Credits for Graduation
The total number of credit units ("c.u.," or "credits") needed for graduation varies between 32 and 36 depending on the number of credits required in the major. Each major specifies a certain number of credits that must be completed, but never less than 12. In addition to the major, students must normally complete 20 credits outside the major. No more than 36 credits will be required for graduation. Those whose majors require more than 16 credits may take correspondingly fewer than 20 outside the major.
The 20 credits taken outside the major will include courses taken to fulfill General Education requirements and Free Electives. Some of the general education courses will also count toward the major (see Policies for the particular requirement). In this case students will take additional Free Electives. Since the College confers a bachelor of arts degree, 16 of the 20 credits outside the major must be Arts and Sciences courses. This means that most students may count as many as 4 courses from schools outside Arts and Sciences towards the degree. Students who wish to take more than the minimum number of credits for graduation may take even more than 4 from other schools. If a major requires more than 16 credits, correspondingly fewer than 4 courses from other schools may be counted toward the degree.
Students are expected to finish their degree in eight semesters. If this is not possible, students must speak with an advisor in the College Office to discuss an academic plan for degree completion.
