GENERAL ACADEMIC REGULATIONS AND INFORMATION

Graduation Requirements

Candidates for degrees must show that they have met all general University requirements for such matters as registration and payment of fees and special requirements of the college or school in which they have been registered.

Changes in graduation requirements shall not be made retroactively unless there is clear and compelling reason for doing so. Graduation requirements will be determined as follows:

  1. The general university requirements stated in the Bulletin that is current at the time a student matriculates as an undergraduate or graduate student at the University will be the general University requirements which the student must meet for graduation.
  2. Requirements imposed by colleges or free-standing schools for graduation will be determined by the Bulletin that is current at the time a student transfers to or enters the college or free-standing school.
  3. Requirements for a major, a certificate program, or a minor will be determined by the Bulletin that is current at the time a student declares a major, a minor, or certificate program.
  4. The University, a college or school, a department, or a certificate program may permit students who matriculate at the University or who enter a college/school or major under one set of courses or graduation requirements to elect for the requirements that have been instituted since students matriculated at the University or entered a college/school or major, minor, or certificate program.
  5. Undergraduate students who have not been enrolled at the University for a period of five years or more may be subjected to different University, college or school, or department requirements than those which existed at the time of matriculation at the University or entry into a given college/school, major, minor, or certificate program.

Application for Graduation

All students are required to apply for graduation through the graduation application available in Athena. The application must be completed by the withdrawal deadline of the semester in which the student is expecting to graduate.

Commencement

The University holds two formal commencement ceremonies each year in May and December for students scheduled to graduate at the end of the spring and summer semesters for the May ceremony and the fall semester for the December ceremony, respectively. In order to have their names listed in the May and December commencement programs, expected graduating students must apply to graduate and remove the FERPA restrictions from their academic records by the withdrawal deadline of the semester in which they are anticipating to graduate. Diplomas will be mailed to students approximately 4 to 6 weeks following graduation. Students are responsible for maintaining a current home address or informing the Office of the Registrar of a diploma mailing address.

The University reserves the right to withhold the degree of any student who has completed all academic requirements when disciplinary charges are pending or when there is a pending disciplinary action equivalent to suspension or expulsion.