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Policies Governing Submatriculation
The minimum course requirement for the master's degree is 8 course units, although some graduate programs may require more than this minimum. Courses earning credit for the master's degree must be at the graduate level as specified by the graduate program, usually at the 500 level and above.
In any submatriculation program, a maximum of 4 course units at the graduate level may be included in both the B.A. and the M.A. degrees. Thus, the minimum number of course units for a submatriculation program is 36. These four courses may be part of the major requirements or the electives of the undergraduate program, but may not include courses in independent study. Some graduate programs may permit fewer than four courses to be double counted.
Graduate courses taken prior to admission into a submatriculation program
in Arts and Sciences cannot ordinarily be applied toward the master's degree. The only exceptions are these professional master's programs:
• Master of Environmental Studies
• Master of Science in Applied Geosciences
• Master of Medical Physics.
Regulations
for non-Arts and Sciences submatriculation programs may vary.
Independent study courses applied to the master's degree in the Graduate Division of Arts and Sciences may not be taken as part of the B.A. degree requirements, must be numbered at the 600 level and above, and must be approved in advance by the Associate Dean for Graduate Studies.
College students submatriculating in the Arts and Sciences professional master's programs listed above or in non-Arts and Sciences graduate programs will normally receive their Bachelor of Arts degree after four years and then be considered solely graduate or professional students.
The submatriculating student should go to the graduate school office in November of the student’s senior year to ensure that papers for the M.A. are in order.
Residency
All coursework for a master’s degree from Arts and Sciences must be completed at Penn. No transfer, study abroad, or study away courses will be accepted. Requirements for non-Arts and Sciences programs may vary.
