition applies only to undergraduate degrees.

A student who has a baccalaureate degree from ASU and is pursuing a second baccalaureate degree at ASU (with a minimum of 30 hours of resident credit) is granted academic recognition on the second degree based on the semester hours earned subsequent to the posting of the first degree. If fewer than 60 semester hours are completed at ASU subsequent to completion of the first ASU degree, the level of academic recognition can be no higher than that obtained on the first degree. If 60 or more semester hours are completed at ASU after completion of the first ASU degree, the level of academic recognition is based on the GPA earned for the second ASU degree. Inquiries about graduation with academic recognition may be directed to the Graduation Section, 480/965-3256.

Second Baccalaureate Degree. The student seeking a second baccalaureate degree must meet admission criteria for that degree. After conferral of the first degree, a minimum of 30 semester hours in resident credit must be successfully completed at the ASU campus from which the second baccalaureate degree will be awarded. The student must meet all degree and university requirements of the second degree.

Concurrent Degrees. More than one baccalaureate degree may be pursued concurrently if prior approval is given by the standards committee(s) of the college(s) offering the degrees. Students may receive concurrent degrees if they meet the minimum requirements for both degrees.

Graduate Degrees. See “Graduate College” and “College of Law” for graduate degrees offered and statements of requirements for graduate degrees. A Graduate Catalog may be obtained from the Graduate College or the ASU Bookstore.

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