06-07 Undergrad Catalog

Graduation Evaluation Office
B-150 ASB
(801) 422-4218

Graduation Information

Adherence to University Standards

Students are required to be in good Honor Code standing to graduate. In addition, graduation may be delayed or denied for students whose ecclesiastical endorsement has been withdrawn or who have unmet financial obligations with the university.

Note: Any hold, warning, or probation by the Honor Code Office must be properly cleared well before graduation.

Application for Graduation

All who wish to graduate must officially apply for graduation. Students who are applying for the bachelor's degree should do so during their junior year. Application forms are available at the college advisement centers. Submit the completed application form and the graduation fee of $15 for a bachelor's degree to Student Financial Services (D-155 ASB) no later than September 15, 2005, for December graduation; November 15, 2005, for April graduation; and April 15, 2006, for August graduation.

Students who apply after the deadline dates will need to contact their advisement center to be considered for graduation. The Graduation Evaluation Office (B-150 ASB) will notify students in writing of the general education, major(s), minor(s), and university requirements remaining.

Students who plan to obtain teacher licensure must see the Education Advisement and Certification Office before turning in their graduation application to Student Financial Services.

Attendance at Commencement

All candidates for graduation are encouraged to attend the commencement and convocation exercises. Diplomas will be mailed to students after all grades are submitted and all graduation requirements are certified complete. Commencement exercises are held in April and August only. December graduates are invited to the April commencement following their graduation.

Deadlines for Transfer, Correspondence, and Incomplete Credit

All incomplete grades must be removed from the student’s record, special examinations and general education requirements must be passed and recorded, and all transfer and correspondence (Independent Study) credit must be on file in the Records Office at least four weeks before commencement.

Earning Lower Degree After Receiving Higher Degree

A person who has earned a higher degree is ineligible to earn a lesser degree at BYU unless exception has been granted by the Student Academic Record Appeals Committee (B-150 ASB).

Independent Study Credit

A maximum of 36 semester hours of Independent Study credit may be applied toward the 120-semester-hour requirement for a baccalaureate degree.

Note: See the Bachelor of General Studies Program section of this catalog for BGS requirements.

Scholastic Recognition

University Honors

To graduate with University Honors, a student must:

Commit to graduate with University Honors and consult with an Honors Advisement Center representative once each semester.
Complete the honors curriculum requirement.
Complete the honors Great Works requirement.
Complete the honors Advanced Languages requirement.
Complete the honors service requirement.
Complete the honors thesis requirement.
Have a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.5.
Submit a graduation portfolio that summarizes the student's honors experiences.

More detailed explanations of the Honors Program are available in 102-A MSRB and in the Honors Program section of this catalog.

Latin Scholastic Distinctions

Latin Scholastic Distinctions at graduation are determined by GPA for the top 10 percent of the graduating seniors based on cumulative total and BYU grade point averages.

Summa Cum Laude is awarded on the basis of grade point average to the top 1.0 percent of the baccalaureate candidates who have earned a minimum 45 semester hours of credit at BYU.

Magna Cum Laude is awarded on the basis of grade point average to the top 1.1 to 5.0 percent of the baccalaureate candidates who have earned a minimum 45 semester hours of credit at BYU.

Cum Laude is awarded on the basis of grade point average to the top 5.1 to 10.0 percent of the baccalaureate candidates who have earned a minimum 45 semester hours of credit at BYU.

Graduation Requirements

Baccalaureate Degree Requirements

The baccalaureate degree is awarded for completion of a specified program of university study. It recognizes important changes in outlook, understanding, and proficiency that result from university experience. At BYU this program of study includes the university core, the discipline of a specific major, and each student's choice of electives. In addition, a minimum of 30 semester credit hours in residence, a minimum total of 120 credit hours, and a cumulative GPA of at least 2.0 are required. The degree granted (BA, BS, etc.) is determined by the primary major.

University Core Requirements for the Baccalaureate Degree

See the University Core section of this catalog for complete information.

Major Requirements for the Baccalaureate Degree

See specific major requirements in the Academic Departments/Schools/Areas, Degrees, and Courses section of this catalog.

Minimum University Requirements

Residency Requirement

At least 30 credit hours must be earned in residence on the BYU campus in Provo as an admitted day student to qualify for a baccalaureate degree.

Total Credit-Hour Requirement

A candidate for a baccalaureate degree must complete a minimum of 120 credit hours.

Grade Point Average Requirement

To graduate from BYU students must earn a minimum 2.0 cumulative BYU grade point average and a minimum 2.0 total cumulative grade point average. Students must also meet any stipulated minimum grade point average requirements in their major.

D Credit

Students may use a course in which they receive a D ("minimum passing") to complete major, minor, religion, or general education requirements. Those receiving a D in a course will not be required to retake the course unless a higher minimum grade is stipulated in a degree program or course sequence description in the undergraduate or graduate catalog.

Courses taken at other colleges or universities with D grades will count toward the total hour requirement for graduation, but will not fill BYU general education requirements and in most instances will not fill major requirements.

Major Requirements

The curricular requirements of a specific major must be satisfactorily completed, including any additional departmental requirements related to the major. A minimum of 20 credit hours in the major must be completed in residence as an admitted day student, 10 of these on the BYU campus in Provo.

Double Major

A second major is rare and must be approved by the department chair(s) and the dean(s) of the college(s) involved. The second major proposal and approval process requires an evaluation of all university core and major requirements and a time-to-graduation analysis. College advisement centers are prepared to assist interested students in this process. Courses used to satisfy the requirements of a student’s major can also be used to satisfy the requirements of a minor or an approved second major, if such is permitted by the requirements of the proposed second major. Only the primary major will be listed in the university commencement program.

Changes of Requirements

University graduation requirements are occasionally modified or changed. The university informs students of such modifications through its catalog (both published and online), online class schedules, and all advisement centers on campus. Students who leave the university for an extended period of time can be informed of such changes through these sources.

Policy on “Old” Graduation Requirements and Credit

Brigham Young University is committed to providing its students with an excellent university education consisting of a broad general education that includes religious education and a strong major education. Programs of the university change and develop in the continuing effort to make learning and experience as valuable as possible. Development, growth, and improvement are expected parts both of our lives and our institutions. It is because of the commitment to a superb education that the university’s programs develop and improve and that students are expected to meet the current standards of the university when they graduate, even though they may have begun their studies long ago under quite different expectations.

Students who complete a baccalaureate degree within eight academic years of enrollment at BYU qualify for graduation by meeting those religion, university, and general education requirements in effect when they initially enrolled, even though there may have been changes in general education and religion requirements since that time.

In addition, students who complete baccalaureate degrees within eight academic years of enrollment at BYU qualify for graduation by meeting those major education requirements in effect when they officially declared the major with which they plan to graduate even though such declaration was made at some point following their original enrollment. (A student officially declares a major one of two ways: [1] by indicating the choice of major on part 2 of the CES Admission and Scholarship Application or [2] by submitting a Change of Major Form to a college advisement center at a subsequent time.)

Students who have not graduated within eight years of their initial enrollment at BYU will be required to meet with the dean and department chair in the area in which they are majoring to determine graduation requirements and the use of credit previously earned. The Graduation Evaluation Office will evaluate credit for general education requirements. Where general education or major requirements have changed or where credit previously earned was in an area of substantial change, students may be required to do additional work to meet graduation requirements.

This means that credit earned more than eight years before admission or readmission (including transfer credit) will be accepted to meet general education or major graduation requirements at the discretion of the university.

Bachelor of General Studies

See the Bachelor of General Studies Program in the Division of Continuing Education section of this catalog.

Advisement

An important corollary of the university's commitment to provide its students with an excellent university education is its commitment to help students find their way through their programs effectively and efficiently. Students whose educational experience has reached over many years and who find that changes in programs will require additional work and preparation should consult with department advisors for help in planning their schedules in the best and most encouraging way possible.

The university's requirement that a student graduate under current or very recent standards is meant to benefit the student and is in no way established to deter a determined person from returning to the university after years away. Good advisement can be of great help in working out a program of study at the university, taking into account individual needs, concerns, and experience.

Students who return to the university after an extended absence should contact the Graduation Evaluation Office (B-150 ASB, [801] 422-4218) and confer with their college advisement center counselors and department advisors immediately upon returning to the university, both for advice and help concerning graduation requirements and for evaluation of their credit. In many instances it will prove possible to negotiate a schedule of classes that will allow the student to move toward a degree without lost effort.